Daniel Juncadella eighth and Jake Dennis ninth in Aston Martin’s home race at Brands Hatch
Daniel Juncadella: “Sunday today was excellent. My pace was great, and P8 is a decent result that we can be satisfied with”
Jake Dennis: “All in all, that was a very positive race for me. We made a lot of progress from qualifying to the race, so overall, I’m very pleased”
Dr Florian Kamelger: “We achieved the maximum possible today with P8 and P9. Our lap times show that we’ve continued to make progress, which is especially gratifying at Aston Martin’s home race in England”
Two points-scoring finishes for the Aston Martin Vantage DTM at Brands Hatch: Daniel Juncadella finishes just 5.2 secs down on race winner, Rene Rast, Jake Dennis 6.1 secs adrift
In the team’s second home race this weekend at Brands Hatch, R-Motorsport took another two lots of points on British soil with the Aston Martin Vantage DTM.
Daniel Juncadella (28, Spain) had achieved a result in the Top Ten on Saturday and finished eighth on Sunday in the second race at the famous British circuit. Juncadella started the race from tenth place and made his mandatory pit stop on Lap 13.
Juncadella’s team-mate, Jake Dennis (24, Great Britain), came home directly behind him in ninth place, thus ensuring that the team achieved a double points-scoring finish. The British driver moved up eight positions in all during his home race. He came in to change tyres towards the middle of the race on Lap 20.
Ferdinand von Habsburg (22, Austria) in eleventh place just missed another finish in the points. The Austrian made a late pit stop on Lap 23 and gained a total of seven places in the race as compared to his original grid position.
Paul Di Resta (33, Great Britain) led the race for a short time before his mandatory stop on Lap 23 but then dropped out of the Top Ten after a misunderstanding in the pits. He came home in 14th place.
The DTM team will head next to the Lausitzring after their home race at Brands Hatch to contest the seventh race weekend of the season, 23rd-25th August.
Comments after the race
Daniel Juncadella
Qualifying: P10
Race: P08
Start number: 23
Car: Aston Martin Vantage DTM
“Sunday today was excellent. Things went well for me earlier in qualifying, and my start was strong. I overtook two cars right away. After that, though, I was forced off track in Turn 2 and lost the places again. I then had a really nice scrap with Marco Wittmann, which was very enjoyable. Consequently, my pace was excellent, and P8 is a decent result that we can be satisfied with. Now we have to analyse the race to see where we can still improve. I also made a small mistake that cost me a position, but ultimately, I’m pleased to be back in the points again.”
Jake Dennis
Qualifying: P17
Race: P09
Start number: 76
Car: Aston Martin Vantage DTM
“All in all, that was a very positive race for me. I started from the back and ended up scoring two points. I might even have done a little better if I’d managed to pass Paul during the first stint and then we could have closed the gap on Sheldon. The second stint was really good and I had excellent speed, which enabled me to catch up with the front-runners. That was a positive development. We made a lot of progress from qualifying to the race, so overall, I’m very pleased.”
Ferdinand von Habsburg
Qualifying: P18
Race: P11
Start number: 62
Car: Aston Martin Vantage DTM
“That was a good, clean race. We pitted about half-way through and didn’t take any silly risks with strategy. That turned out to be the right thing to do, as there’s not much chance of the safety car having to come out here. My second stint was very strong but what’s very positive for me is that I was able to continue to improve my race pace. I just missed the points in the end, because I had to start well down the field. Still, I now know where to start as regards to continuing to improve.”
Paul Di Resta
Qualifying: P15
Race: P14
Start number: 03
Car: Aston Martin Vantage DTM
“We had problems with the radio again. This is the third race in a row that it’s happened. Unfortunately, it cost us a possible good finish in today’s race.”
Dr Florian Kamelger, Team Principal
“We achieved the maximum possible today with P8 and P9, but what’s particularly encouraging is that Dani and Jake finished just 5.2 and 6.1 seconds respectively behind race winner, Rene Rast. Ferdinand too in eleventh place turned in a solid performance. It’s a pity, though, that Paul lost more than 20 seconds during his pit stop due to a misunderstanding and missed a certain points-scoring finish as a result. Our lap times show that we’ve continued to make progress, which is especially gratifying at Aston Martin’s home race in England.”
Foto
Second points-scoring result of weekend for Daniel Juncadella, Copy: R-Motorsport