Audi banks on proven drivers in the 2009 DTM

Audi starts the 2009 DTM season at the Hockenheimring on 17 May with something new: For the first time there is not a single change to the driving squad compared to the previous year.

"2008 was the most successful year in the motorsport history of AUDI AG," explains Head of Audi Motorsport Dr. Wolfgang Ullrich. "The drivers were also a major factor in this, which is why we saw no reason to change anything on our proven driver squad."

As in 2007 and 2008, Mattias Ekström (Sweden), Tom Kristensen (Denmark), Timo Scheider (Germany) and Martin Tomczyk (Germany) will drive the four latest generation Audi A4 DTM cars, which are once again fielded by Audi Sport Team Abt Sportsline.

The two Germans Mike Rockenfeller and Markus Winkelhock compete with year old cars again for Audi Sport Team Rosberg, plus Oliver Jarvis (Great Britain) and Alexandre Prémat (France) for Audi Sport Team Phoenix.

The only change to the team line-up concerns Katherine Legge: The Briton, who contested her first DTM season in 2008 with a two-year old A4, moves from customer team Futurecom TME to Audi Sport Team Abt Sportsline where she will drive a year-old car for the first time.

"We decided to concentrate on our three factory teams Abt Sportsline, Phoenix and Rosberg," explains Dr. Wolfgang Ullrich. "It’s a great opportunity for Katherine to start for the defending DTM championship winning team."

Audi’s goal for the 2009 DTM season is ambitious: The brand with the four rings aims to become the first automobile manufacturer in the history of the "new" DTM to win the championship title three times in succession. "With our proven driving squad I believe that we are well placed to achieve this," says Dr. Wolfgang Ullrich. "However, it’s perfectly clear to us that the challenge is even greater than last year and that the field could well be even closer. Our competitor Mercedes-Benz will do everything to win the title in 2009."

For the 2009 season Audi has further developed last year’s championship winning car and made detail improvements. The Audi A4 DTM, known as the "R14 plus" internally, meets the competition for the first time at the official DTM test at Dijon (France) between 14 and 16 April. The presentation of the 2009 DTM is held in Düsseldorf on April 19, before the new season opens at Hockenheim four weeks later.

Katherine Legge: “The opportunity that I have been given this year is the best one I have ever had in my career. I’m really excited and motivated about the forthcoming season. Driving for Abt is the best possible situation for me. They have a wealth of race and championship winning experience. I have no excuses being with a team like Abt this year, having such experienced team mates and the added bonus of a 2008 car.

“The vast majority of the tracks were new to me [last year] but now that I’ve learnt them and understand the unique format of DTM in terms of qualifying and the races, I know what to expect and can use this experience to my benefit. 2008 was tough but you gain strength during adversity and with a positive attitude you emerge stronger and more determined as a person. Audi have taught me a lot and I have ‘grown’ as a person because one of the bonuses about driving in a big team is that we all help each other in so many ways and you improve as an individual and also a team player.

“I’m extremely grateful to Dr Ullrich and Audi. I fully intend to make the most of this opportunity and to prove to Audi that I am an indispensible part of its team. I am very much looking forward to the first test when I can start working with my new team and putting my marker down for the new season and the first race at Hockenheim. I am proud to continue being apart of the Audi Sport family. The company is much more than a quality brand so to get the opportunity to remain part of it is like a dream come true. To drive for Audi as a professional driver is one of the best jobs in the business and I couldn't be happier!"

Oliver Jarvis: “I’m delighted to again be part of Audi Sport and especially to be re uniting with Team Phoenix who did such a great job for me last year. I enjoyed my first year in the DTM and it was especially good to be a factory driver for a manufacturer for the first time in my career.

“I start the season very confident that with a great team behind me, I can achieve my ultimate goal of becoming the top driver in a year old car but also to fight for podium finishes wherever possible throughout the year. Whereas 2008 was a very steep learning curve for myself with everything being new, I can head into this season with a much better insight into how the DTM works.

“I had some very good qualifying performances last season and aim to use my experience to turn these into more consistent points finishes this season. I’m hoping to adapt quickly to the new car so as to be competitive from the opening race – to be in a position to score points in the early races is very important.”