2003 Nürburgring I Race

2003 Nürburgring I Race
The Nürburgring returned for the third round of 2003.
Race Information
Date	25 May 2003
No.	59 (3 of 2003)
Event	DTM Nürburg 2003
Location	Nürburgring Sprint Nürburg, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany
Format	145 km / 70 min (Championship Race)
Lap length	3.625 km (2.249 mi)
Distance	41 laps / 148.789 km (92.453 mi)
Qualifying Result
Pole Sitter	Marcel Fässler
Team	AMG-Mercedes
Time	1:24.963
Fastest Lap
Driver	Bernd Schneider
Team	Vodafone/Express Service AMG-Mercedes
Time	1:25.528 on lap 22
Race Result
First	Second	Third
Christijan Albers	Marcel Fässler	Laurent Aïello
Winner Team	Vodafone/Express Service AMG-Mercedes
Time	1:01:38.184
Race Guide
Previous		Next
2003 Adria Race		2003 Lausitzring Race

The 2003 Nürburgring I Race, formally known as the DTM Nürburg 2003, was the third round of the 2003 DMSB Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters Championship at the Nürburgring Sprint Circuit in Nürburg, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany, on 8 June 2003. The race would see Christijan Albers sweep to his second victory, eight seconds clear of Marcel Fässler in second.

Qualifying saw Fässler best Albers in a duel for pole position in the Super Pole shootout, as younger drivers dominated the session on the shortened Nürburgring circuit. Indeed, Abt-Audi youths Martin Tomczyk and Mattias Ekström would share the second row, while defending Champion Bernd Schneider secured sixth behind the lead Opel for Alain Menu.

The start of the race saw Fässler and Albers make reasonable starts, which left them vulnerable to attack from behind from the faster starting Abt-Audis. Indeed, as Albers drew alongside Fässler on the run to turn one, Ekström would surge past the pair of them to claim the lead, while Tomczyk weaved around behind in a bid to find a gap.

The fight for second behind the bolting Ekström continued through the opening complex of corners, with Fässler eventually emerging ahead of Albers, while Tomczyk slotted into fourth. Behind, Karl Wendlinger was spun around at turn one, while Christian Abt was forced into a spin exiting turn two in the middle of the mob, although neither of the Abt-Audis were collected.

With that the race quickly settled, with the top three breaking away with Tomczyk and Menu in tow, while behind Bernd Schneider and Laurent Aïello began easing up the order. Gary Paffett, meanwhile, would become an early casualty after striking a dislodged tyre bundle at the chicane, which required a Safety Car to be cleared from the track.

After the SC the race resumed with Ekström leading the way, although after just one lap several drivers, including Fässler, Schneider and Aïello darted into the pits for their first stops. Aïello and Schneider duly began fighting on their fresh rubber, while Ekström would wait until shortly before the halfway point to make his first stop.

That decision dumped Ekström back down the field behind Schneider, while Fässler briefly assumed the lead before Albers fired past him to take control. Behind, Menu was fending off Schneider, Schneider and Aïello for third, with that fight lasting until the second round of pit stops.

That exchange saw Menu throw away a bid for the podium by earning himself a penalty, while Aïello leapt ahead of Schneider to claim the Swiss racer's position. Albers, meanwhile, would remain in control of the race ahead of Fässler, while Ekström lost a lot of time by stopping early and getting caught in the pack.

With that the race was run, with Albers duly cruising to the chequered flag to secure victory, a few seconds clear of Fässler in second. Behind, Aïello and Schneider engaged in a furious duel for third which was ultimately won by the Frenchman as tyre life came into play, while Peter Dumbreck was best Opel in fifth. Menu ended the day in sixth ahead of a frustrated Ekström, while Abt claimed the final point in eighth after a late truel between themselves and Manuel Reuter.

Background

Two weeks after the Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters' maiden voyage to Italy, the field would reconvene back in Germany at the familiar sight of the Eifel Mountains in Rhineland-Palatinate. Indeed, the third round of 2003 would see the DTM field use the revised Sprint Circuit at the Nürburgring that had debuted in 2002 which was unchanged for its second DTM round. There was, however, a change to the entry list ahead of 2003 visit to Nürburg, with Gary Paffett making his DTM debut in place of Patrick Huisman, who left to focus on his Porsche Supercup commitments.

Albers' Ace

Bernd Schneider continued to lead the way in the Championship after the second round of the campaign, although the German racer's lead was non-existent in terms of both of points and on count-back. Indeed, teammate Christijan Albers had moved level with the two-time Champion on fourteen points, and had matched Schneider's 2003 record of a victory and a fifth place finish. Behind them sat Marcel Fässler, just a point behind, while Laurent Aïello was himself just two off the leaders in fourth.

Elsewhere, Vodafone/ES AMG-Mercedes unsurprisingly continued to lead the early charge in the Teams' Championship, having claimed victory in the opening two rounds with both of their drivers. Sister squad AMG-Mercedes were next up in second, eight off the lead, while Hasseröder Abt-Audi were the best of the Audi squads in third, sixteen behind. In the Manufacturers' Championship, meanwhile, Mercedes continued to lead the charge on 48 points, leaving them 27 clear of Abt-Audi in second.

Entry List

The full entry list for the 2003 Nürburgring I Race is displayed below:

2003 Nürburgring I Race Entry List
No.	Name	Entrant	Constructor	Chassis	Livery
1	Laurent Aïello	Hasseröder Abt-Audi	Abt-Audi	TT-R 2003
2	Christian Abt	Hasseröder Abt-Audi	Abt-Audi	TT-R 2003
3	Bernd Schneider	Vodafone/Express Service AMG-Mercedes	AMG-Mercedes	CLK-DTM 2003
4	Christijan Albers	Vodafone/Express Service AMG-Mercedes	AMG-Mercedes	CLK-DTM 2003
5	Mattias Ekström	PlayStation 2 Red Bull Abt-Audi	Abt-Audi	TT-R 2003
6	Karl Wendlinger	PlayStation 2 Red Bull Abt-Audi	Abt-Audi	TT-R 2003
7	Manuel Reuter	OPC Team Holzer	Opel	Astra V8 Coupé DTM
8	Alain Menu	OPC Team Holzer	Opel	Astra V8 Coupé DTM
9	Marcel Fässler	AMG-Mercedes	AMG-Mercedes	CLK-DTM 2003
10	Jean Alesi	AMG-Mercedes	AMG-Mercedes	CLK-DTM 2003
11	Thomas Jäger	Original-Teile AMG-Mercedes	AMG-Mercedes	CLK-DTM 2002
12	Bernd Mayländer	Original-Teile AMG-Mercedes	AMG-Mercedes	CLK-DTM 2002
14	Martin Tomczyk	S Line Audi Junior Team	Abt-Audi	TT-R 2002
15	Peter Terting	S Line Audi Junior Team	Abt-Audi	TT-R 2002
16	Joachim Winkelhock	OPC Euroteam	Opel	Astra V8 Coupé DTM
17	Jeroen Bleekemolen	OPC Euroteam	Opel	Astra V8 Coupé DTM
18	Timo Scheider	OPC Team Phoenix	Opel	Astra V8 Coupé DTM
19	Peter Dumbreck	OPC Team Phoenix	Opel	Astra V8 Coupé DTM
20	Katsutomo Kaneishi	ARTA AMG-Mercedes	AMG-Mercedes	CLK-DTM 2002
24	Gary Paffett	Service 24h AMG-Mercedes	AMG-Mercedes	CLK-DTM 2001
42	Stefan Mücke	Service 24h AMG-Mercedes	AMG-Mercedes	CLK-DTM 2001
Source:

Qualifying

Results

The final qualifying result for the 2003 Nürburgring I Race are outlined below:

2003 Nürburgring I Race Qualifying Result
Super Pole Results
Pos.	No.	Name	Team	Time	Gap	Ave. Speed	Grid
1st	9	Marcel Fässler	AMG-Mercedes	1:24.963	—	153.765 km/h	1
2nd	4	Christijan Albers	Vodafone/ES AMG-Mercedes	1:24.984	+0.021s	153.727 km/h	2
3rd	14	Martin Tomczyk	S-Line Audi Junior Team	1:25.205	+0.242s	153.329 km/h	3
4th	5	Mattias Ekström	PS2 Red Bull Abt-Audi	1:25.281	+0.318s	153.192 km/h	4
5th	8	Alain Menu	OPC Team Holzer	1:25.308	+0.345s	153.143 km/h	5
6th	3	Bernd Schneider	Vodafone/ES AMG-Mercedes	1:25.323	+0.360s	153.116 km/h	6
7th	19	Peter Dumbreck	OPC Team Phoenix	1:25.512	+0.549s	152.778 km/h	7
8th	2	Christian Abt	Hasseröder Abt-Audi	1:25.568	+0.605s	152.678 km/h	8
9th	17	Jeroen Bleekemolen	OPC Euroteam	1:25.791	+0.828s	152.281 km/h	9
10th	10	Jean Alesi	AMG-Mercedes	1:25.828	+0.865s	152.216 km/h	10
Qualifying Results
Pos.	No.	Name	Team	Time	Gap	Ave. Speed	Grid
1st	4	Christijan Albers	Vodafone/ES AMG-Mercedes	1:25.009	—	153.682 km/h	SP
2nd	5	Mattias Ekström	PS2 Red Bull Abt-Audi	1:25.019	+0.010s	153.664 km/h	SP
3rd	3	Bernd Schneider	Vodafone/ES AMG-Mercedes	1:25.218	+0.209s	153.305 km/h	SP
4th	10	Jean Alesi	AMG-Mercedes	1:25.262	+0.253s	153.226 km/h	SP
5th	14	Martin Tomczyk	S-Line Audi Junior Team	1:25.304	+0.295s	153.151 km/h	SP
6th	8	Alain Menu	OPC Team Holzer	1:25.355	+0.346s	153.059 km/h	SP
7th	9	Marcel Fässler	AMG-Mercedes	1:25.364	+0.355s	153.043 km/h	SP
8th	2	Christian Abt	Hasseröder Abt-Audi	1:25.400	+0.391s	152.978 km/h	SP
9th	19	Peter Dumbreck	OPC Team Phoenix	1:25.524	+0.515s	152.757 km/h	SP
10th	17	Jeroen Bleekemolen	OPC Euroteam	1:25.635	+0.626s	152.559 km/h	SP
11th	1	Laurent Aïello	Hasseröder Abt-Audi	1:25.642	+0.633s	152.546 km/h	11
12th	7	Manuel Reuter	OPC Team Holzer	1:25.819	+0.810s	152.232 km/h	12
13th	6	Karl Wendlinger	PS2 Red Bull Abt-Audi	1:25.851	+0.842s	152.175 km/h	13
14th	18	Timo Scheider	OPC Team Phoenix	1:25.891	+0.882s	152.104 km/h	14
15th	16	Joachim Winkelhock	OPC Euroteam	1:25.977	+0.968s	151.952 km/h	15
16th	24	Gary Paffett	Service 24h AMG-Mercedes	1:26.218	+1.209s	151.527 km/h	16
17th	42	Stefan Mücke	Service 24h AMG-Mercedes	1:26.284	+1.275s	151.411 km/h	17
18th	11	Thomas Jäger	Original-Teile AMG-Mercedes	1:26.440	+1.431s	151.138 km/h	18
19th	12	Bernd Mayländer	Original-Teile AMG-Mercedes	1:26.506	+1.497s	151.023 km/h	19
20th	15	Peter Terting	S-Line Audi Junior Team	1:26.635	+1.626s	150.798 km/h	20
21st	20	Katsutomo Kaneishi	ARTA AMG-Mercedes	1:27.056	+2.047s	150.068 km/h	21
107% Time: 1:30.959
Source:

• Bold indicates a driver's best/qualifying time.

Grid

The starting grid for the 2003 Nürburgring I Race in shown below:

		20	Katsutomo Kaneishi	1:27.056			12	Bernd Mayländer	1:26.506			42	Stefan Mücke	1:26.284			16	Joachim Winkelhock	1:25.977			6	Karl Wendlinger	1:25.851			1	Laurent Aïello	1:25.642			17	Jeroen Bleekemolen	1:25.791			19	Peter Dumbreck	1:25.512			8	Alain Menu	1:25.308			14	Martin Tomczyk	1:25.205			9	Marcel Fässler	1:24.963
						15	Peter Terting		1:26.635		11	Thomas Jäger		1:26.440		24	Gary Paffett		1:26.218		18	Timo Scheider		1:25.891		7	Manuel Reuter		1:25.819		10	Jean Alesi		1:25.828		2	Christian Abt		1:25.568		3	Bernd Schneider		1:25.323		5	Mattias Ekström		1:25.281		4	Christijan Albers		1:24.984

Race

Results

The final classification of the 2003 Nürburgring I Race is displayed below:

2003 Nürburgring I Race Result
Pos.	No.	Name	Team	Laps	Race Time	Fastest lap	Pts.
1st	4	Christijan Albers	Vodafone/ES AMG-Mercedes	41	1:01:38.184		10
2nd	9	Marcel Fässler	AMG-Mercedes	41	+7.954s		8
3rd	1	Laurent Aïello	Hasseröder Abt-Audi	41	+12.668s		6
4th	3	Bernd Schneider	Vodafone/ES AMG-Mercedes	41	+15.400s	1:25.258	5
5th	19	Peter Dumbreck	OPC Team Phoenix	41	+19.280s		4
6th	8	Alain Menu	OPC Team Holzer	41	+34.671s		3
7th	5	Mattias Ekström	PS2 Red Bull Abt-Audi	41	+36.495s		2
8th	2	Christian Abt	Hasseröder Abt-Audi	41	+37.356s		1
9th	7	Manuel Reuter	OPC Team Holzer	41	+42.558s
10th	16	Joachim Winkelhock	OPC Euroteam	41	+45.752s
11th	17	Jeroen Bleekemolen	OPC Euroteam	41	+54.006s
12th	11	Thomas Jäger	Original-Teile AMG-Mercedes	41	+55.035s
13th	18	Timo Scheider	OPC Team Phoenix	41	+55.721s
14th	15	Peter Terting	S-Line Audi Junior Team	41	+56.319s
15th	42	Stefan Mücke	Service 24h AMG-Mercedes	41	+57.556s
16th	6	Karl Wendlinger	PS2 Red Bull Abt-Audi	41	+1:09.605
17th	12	Bernd Mayländer	Original-Teile AMG-Mercedes	41	+1:13.353
18th	14	Martin Tomczyk	S-Line Audi Junior Team	41	+1:20.433
19th	20	Katsutomo Kaneishi	ARTA AMG-Mercedes	41	+1:29.416
Ret	10	Jean Alesi	AMG-Mercedes	9	Damage
Ret	24	Gary Paffett	Service 24h AMG-Mercedes	2	Damage
Source:

• Bold indicates a driver started from pole.
• Italics indicate that a driver set fastest lap.

Milestones

• Debut race for Gary Paffett.
• Second career victory for Christijan Albers.
• 31st win for HWA Team as an entrant.
  • Mercedes secured their 33rd victory as a manufacturer.

Standings

Victory for the second race in succession left Christijan Albers atop the Championship hunt after the third round, the Dutchman having moved onto 24 points for the campaign. Marcel Fässler, meanwhile, had ascended to second but slipped three off the lead, while Bernd Schneider slipped five off the lead in third, having arrived at the Nürburgring level with his teammate. Laurent Aïello and Mattias Ekström then completed the top five, while Peter Dumbreck led the Opel contingent in sixth.

Vodafone/ES AMG-Mercedes led the charge in the Teams' Championship after three rounds, with Albers and Schneider having won all three races to earn the German squad 43 points. Sister squad AMG-Mercedes were in second, fifteen off the lead, while Hasseröder Abt-Audi occupied third on nineteen. In the Manufacturers' Championship AMG-Mercedes continued to head the charge, having moved onto 71 points for the season to leave them 41 clear of Abt-Audi.

 

2003 Drivers' Championship Pos. Name Pts. +/- 1st Christijan Albers 24 ◄0 2nd Marcel Fässler 21 ▲1 3rd Bernd Schneider 19 ▼2 4th Laurent Aïello 18 ◄0 5th Mattias Ekström 11 ◄0 6th Peter Dumbreck 10 ▲1 7th Jean Alesi 7 ▼1 8th Alain Menu 4 ▲1 9th Timo Scheider 2 ▼1 10th Christian Abt 1 ▲1

2003 Teams' Championship Pos. Name Pts. +/- 1st Vodafone/ES AMG-Mercedes 43 ◄0 2nd AMG-Mercedes 28 ◄0 3rd Hasseröder Abt-Audi 19 ◄0 4th OPC Team Phoenix 12 ▲1 5th PS2 Red Bull Abt-Audi 11 ▼1 6th OPC Team Holzer 4 ◄0 2003 Manufacturers' Championship Pos. Name Pts. +/- 1st AMG-Mercedes 71 ◄0 2nd Abt-Audi 30 ◄0 3rd Opel 16 ◄0

Only point scoring drivers and teams are shown.

References

Images and Videos:

• Liveries: byggxx, 'Rennwagen (2003)', dtm.fandom.com/de, (DTM Wiki/de, 2021), https://dtm.fandom.com/de/wiki/Kategorie:Rennwagen_(2003), (Accessed 03/07/2021)

References: