2004 Estoril Race

2004 Estoril Race
File:Estoril 1999.png The Estoril Circuit made its DTM debut in 2004.
Race Information
Date	2 May 2004
No.	68 (2 of 2004)
Event	DTM Estoril 2004
Location	Circuito do Estoril Estoril, Cascais, Portugal
Format	150 km / 70 min (Championship Race
Lap length	4.182 km (2.599 mi)
Distance	37 laps / 154.771 km (96.170 mi)
Qualifying Result
Pole Sitter	Mattias Ekström
Team	Audi Sport Team Abt
Time	1:34.039
Fastest Lap
Driver	Gary Paffett
Team	AMG-Mercedes
Time	1:35.528 on lap 29
Race Result
First	Second	Third
Christijan Albers	Mattias Ekström	Martin Tomczyk
Winner Team	Vodafone/DC Bank AMG-Mercedes
Time	1:00:22.163
Race Guide
Previous		Next
2004 Hockenheim Opening Race		2004 Adria Race

The 2004 Estoril Race, formally known as DTM Estoril 2004, was the second round of the 2004 DMSB Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters Championship, staged at the Circuito do Estoril in Estoril, Cascais, Portugal, on 2 May 2004. The first ever DTM round to be staged in Portugal, the race would see Christijan Albers sweep to his fifth and final DTM victory.

Qualifying saw Mattias Ekström sweep to pole position, the Swedish ace beating early Championship leader Gary Paffett by two tenths of a second. Timo Scheider made it all three manufacturers on the front two rows by putting his Opel into third, while Martin Tomczyk claimed fourth in his #6 Audi.

Background

Three weeks after the season opening round at the ever-present Hockenheimring, the DMSB Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters would head to new territory for the second round of the 2004 season. Indeed, the Circuito do Estoril was to host the second round of the 2004 campaign, which was not only the first DTM race at the Portuguese venue, but also the first DTM round to be held in Portugal. The Series would use the full Grand Prix layout of the Estoril circuit, with the entry list unchanged from the opening race in Hockenheim.

Paffett's Perk

Gary Paffett would lead the DTM Championship after the opening round of the 2004 season, the British ace having claimed ten points for his race one victory. Christijan Albers was next up in second ahead of Mattias Ekström, with Tom Kristensen, Martin Tomczyk, Peter Dumbreck, Emanuele Pirro and Timo Scheider the other day one scorers.

In the Teams' Championship it was the secondary HWA Team entry under the AMG-Mercedes banner that led the Championship, level on points with Audi Team Abt but ahead after winning the opening race. HWA's main Vodafone/DC Bank entry were next up in third, two off the lead, while Audi Team Abt Sportsline and OPC Team Holzer 1 completed the top five. In the Manufacturers' Championship AMG-Mercedes headed the charge after the opening weekend, a point ahead of Audi in second, and fourteen clear of Opel.

Entry List

The full entry list for the 2004 Estoril Race is displayed below:

2004 Estoril Race Entry List
No.	Name	Entrant	Constructor	Chassis	Livery
1	Bernd Schneider	Vodafone/DaimlerChrysler AMG-Mercedes	AMG-Mercedes	C-Klasse DTM
2	Christijan Albers	Vodafone/DaimlerChrysler AMG-Mercedes	AMG-Mercedes	C-Klasse DTM
3	Marcel Fässler	OPC Team Holzer 1	Opel	Vectra GTS V8
4	Laurent Aïello	OPC Team Phoenix	Opel	Vectra GTS V8
5	Mattias Ekström	Audi Sport Team Abt	Audi	A4 DTM
6	Martin Tomczyk	Audi Sport Team Abt	Audi	A4 DTM
7	Gary Paffett	AMG-Mercedes	AMG-Mercedes	C-Klasse DTM
8	Jean Alesi	AMG-Mercedes	AMG-Mercedes	C-Klasse DTM
9	Heinz-Harald Frentzen	OPC Team Holzer 2	Opel	Vectra GTS V8
10	Manuel Reuter	OPC Team Holzer 2	Opel	Vectra GTS V8
11	Christian Abt	Audi Sport Team Abt Sportsline	Audi	A4 DTM
12	Tom Kristensen	Audi Sport Team Abt Sportsline	Audi	A4 DTM
14	Peter Dumbreck	OPC Team Holzer 1	Opel	Vectra GTS V8
15	Timo Scheider	OPC Team Phoenix	Opel	Vectra GTS V8
16	Jeroen Bleekemolen	OPC Euroteam	Opel	Astra V8 Coupé DTM
17	Markus Winkelhock	Original-Teile AMG-Mercedes	AMG-Mercedes	CLK-DTM
18	Stefan Mücke	Original-Teile AMG-Mercedes	AMG-Mercedes	CLK-DTM
20	Jarek Janiš	Sonax Dark Dog AMG-Mercedes	AMG-Mercedes	CLK-DTM
21	Bernd Mayländer	Sonax Dark Dog AMG-Mercedes	AMG-Mercedes	CLK-DTM
44	Emanuele Pirro	Audi Sport Infineon Team Joest	Audi	A4 DTM
45	Frank Biela	Audi Sport Infineon Team Joest	Audi	A4 DTM
Source:

Qualifying

Results

The final qualifying result for the 2004 Estoril Race are outlined below:

2004 Estoril Race Qualifying Result
Super Pole Results
Pos.	No.	Name	Team	Time	Gap	Ave. Speed	Grid
1st	5	Mattias Ekström	Audi Team Abt	1:34.039	—	160.133 km/h	1
2nd	7	Gary Paffett	AMG-Mercedes	1:34.261	+0.222s	159.756 km/h	2
3rd	15	Timo Scheider	OPC Team Phoenix	1:34.512	+0.473s	159.332 km/h	3
4th	6	Martin Tomczyk	Audi Team Abt	1:34.621	+0.582s	159.148 km/h	4
5th	12	Tom Kristensen	Audi Team Abt Sportsline	1:34.677	+0.638s	159.054 km/h	5
6th	2	Christijan Albers	Vodafone/DC Bank AMG-Mercedes	1:34.700	+0.661s	159.015 km/h	6
7th	1	Bernd Schneider	Vodafone/DC Bank AMG-Mercedes	1:34.745	+0.706s	158.940 km/h	7
8th	9	Heinz-Harald Frentzen	OPC Team Holzer 2	1:34.873	+0.834s	158.725 km/h	8
9th	8	Jean Alesi	AMG-Mercedes	1:34.907	+0.868s	158.669 km/h	9
10th	11	Christian Abt	Audi Team Abt Sportsline	1:35.097	+1.058s	158.351 km/h	10
Qualifying Results
Pos.	No.	Name	Team	Time	Gap	Ave. Speed	Grid
1st	5	Mattias Ekström	Audi Team Abt	1:34.100	—	160.029 km/h	SP
2nd	2	Christijan Albers	Vodafone/DC Bank AMG-Mercedes	1:34.348	+0.248s	159.609 km/h	SP
3rd	7	Gary Paffett	AMG-Mercedes	1:34.411	+0.311s	159.502 km/h	SP
4th	12	Tom Kristensen	Audi Team Abt Sportsline	1:34.446	+0.346s	159.443 km/h	SP
5th	6	Martin Tomczyk	Audi Team Abt	1:34.712	+0.612s	158.995 km/h	SP
6th	8	Jean Alesi	AMG-Mercedes	1:34.814	+0.714s	158.824 km/h	SP
7th	1	Bernd Schneider	Vodafone/DC Bank AMG-Mercedes	1:34.833	+0.733s	158.792 km/h	SP
8th	9	Heinz-Harald Frentzen	OPC Team Holzer 2	1:34.917	+0.817s	158.652 km/h	SP
9th	15	Timo Scheider	OPC Team Phoenix	1:34.932	+0.832s	158.627 km/h	SP
10th	11	Christian Abt	Audi Team Abt Sportsline	1:34.975	+0.875s	158.555 km/h	SP
11th	14	Peter Dumbreck	OPC Team Holzer 1	1:34.981	+0.881s	158.545 km/h	11
12th	10	Manuel Reuter	OPC Team Holzer 2	1:35.018	+0.983s	158.483 km/h	12
13th	3	Marcel Fässler	OPC Team Holzer 1	1:35.083	+0.983s	158.375 km/h	13
14th	4	Laurent Aïello	OPC Team Phoenix	1:35.289	+1.189s	158.032 km/h	14
15th	45	Frank Biela	Audi Team Joest	1:35.306	+1.206s	158.004 km/h	15
16th	44	Emanuele Pirro	Audi Team Joest	1:35.404	+1.304s	157.842 km/h	16
17th	20	Jarek Janiš	Sonax Dark Dog AMG-Mercedes	1:35.714	+1.614s	157.331 km/h	17
18th	16	Jeroen Bleekemolen	OPC Euroteam	1:36.017	+1.917s	156.834 km/h	18
19th	18	Stefan Mücke	Original-Teile AMG-Mercedes	1:36.159	+2.059s	156.603 km/h	19
20th	21	Bernd Mayländer	Sonax Dark Dog AMG-Mercedes	1:36.193	+2.093s	156.547 km/h	20
21st	17	Markus Winkelhock	Original-Teile AMG-Mercedes	1:36.233	+2.133s	156.482 km/h	21
107% Time: 1:40.687
Source:

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

Grid

The starting grid for the 2004 Estoril Race in shown below:

		17	Markus Winkelhock	1:36.233			18	Stefan Mücke	1:36.159			20	Jarek Janiš	1:35.714			45	Frank Biela	1:35.306			3	Marcel Fässler	1:35.083			14	Peter Dumbreck	1:34.981			8	Jean Alesi	1:34.907			1	Bernd Schneider	1:34.745			12	Tom Kristensen	1:34.677			15	Timo Scheider	1:34.512			5	Mattias Ekström	1:34.039
						21	Bernd Mayländer		1:36.193		16	Jeroen Bleekemolen		1:36.017		44	Emanuele Pirro		1:35.404		4	Laurent Aïello		1:35.289		10	Manuel Reuter		1:35.018		11	Christian Abt		1:35.097		9	Heinz-Harald Frentzen		1:34.873		2	Christijan Albers		1:34.700		6	Martin Tomczyk		1:34.621		7	Gary Paffett		1:34.261

Race

Results

The final classification of the 2004 Estoril Race is displayed below:

2004 Estoril Race Result
Pos.	No.	Name	Team	Laps	Race Time	Fastest lap	Pts.
1st	2	Christijan Albers	Vodafone/DC Bank AMG-Mercedes	37	1:00:22.163	1:35.662	10
2nd	5	Mattias Ekström	Audi Team Abt	37	+0.652s	1:35.756	8
3rd	6	Martin Tomczyk	Audi Team Abt	37	+3.898s	1:35.633	6
4th	12	Tom Kristensen	Audi Team Abt Sportsline	37	+5.101s	1:36.010	5
5th	1	Bernd Schneider	Vodafone/DC Bank AMG-Mercedes	37	+6.036s	1:36.097	4
6th	15	Timo Scheider	OPC Team Phoenix	37	+9.467s	1:35.775	3
7th	8	Jean Alesi	AMG-Mercedes	37	+10.032s	1:36.002	2
8th	4	Laurent Aïello	OPC Team Phoenix	37	+33.985s	1:36.216	1
9th	14	Peter Dumbreck	OPC Team Holzer 1	37	+36.281s	1:36.244
10th	11	Christian Abt	Audi Team Abt Sportsline	37	+46.048s	1:36.344
11th	44	Emanuele Pirro	Audi Team Joest	37	+46.981s	1:36.097
12th	9	Heinz-Harald Frentzen	OPC Team Holzer 2	37	+52.144s	1:36.653
13th	7	Gary Paffett	AMG-Mercedes	37	+55.512s	1:35.528
14th	18	Stefan Mücke	Original-Teile AMG-Mercedes	37	+58.199s	1:36.961
15th	45	Frank Biela	Audi Team Joest	37	+1:00.090	1:36.914
16th	10	Manuel Reuter	OPC Team Holzer 2	37	+1:00.822	1:36.082
17th	17	Markus Winkelhock	Original-Teile AMG-Mercedes	37	+1:05.732	1:36.799
18th	21	Bernd Mayländer	Sonax Dark Dog AMG-Mercedes	37	+1:16.170	1:36.814
19th	16	Jeroen Bleekemolen	OPC Euroteam	37	+1:35.207	1:37.942
20th	3	Marcel Fässler	OPC Team Holzer 1	31	+6 Laps	1:36.039
Ret	20	Jarek Janiš	Sonax Dark Dog AMG-Mercedes	9	Retired	1:37.636
Source:

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

Milestones

• First DMSB Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters race to be staged in Portugal.
  • Also the first DTM round to be held at the Circuito do Estoril.
• Fifth and final victory for Christijan Albers.
• 39th win for HWA Team as an entrant.
  • Mercedes secured their 41st victory as a manufacturer.

Standings

Victory for Christijan Albers saw the Dutchman move to the top of the Championship with eighteen points, leaving him four clear of Mattias Ekström in second. Gary Paffett was next up in third having lost the Championship lead, and was instead level with Martin Tomczyk and Tom Kristensen on ten points. Bernd Schneider was next up after his first points of the campaign, with Jean Alesi and Laurent Aïello also having claimed their first points of the season.

In the Teams' Championship Audi Team Abt led the charge after the second race, with Vodafone/DC Bank AMG-Mercedes two points behind in second. Former leaders AMG-Mercedes were down to third, two ahead of the second ABT Sportsline squad, while OPC Team Phoenix led the Opel charge in fifth. Elsewhere, Audi had overhauled Mercedes-AMG to lead the Manufacturers' Championship by two points, the first time the Stuttgart squad had been led since the Championship was introduced.

 

2004 Drivers' Championship Pos. Name Pts. +/- 1st Christijan Albers 18 ▲1 2nd Mattias Ekström 14 ▲1 3rd Gary Paffett 10 ▼2 4th Martin Tomczyk 10 ▲1 5th Tom Kristensen 10 ▼1 6th Bernd Schneider 4 ▲11 7th Timo Scheider 4 ▲1 8th Peter Dumbreck 3 ▼2 9th Emanuele Pirro 2 ▼2 10th Jean Alesi 2 ▲9 11th Laurent Aïello 1 ▼2

2004 Teams' Championship Pos. Name Pts. +/- 1st Audi Team Abt 24 ▲1 2nd Vodafone/DC Bank AMG-Mercedes 22 ▲1 3rd AMG-Mercedes 12 ▼2 4th Audi Team Abt Sportsline 10 ◄0 5th OPC Team Phoenix 5 ▲2 6th OPC Team Holzer 1 3 ▼1 7th Audi Team Joest 2 ▼1 2004 Manufacturers' Championship Pos. Name Pts. +/- 1st Audi 36 ▲1 2nd AMG-Mercedes 34 ▼1 3rd Opel 8 ◄0

Only point scoring drivers and teams are shown.

References

Images and Videos:

• Liveries: byggxx, 'Rennwagen (2004)', dtm.fandom.com/de, (DTM Wiki/de, 2021), https://dtm.fandom.com/de/wiki/Kategorie:Rennwagen_(2004), (Accessed 20/07/2021)

References: