2004 Lausitzring Race

2004 Lausitzring Race
The Lausitzring in 2004 was unchanged.
Race Information
Date	6 June 2004
No.	70 (4 of 2003)
Event	DTM Lausitz 2004
Location	Lausitzring Klettwitz, Brandenburg, Germany
Format	165 km / 70 min (Championship Race)
Lap length	4.534 km (2.817 mi)
Distance	37 laps / 167.758 km (98.605 mi)
Qualifying Result
Pole Sitter	Christijan Albers
Team	Vodafone/DC Bank AMG-Mercedes
Time	1:45.026
Fastest Lap
Driver	Bernd Schneider
Team	Vodafone/DC Bank AMG-Mercedes
Time	1:39.469 on lap 9
Race Result
First	Second	Third
Mattias Ekström	Christijan Albers	Bernd Schneider
Winner Team	Audi Sport Team Abt
Time	1:02:49.548
Race Guide
Previous		Next
2004 Adria Race		2004 Norisring Race

The 2004 Lausitzring Race, formally known as DTM Lausitz 2004, was the fourth race of the 2004 DMSB Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters Championship, staged at the Lausitzring in Klettwitz, Brandenburg, Germany, on 6 June 2004. The race would see Mattias Ekström claim the honours, after Gary Paffett was stripped of victory for running out of fuel after passing the chequered flag.

Qualifying would see Christijan Albers slither to pole position in a rain affected Super Pole shootout, the Dutchman beating Ekström by 0.485s. Jean Alesi would then head Peter Dumbreck on the second row, while Bernd Schneider and Timo Scheider shared the third row.

Background

After two rounds in Portugal and Italy the DTM returned to home soil for the fourth race of the season, with the Series returning to the Lausitzring. Unchanged for the 2004 visit, the DTM would not attempt to use the banked first corner after aborting that plan midway through the 2003 meeting after several high-speed accidents. The entry list, meanwhile, would be unchanged for the fourth race of the season, amid news of an additional non-Championship round and a promotional event for the Series.

A Run in Two Cities

The first news story to emerge would be a deal for the DTM to complete a non-Championship race in the Chinese city of Shanghai, as China prepared to increase its global motorsports presence. The event would use a new 2.480 km Street Circuit in Pudong, Shangahi, rather than the new Shanghai International Circuit, which was scheduled for 17 - 18 July. Teams and manufacturers would not be required to attend as the event was essentially an exhibition, with Opel the only manufacturer initially deciding not to send their full compliment of DTM cars.

Elsewhere, the DTM would make an appearance in Berlin, Germany, as part of the celebrations ahead of the 2003–04 DFB-Pokal Final on 29 June. Using a temporary 'circuit' near the Brandenburg Gate, Christian Abt, Heinz-Harald Frentzen and Stefan Mücke, representing each DTM manufacturer would complete demonstration runs, before a photoshoot in front of Berlin's famous landmark. After that the three DTM cars would run with a police escort to the Olympiastadion in Berlin, and then to the Sony Centre for the post-final celebrations.

Adria Adjustments

There had been no changes to the top of the field in the Drivers' Championship after the third round of the season in Adria, with Christijan Albers having held the lead at the head of table. The Dutchman had seen his lead reduced to two points by Adria winner Mattias Ekström, while both had moved clear of Gary Paffett in third, eleven off of Albers. Martin Tomczyk and Tom Kristensen then completed the top five, while Stefan Mücke had become the twelfth scorer of the season.

Audi Team Abt continued to head the charge in the Teams' Championship, and had increased their advantage to five over closest challengers Vodafone/DC Bank AMG-Mercedes. AMG-Mercedes were next up in third, seven behind their sister squad, while OPC Team Phoenix were up to fourth ahead of Audi Team Abt Sportsline. In the Manufacturers' Championship AMG-Mercedes had moved back to the top of the table, having moved eight clear of Audi in second.

Entry List

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

2004 Lausitzring 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 Lausitzring Race are outlined below:

2004 Lausitzring Race Qualifying Result
Super Pole Results
Pos.	No.	Name	Team	Time	Gap	Ave. Speed	Grid
1st	2	Christijan Albers	Vodafone/DC Bank AMG-Mercedes	1:45.026	—	155.412 km/h	1
2nd	5	Mattias Ekström	Audi Team Abt	1:45.511	+0.485s	154.698 km/h	2
3rd	8	Jean Alesi	AMG-Mercedes	1:49.417	+4.391s	149.176 km/h	3
4th	14	Peter Dumbreck	OPC Team Holzer 1	1:51.690	+6.664s	146.140 km/h	4
5th	1	Bernd Schneider	Vodafone/DC Bank AMG-Mercedes	1:51.998	+6.972s	145.738 km/h	5
6th	15	Timo Scheider	OPC Team Phoenix	1:53.980	+8.954s	143.204 km/h	6
7th	7	Gary Paffett	AMG-Mercedes	1:55.385	+10.359s	141.460 km/h	7
8th	10	Manuel Reuter	OPC Team Holzer 2	1:56.149	+11.123s	140.529 km/h	8
9th	3	Marcel Fässler	OPC Team Holzer 1	1:57.274	+12.248s	139.181 km/h	9
10th	11	Christian Abt	Audi Team Abt Sportsline	1:59.893	+14.867s	136.141 km/h	10
Qualifying Results
Pos.	No.	Name	Team	Time	Gap	Ave. Speed	Grid
1st	2	Christijan Albers	Vodafone/DC Bank AMG-Mercedes	1:56.762	—	139.792 km/h	SP
2nd	8	Jean Alesi	AMG-Mercedes	1:57.625	+0.863s	138.766 km/h	SP
3rd	5	Mattias Ekström	Audi Team Abt	1:57.668	+0.906s	138.715 km/h	SP
4th	14	Peter Dumbreck	OPC Team Holzer 1	1:57.775	+1.013s	138.589 km/h	SP
5th	1	Bernd Schneider	Vodafone/DC Bank AMG-Mercedes	1:57.867	+1.105s	138.481 km/h	SP
6th	15	Timo Scheider	OPC Team Phoenix	1:57.981	+1.219s	138.347 km/h	SP
7th	7	Gary Paffett	AMG-Mercedes	1:57.997	+1.235s	138.328 km/h	SP
8th	10	Manuel Reuter	OPC Team Holzer 2	1:58.531	+1.769s	137.705 km/h	SP
9th	11	Christian Abt	Audi Team Abt Sportsline	1:58.630	+1.868s	137.590 km/h	SP
10th	3	Marcel Fässler	OPC Team Holzer 1	1:58.936	+2.174s	137.236 km/h	SP
11th	44	Emanuele Pirro	Audi Team Joest	1:59.240	+2.478s	136.886 km/h	11
12th	4	Laurent Aïello	OPC Team Phoenix	1:59.309	+2.547s	136.807 km/h	12
13th	17	Markus Winkelhock	Original-Teile AMG-Mercedes	1:59.546	+2.784s	136.536 km/h	13
14th	9	Heinz-Harald Frentzen	OPC Team Holzer 2	1:59.726	+2.964s	136.331 km/h	14
15th	20	Jarek Janiš	Sonax Dark Dog AMG-Mercedes	2:00.113	+3.351s	135.892 km/h	15
16th	18	Stefan Mücke	Original-Teile AMG-Mercedes	2:00.199	+3.437s	135.794 km/h	16
17th	21	Bernd Mayländer	Sonax Dark Dog AMG-Mercedes	2:00.241	+3.479s	135.747 km/h	17
18th	12	Tom Kristensen	Audi Team Abt Sportsline	2:00.406	+3.644s	135.561 km/h	18
19th	45	Frank Biela	Audi Team Joest	2:00.650	+3.888s	135.287 km/h	19
20th	16	Jeroen Bleekemolen	OPC Euroteam	2:01.013	+4.251s	134.881 km/h	20
21st	6	Martin Tomczyk	Audi Team Abt	2:01.255	+4.493s	134.612 km/h	21
107% Time: 2:04.935
Source:

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

Grid

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

		6	Martin Tomczyk	2:01.255			45	Frank Biela	2:00.650			21	Bernd Mayländer	2:00.241			20	Jarek Janiš	2:00.113			17	Markus Winkelhock	1:59.546			44	Emanuele Pirro	1:59.240			3	Marcel Fässler	1:57.274			7	Gary Paffett	1:55.385			1	Bernd Schneider	1:51.998			8	Jean Alesi	1:49.417			2	Christijan Albers	1:45.026
						16	Jeroen Bleekemolen		2:01.013		12	Tom Kristensen		2:00.406		18	Stefan Mücke		2:00.199		9	Heinz-Harald Frentzen		1:59.726		4	Laurent Aïello		1:59.309		11	Christian Abt		1:59.893		10	Manuel Reuter		1:56.149		15	Timo Scheider		1:53.980		14	Peter Dumbreck		1:51.690		5	Mattias Ekström		1:45.511

Race

Results

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

2004 Lausitzring Race Result
Pos.	No.	Name	Team	Laps	Race Time	Fastest lap	Pts.
1st	5	Mattias Ekström	Audi Team Abt	37	1:02:49.548	1:39.698	10
2nd	2	Christijan Albers	Vodafone/DC Bank AMG-Mercedes	37	+0.308s	1:39.873	8
3rd	1	Bernd Schneider	Vodafone/DC Bank AMG-Mercedes	37	+1.231s	1:39.469	6
4th	4	Laurent Aïello	OPC Team Phoenix	37	+4.496s	1:39.881	5
5th	8	Jean Alesi	AMG-Mercedes	37	+5.760s	1:39.951	4
6th	44	Emanuele Pirro	Audi Team Joest	37	+28.625s	1:40.143	3
7th	3	Marcel Fässler	OPC Team Holzer 1	37	+34.088s	1:40.714	2
8th	10	Manuel Reuter	OPC Team Holzer 2	37	+34.490s	1:40.759	1
9th	11	Christian Abt	Audi Team Abt Sportsline	37	+41.665s	1:40.914
10th	12	Tom Kristensen	Audi Team Abt Sportsline	37	+41.976s	1:40.705
11th	14	Peter Dumbreck	OPC Team Holzer 1	37	+44.369s	1:40.571
12th	45	Frank Biela	Audi Team Joest	37	+48.656s	1:40.874
13th	17	Markus Winkelhock	Original-Teile AMG-Mercedes	37	+57.063s	1:40.697
14th	6	Martin Tomczyk	Audi Team Abt	37	+1:07.612	1:40.101
15th	20	Jarek Janiš	Sonax Dark Dog AMG-Mercedes	37	+1:08.058	1:41.586
16th	15	Timo Scheider	OPC Team Phoenix	37	+1:09.226	1:40.134
17th	16	Jeroen Bleekemolen	OPC Euroteam	37	+1:33.431	1:41.591
DSQ*	7	Gary Paffett	AMG-Mercedes	37	Disqualified	1:39.776
Ret	18	Stefan Mücke	Original-Teile AMG-Mercedes	37	Retired	1:40.817
Ret	9	Heinz-Harald Frentzen	OPC Team Holzer 2	5	Retired	1:41.490
Ret	21	Bernd Mayländer	Sonax Dark Dog AMG-Mercedes	0	Retired	—
Source:

• Bold indicates a driver started from pole.
• Italics indicate that a driver set fastest lap.
• * Paffett was disqualified from the race for failing to have 1.5 litres of fuel left in his fuel tank after the race.

Milestones

• Fifth victory for Mattias Ekström.
• ABT Sportsline claimed their twentieth victory as an entrant.
  • Audi earned their twentieth win as a manufacturer.

Standings

Mattias Ekström moved to the top of the Championship with his second victory of the campaign, level on points with Christijan Albers but ahead of the Dutchman due to holding two victories to Albers' one. Those two were on their own at the head of the hunt, Gary Paffett's disqualification having left him nineteen off the lead, while Jean Alesi was in fourth on twelve. Martin Tomczyk then completed the top five, while Marcel Fässler and Manuel Reuter had joined the scorers' list.

Audi Team Abt had retained their lead in the Teams' Championship after the trip to Lausitz, holding a one point lead over Vodafone/DC AMG-Mercedes. AMG-Mercedes were next up in third, eighteen off the leaders, while OPC Team Phoenix had held fourth a further ten behind. Elsewhere, AMG-Mercedes had held the lead in the Manufacturers' Championship after the fourth race, the Stuttgart squad thirteen clear of Audi in second.

 

2004 Drivers' Championship Pos. Name Pts. +/- 1st Mattias Ekström 34 ▲1 2nd Christijan Albers 34 ▼1 3rd Gary Paffett 15 ◄0 4th Jean Alesi 12 ▲2 5th Martin Tomczyk 11 ▼1 6th Bernd Schneider 10 ▲2 7th Tom Kristensen 10 ▼2 8th Laurent Aïello 9 ▲1 9th Timo Scheider 8 ▼2 10th Emanuele Pirro 5 ▲1 11th Peter Dumbreck 3 ▼1 12th Stefan Mücke 2 ◄0 13th Marcel Fässler 2 ▲8 14th Manuel Reuter 1 ▼1

2004 Teams' Championship Pos. Name Pts. +/- 1st Audi Team Abt 45 ◄0 2nd Vodafone/DC Bank AMG-Mercedes 44 ◄0 3rd AMG-Mercedes 27 ◄0 4th OPC Team Phoenix 17 ◄0 5th Audi Team Abt Sportsline 10 ◄0 6th Audi Team Joest 5 ▲1 7th OPC Team Holzer 1 5 ▼1 8th Original-Teile AMG-Mercedes 2 ◄0 9th OPC Team Holzer 2 1 ◄0 10th OPC Euroteam 0 ◄0 11th Sonax Dark Dog AMG-Mercedes 0 ◄0 2004 Manufacturers' Championship Pos. Name Pts. +/- 1st AMG-Mercedes 73 ◄0 2nd Audi 60 ◄0 3rd Opel 23 ◄0

Only point scoring drivers 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: