2004 Nürburgring Race

2004 Nürburgring Race
The Nürburgring returned for the sixth round of 2004.
Race Information
Date	1 August 2004
No.	72 (6 of 2004)
Event	DTM Nürburg 2004
Location	Nürburgring Sprint Circuit 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	Gary Paffett
Team	AMG-Mercedes
Time	1:23.756
Fastest Lap
Driver	Gary Paffett
Team	AMG-Mercedes
Time	1:24.664 on lap 4
Race Result
First	Second	Third
Gary Paffett	Mattias Ekström	Bernd Schneider
Winner Team	AMG-Mercedes
Time	59:10.664
Race Guide
Previous		Next
2004 Norisring Race		2004 Oschersleben Race

The 2004 Nürburgring Race, otherwise known as DTM Nürburg 2004, was the sixth race of the 2004 DMSB Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters Championship, staged at the Nürburgring Sprint Circuit in Nürburg, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany on 1 August 2004. The race would see Gary Paffett secure a Hattrick in dominant fashion, claiming pole position, fastest lap, and victory.

Indeed, Paffett would be the man to beat throughout the weekend, storming to pole position in Super Pole with a 1:23.756, three tenths faster than Mattias Ekström in second. Christian Abt and Peter Dumbreck would then share the second row, while Championship leader Christijan Albers would start from fifth.

Background

After a five week summer break, which included the revived Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters first ever trip outside of Europe, the DTM Championship of 2004 resumed at the ever-present Nürburgring in Nürburg. Again using the Sprint Circuit rather than the Grand Prix layout at the Nürburgring, the DTM would find the circuit unchanged for a third straight season. Likewise, there was stability on the entry list for the trip into Rhineland-Palatinate, after a handful of changes had been made for the trip to Shanghai.

Shanghai Noon

The trip to China had been deemed a success, in-spite of the fact that the first of two planned races around the Shanghai Street Circuit had been abandoned after a loose drain cover destroyed Bernd Mayländer's car. After rapid repairs to the circuit the second race would proceed without issue, and would be dominated by Mercedes as their young driver Gary Paffett beat Bernd Schneider to the honours. Audi's challenge would be ended early by an opening lap collision that took out three of their cars, while Opel had only fielded four cars led by Heinz-Harald Frentzen.

A Dutch Summer

Christijan Albers had returned to the top of the Championship as he maintained his 100% podium attendance record in 2004 with second at the Norisring, the Dutchman having headed into the summer-break with 42 points to his credit. Mattias Ekström was next up in second having lost the lead at the Norisring, three off the lead, while Paffett had moved into a clear third place, but was still seventeen off the lead. Schneider and Martin Tomczyk then completed the half-time top five, with fourteen of the twenty-one drivers having scored in the first half of the campaign.

Vodafone/DC Bank AMG-Mercedes had moved back into the lead of the Teams' Championship as the season reached its summer break, having moved onto 58 points for the season. Audi Team Abt were, however, just four behind in second, while AMG-Mercedes were a distant third on 37. In the Manufacturers' Championship AMG-Mercedes held the lead as the season reached its halfway point, heading Audi by 25 points.

Entry List

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

2004 Nürburgring Race Entry List
No.	Name	Entrant	Constructor	Chassis	Livery
1	Bernd Schneider	Vodafone/DC Bank AMG-Mercedes	AMG-Mercedes	C-Klasse DTM
2	Christijan Albers	Vodafone/DC Bank 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 Nürburgring Race are outlined below:

2004 Nürburgring Race Qualifying Result
Super Pole Results
Pos.	No.	Name	Team	Time	Gap	Ave. Speed	Grid
1st	7	Gary Paffett	AMG-Mercedes	1:23.756	—	155.981 km/h	1
2nd	5	Mattias Ekström	Audi Team Abt	1:24.062	+0.306s	155.413 km/h	2
3rd	11	Christian Abt	Audi Team Abt Sportsline	1:24.173	+0.417s	155.208 km/h	3
4th	14	Peter Dumbreck	OPC Team Holzer 1	1:24.178	+0.422s	155.199 km/h	4
5th	2	Christijan Albers	Vodafone/DC Bank AMG-Mercedes	1:24.263	+0.507s	155.043 km/h	5
6th	3	Marcel Fässler	OPC Team Holzer 1	1:24.307	+0.551s	154.962 km/h	6
7th	15	Timo Scheider	OPC Team Phoenix	1:24.419	+0.663s	154.756 km/h	7
8th	1	Bernd Schneider	Vodafone/DC Bank AMG-Mercedes	1:24.480	+0.724s	154.644 km/h	8
9th	12	Tom Kristensen	Audi Team Abt Sportsline	1:24.670	+0.914s	154.297 km/h	9
10th	6	Martin Tomczyk	Audi Team Abt	1:30.327	+6.571s	144.634 km/h	10
Qualifying Results
Pos.	No.	Name	Team	Time	Gap	Ave. Speed	Grid
1st	5	Mattias Ekström	Audi Team Abt	1:23.390	—	156.666 km/h	SP
2nd	1	Bernd Schneider	Vodafone/DC Bank AMG-Mercedes	1:23.682	+0.292s	156.119 km/h	SP
3rd	12	Tom Kristensen	Audi Team Abt Sportsline	1:23.804	+0.414s	155.892 km/h	SP
4th	7	Gary Paffett	AMG-Mercedes	1:23.825	+0.435s	155.853 km/h	SP
5th	15	Timo Scheider	OPC Team Phoenix	1:24.094	+0.704s	155.354 km/h	SP
6th	2	Christijan Albers	Vodafone/DC Bank AMG-Mercedes	1:24.117	+0.727s	155.312 km/h	SP
7th	6	Martin Tomczyk	Audi Team Abt	1:24.208	+0.818s	155.144 km/h	SP
8th	14	Peter Dumbreck	OPC Team Holzer 1	1:24.243	+0.853s	155.079 km/h	SP
9th	3	Marcel Fässler	OPC Team Holzer 1	1:24.248	+0.858s	155.070 km/h	SP
10th	11	Christian Abt	Audi Team Abt Sportsline	1:24.335	+0.945s	154.910 km/h	SP
11th	44	Emanuele Pirro	Audi Team Joest	1:24.337	+0.947s	154.907 km/h	11
12th	4	Laurent Aïello	OPC Team Phoenix	1:24.349	+0.959s	154.885 km/h	12
13th	8	Jean Alesi	AMG-Mercedes	1:24.509	+1.119s	154.591 km/h	13
14th	45	Frank Biela	Audi Team Joest	1:24.574	+1.184s	154.473 km/h	14
15th	9	Heinz-Harald Frentzen	OPC Team Holzer 2	1:24.710	+1.320s	154.225 km/h	15
16th	10	Manuel Reuter	OPC Team Holzer 2	1:24.888	+1.498s	153.901 km/h	16
17th	17	Markus Winkelhock	Original-Teile AMG-Mercedes	1:25.062	+1.672s	153.586 km/h	17
18th	16	Jeroen Bleekemolen	OPC Euroteam	1:25.359	+1.969s	153.052 km/h	18
19th	18	Stefan Mücke	Original-Teile AMG-Mercedes	1:25.446	+2.056s	152.896 km/h	19
20th	21	Bernd Mayländer	Sonax Dark Dog AMG-Mercedes	1:25.818	+2.428s	152.233 km/h	20
21st	20	Jarek Janiš	Sonax Dark Dog AMG-Mercedes	1:26.185	+2.795s	151.585 km/h	21
107% Time: 1:29.227
Source:

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

Grid

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

		20	Jarek Janiš	1:26.185			18	Stefan Mücke	1:25.446			17	Markus Winkelhock	1:25.062			9	Heinz-Harald Frentzen	1:24.710			8	Jean Alesi	1:24.509			44	Emanuele Pirro	1:24.337			12	Tom Kristensen	1:24.670			15	Timo Scheider	1:24.419			2	Christijan Albers	1:24.263			11	Christian Abt	1:24.173			7	Gary Paffett	1:23.756
						21	Bernd Mayländer		1:25.818		16	Jeroen Bleekemolen		1:25.359		10	Manuel Reuter		1:24.888		45	Frank Biela		1:24.574		4	Laurent Aïello		1:24.349		6	Martin Tomczyk		1:30.327		1	Bernd Schneider		1:24.480		3	Marcel Fässler		1:24.307		14	Peter Dumbreck		1:24.178		5	Mattias Ekström		1:24.062

Race

Results

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

2004 Nürburgring Race Result
Pos.	No.	Name	Team	Laps	Race Time	Fastest lap	Pts.
1st	7	Gary Paffett	AMG-Mercedes	41	59:10.664	1:24.664	10
2nd	5	Mattias Ekström	Audi Team Abt	41	+2.190s	1:24.717	8
3rd	1	Bernd Schneider	Vodafone/DC Bank AMG-Mercedes	41	+22.891s	1:24.730	6
4th	3	Marcel Fässler	OPC Team Holzer 1	41	+23.997s	1:24.879	5
5th	12	Tom Kristensen	Audi Team Abt Sportsline	41	+24.722s	1:24.703	4
6th	15	Timo Scheider	OPC Team Phoenix	41	+25.654s	1:25.370	3
7th	8	Jean Alesi	AMG-Mercedes	41	+26.039s	1:25.166	2
8th	14	Peter Dumbreck	OPC Team Holzer 1	41	+27.980s	1:25.031	1
9th	4	Laurent Aïello	OPC Team Phoenix	41	+33.427s	1:25.163
10th	18	Stefan Mücke	Original-Teile AMG-Mercedes	41	+39.724s	1:25.515
11th	44	Emanuele Pirro	Audi Team Joest	41	+40.122s	1:24.897
12th	10	Manuel Reuter	OPC Team Holzer 2	41	+1:02.001	1:24.815
13th	11	Christian Abt	Audi Team Abt	41	+1:15.514	1:25.175
14th	16	Jeroen Bleekemolen	OPC Euroteam	41	+1:21.058	1:26.368
15th	21	Bernd Mayländer	Sonax Dark Dog AMG-Mercedes	40	+1 Lap	1:26.120
16th	2	Christijan Albers	Vodafone/DC Bank AMG-Mercedes	37	+4 Laps	1:25.287
Ret	9	Heinz-Harald Frentzen	OPC Team Holzer 2	26	Retired	1:25.928
Ret	20	Jarek Janiš	Sonax Dark Dog AMG-Mercedes	13	Retired	1:26.566
Ret	17	Markus Winkelhock	Original-Teile AMG-Mercedes	4	Retired	1:27.960
Ret	45	Frank Biela	Audi Team Joest	3	Retired	2:51.207
Ret	6	Martin Tomczyk	Audi Team Abt	1	Retired	—
Source:

• ³ Indicates a driver was awarded points for qualifying in the top three.
• Bold indicates a driver started from pole.
• Italics indicate that a driver set fastest lap.

Milestones

• Third career victory for Gary Paffett.
• 41st win for HWA Team as an entrant.
  • Mercedes secured their 43rd victory as a manufacturer.

Standings

Mattias Ekström had returned to the top of the Championship as the season entered its second half, the Swede having moved onto 47 points after his podium at the Nürburgring. Christijan Albers had hence slipped to second, and fallen five behind the Swedish racer having failed to finish on the podium for the first time in 2004, while Gary Paffett had moved within twelve of the lead in third. Bernd Schneider and Tom Kristensen followed in fourth and fifth, while no other drivers had added their names to the scorers' list.

Elsewhere, Vodafone/DC Bank AMG-Mercedes had retained the lead in the Teams' Championship, although their advantage had been cut to just two points after the trip to the Nordschleife. Indeed, Audi Team Abt had cut their rival's lead as a result of Ekström's podium, while Vodafone/DC Bank's sister squad AMG-Mercedes had inched slightly closer in third. AMG-Mercedes, meanwhile, had remained at the head of the Manufacturers' Championship, having moved 31 points clear of Audi in second.

2004 Drivers' Championship Pos. Name Pts. +/- 1st Mattias Ekström 47 ▲1 2nd Christijan Albers 42 ▼1 3rd Gary Paffett 35 ◄0 4th Bernd Schneider 22 ◄0 5th Tom Kristensen 17 ▲1 6th Martin Tomczyk 15 ▼1 7th Jean Alesi 14 ◄0 8th Timo Scheider 11 ▲1 9th Laurent Aïello 9 ▼1 10th Marcel Fässler 7 ▲3 11th Peter Dumbreck 6 ◄0 12th Emanuele Pirro 5 ▼2 13th Stefan Mücke 2 ▼1 14th Manuel Reuter 2 ◄0

2004 Teams' Championship Pos. Name Pts. +/- 1st Vodafone/DC Bank AMG-Mercedes 64 ◄0 2nd Audi Team Abt 62 ◄0 3rd AMG-Mercedes 49 ◄0 4th OPC Team Phoenix 20 ◄0 5th Audi Team Abt Sportsline 17 ◄0 6th OPC Team Holzer 1 13 ◄0 7th Audi Team Joest 5 ◄0 8th Original-Teile AMG-Mercedes 2 ◄0 9th OPC Team Holzer 2 2 ◄0 10th OPC Euroteam 0 ◄0 11th Sonax Dark Dog AMG-Mercedes 0 ◄0 2004 Manufacturers' Championship Pos. Name Pts. +/- 1st AMG-Mercedes 115 ◄0 2nd Audi 84 ◄0 3rd Opel 35 ◄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: