High-flying René Rast wins in Spielberg on Hankook race tyres to make it four DTM victories in a row

René Rast’s spectacular run continues. The 31-year-old won race two of the penultimate round of the 2018 DTM season at the Red Bull Ring in Spielberg on Sunday. His latest success comes on the back of victory on Saturday and a brace of wins at the Nürburgring, making the Audi racer only the fourth driver in arguably the most popular international touring car series to take his place on the top step of the podium after four races in a row. The race tyre provided by exclusive DTM partner Hankook produced a strong and balanced performance all weekend at the circuit in the Austrian Alps. The tyre’s high level of consistency allowed all the drivers to adopt individual pit stop strategies.

Spielberg/Austria, 24th September 2018 – René Rast started Sunday’s race on a dry track in Spielberg from seventh on the grid. However, a flying start allowed him to climb straight into fourth place. The Audi driver was the first of the leading group to come in for a fresh set of the Hankook race tyre on lap 16. Shortly thereafter he was able to pass Gary Paffett and Paul Di Resta (both Mercedes-Benz), who were running second and third and made their mandatory pit stops on lap 17 and 18.

Rast then overtook race leader and fellow Audi driver Nico Müller, before going on to cross the finish line first with a lead of 0.421 seconds after 40 laps of racing. Paffett and Di Resta came home third and fourth behind Müller. The best-placed BMW driver was Joel Eriksson in fifth. Rast remains third overall after his fourth DTM win in a row. However, he now lies just 30 points behind championship leader Di Resta (Mercedes-Benz), who leads fellow Mercedes-Benz driver Paffett by just four points.

Manfred Sandbichler, Hankook Motorsport Director Europe: “René Rast is on an incredible run – four wins in a row is sensational, given the strength of depth in the DTM. However, Mercedes-Benz drivers Di Resta and Paffett also produced great performances at the Red Bull Ring. The same goes for the Hankook race tyre, which worked perfectly in a wide range of conditions, whether it be hot, cold, dry or wet. I am looking forward to the exciting finale in Hockenheim, where Paul Di Resta, Gary Paffett and René Rast will do battle for the title.”

Audi Sport Team Phoenix produced the fastest pit stop of the race weekend at the Red Bull Ring, in a time of 34.874 seconds. Their effort was rewarded with 25 points towards the Hankook Best Pit Stop Award.

René Rast (Audi): “I am on a huge run at the moment and am delighted with my fourth DTM win in a row. Everything worked perfectly today. I had a great car and great Hankook tyres. I am looking forward to the finale in Hockenheim.”

Nico Müller (Audi): “The track was dry from the start, so you had to manage the Hankook race tyre well and keep an eye on tyre wear. I did that better in my second stint than the first and got through the laps well on the Hankook tyre.”

Gary Paffett (Mercedes-Benz): “Third place from pole is not ideal but, on the whole, it has been a good Sunday race for me. The Hankook race tyre worked really well in cool temperatures in qualifying, and it was incredibly consistent in the race. We will have to improve our pace a little at the finale in Hockenheim.”

Joel Eriksson (BMW): “I drove on Hankook tyres in the FIA Formula 3 European Championship and only ever had very good experiences on them. That has also been the case in the DTM. They were very quick and incredibly consistent again today, which allowed me to defend fifth place right through to the finish."

Over Hankook Tire

Hankook produceert wereldwijd innovatieve, prijswinnende high performance radiaalbanden voor het premium segment voor auto's, SUV's, terreinwagens, lichte vrachtwagens, vrachtwagens en bussen evenals voor de autosport (circuit- en straatracen/rally's).

Hankook investeert voortdurend in onderzoek en ontwikkeling om haar klanten steeds de hoogste kwaliteit in combinatie met uitstekende technologie te bieden. In vijf ontwikkelingscentra en acht grote fabrieken wereldwijd ontwikkelt en produceert Hankook bandoplossingen, die specifiek zijn afgestemd op de wensen en eisen van de regionale markten. In Europa vindt de bandontwikkeling voor de lokale markten en eerste montage plaats in overeenstemming met de toonaangevende Europese autofabrikanten in het regionale technisch centrum in Hannover/Duitsland. De banden worden onder andere geproduceerd in de ultramoderne Europese fabriek in Rácalmás/ Hongarije, die in 2007 werd ingewijd en voortdurend uitgebreid wordt.

Het Europese hoofdkwartier van de bandenfabrikant is gevestigd in Neu-Isenburg, Duitsland in de buurt van Frankfurt am Main. De fabrikant heeft meerdere vestigingen in verschillende Europese landen en verkoopt haar producten op andere lokale markten via regionale distributeurs. Wereldwijd biedt Hankook werk aan ongeveer 20.000 mensen en levert haar producten in meer dan 160 landen. Het bedrijf is geselecteerd als de technische partner en exclusieve bandenleverancier van Generatie 3 voor het FIA ABB Formule E Wereldkampioenschap, dat start in 2023. Toonaangevende autofabrikanten vertrouwen bij de eerste montage op banden van Hankook. Ongeveer 38 procent van de wereldwijde omzet van de onderneming is afkomstig uit Europa.

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