Press Release

  • Motorsport

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

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."

Hankook Tire manufactures globally innovative, award-winning radial tyres of proven superior quality for passenger cars, light trucks, SUVs, RVs, trucks, and buses as well as motorsports (circuit racing/street circuits/rallies).

Aspiring to bring consumers the utmost excellence in product quality, technological excellence and driving satisfaction, Hankook Tire continuously invests in research and development maintaining five R&D centres and eight production facilities around the world. Bespoke tyre solutions for the European markets as well as European Original Equipment according to the requirements of leading premium car manufacturers, are developed in the company’s regional Technical Centre in Hanover/Germany. Production for the European region is taking place in the state-of-the-art manufacturing site in Rácalmás/Hungary which was inaugurated in June 2007 and is continuously being expanded.

Hankook Tire’s European headquarters are located in Neu-Isenburg near Frankfurt am Main in Germany. The manufacturer operates further branches in several European countries and sells its products through regional distributors in other local markets. Hankook Tire employs approximately 20,000 people worldwide and sells products in over 160 countries. The company has been the technical partner and exclusive tyre supplier of the Generation 3 for the FIA ABB Formula E World Championship since 2023. Internationally leading car manufacturers rely on tyres made by Hankook for their original equipment. Approximately 38 percent of the company's global sales are generated within the European region.

For more information please visit www.hankooktire-mediacenter.com or www.hankooktire.com

Hankook Tire Europe GmbH | Marketing Communications Europe | Siemensstr. 14, 63263 Neu-Isenburg | Germany

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

Spielberg: DTM Spielberg 2018 on September, 23, 2018, (Photo by Hoch Zwei)

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

Spielberg: DTM Spielberg 2018 on September, 23, 2018, (Photo by Hoch Zwei) Rene Rast ( D, Audi Sport Team Rosberg )

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

Spielberg: DTM Spielberg 2018 on September, 23, 2018, (Photo by Hoch Zwei)

File size: 2 MB

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

Spielberg: DTM Spielberg 2018 on September, 23, 2018, (Photo by Hoch Zwei)

File size: 2 MB

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

Spielberg: DTM Spielberg 2018 on September, 23, 2018, (Photo by Hoch Zwei) Mike Rockenfeller ( D, Audi Sport Team Phoenix )

File size: 2 MB

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

Spielberg: DTM Spielberg 2018 on September, 23, 2018, (Photo by Hoch Zwei)

File size: 2 MB

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

Spielberg: DTM Spielberg 2018 on September, 23, 2018, (Photo by Hoch Zwei)

File size: 2 MB

Contacts

Sabine Riedel

PR Manager Marketing Communications

 +49 (0) 6102 8149-178

Sabine Riedel

PR Manager Marketing Communications

 +49 (0) 6102 8149-178

Lisa Schmid

PR Manager Marketing Communications

+49 (0) 6102 8149-172

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