Why Thomas Preining was injured during his “Grello” victory at the Norisring, how he avoided disqualification, and how he defeated the Emil Frey Ferraris
Why did Thomas Preining remain seated in the cockpit for around two minutes after his third Norisring victory (race report) and then limp somewhat unsteadily to his father instead of jumping onto the “Grello” roof as he had done in the past? The explanation has to do with a leg injury. And with the water bottle scandal that cost Mattias Ekström victory at the Norisring in 2013.
“Unfortunately, I injured my ankle three weeks ago while running in the woods at home, then there were two 24-hour races and now here,” he told ran.de, referring to his major races on the Nordschleife, in Spa, and in Nuremberg within three weeks. “It hasn’t healed very well yet. And now I’ve driven the whole race without air conditioning,” explains the 26-year-old.
Air conditioning costs power – and the Porsche works driver needed all he had in his duel with Ferrari. “It just gets super hot in these cars,” says Preining. Before the mechanic helped him out of the cockpit, he had refused a bottle of Coke that the mechanic had handed him. This prevented him from being disqualified, as happened to Ekström in 2013.
“I mainly drank”: Why Preining stayed in the car for so long
After a similar heat race, the former Audi driver’s father poured water into the pocket of his racing suit, which was not allowed. The DTM rules still state in Article 26.5 that after the end of the session, the driver must “proceed directly to the designated weighing area.”
Preining, who is familiar with the regulations, did so after celebrating with his team. He explains why he sat in the car for so long beforehand. “I was mainly just drinking in the parc fermé,” says the Austrian. This is permitted, unlike drinking water from a “foreign” bottle.
“The water bottle is not officially part of the car. It has to be removed from the car for weighing. But you have the weight on board in the car throughout the race. So you make sure you still have it with you for weighing. It’s in here now,” said Preining, pointing to his stomach.
Preining’s recipe for success: “Had an advantage with tire temperature”
The 2023 DTM champion, who is seven points behind his compatriot Lucas Auer in second place in the overall standings at the halfway point of the season, was not the only one who was completely exhausted after the race. Aitken couldn’t let go of the bag of ice cubes during the post-race interviews. “My new best friend,” joked the Brit.
How did Preining manage to prevail against the Ferraris? In the first corner, the Manthey Porsche driver shot from sixth on the outside lane to third place – putting him directly behind leader Vermeulen and his second-placed teammate Aitken. At the first pit stop, Preining managed to pass Vermeulen, who had stopped a lap earlier, putting him in second place behind Aitken.
“It was a direct battle,” said Preining about the duel with the Brit. “I managed to slowly put more pressure on him – and it almost worked a couple of times. But in the end, we had the better strategy after the second pit stop,” said Preining. “I just had an advantage with the tire temperature.”
Preining takes the lead: “Not an easy maneuver”
Preining actually pitted one lap ahead of Aitken and already had his tires up to temperature when Aitken came out of the pits. The Brit returned to the track right in front of his rival for the win, but Preining darted inside before the Grundig hairpin, braking so late that Aitken regained the lead. However, Preining attacked again in the former Schöller S, now called Sommer S, and darted inside.
“I had to make the move, which wasn’t easy,” said Preining. “As you saw in Turn 1, it wasn’t a clear-cut situation. Nevertheless, I don’t think it would have worked without the difference in tire temperature and strategy,” said Preining, who also thanked his team for the perfect pit stops.
Not only he, but also the Manthey team has had a tough few weeks with Le Mans and the Nordschleife classic. “Nevertheless, to perform like this when everything is at stake at the end of the summer break is very impressive.”
