New information has emerged following the serious DTM crash at the Norisring: Maximilian Paul underwent surgery overnight, and Kelvin van der Linde has checked in himself
How are Maximilian Paul and Kelvin van der Linde doing after the horrific crash during Saturday’s DTM race at the Norisring (race report)? While the BMW factory driver was able to leave the hospital on Saturday evening with only bruises, Lamborghini factory driver Paul had to spend the night in the hospital—and underwent surgery.
“He has a serious injury to the lower part of his left foot,” team boss Gottfried Grasser said Sunday morning in an update on the situation. “We received information directly from the hospital that Max is doing well under the circumstances. He underwent surgery overnight and has an injury to the lower part of his foot that required screws to be inserted.”
This is “very disappointing,” says the Austrian, who celebrated his Grasser team’s first DTM victory with Paul at the Nürburgring in 2023. How is Paul—who suffered a broken lower leg—doing the morning after the surgery? “Okay, given the circumstances,”
Grasser: “The circumstances aren’t easy”
“The circumstances certainly aren’t easy, but the surgery went well—that’s the most important thing,” he clarifies.
This makes it clear that Paul may not race again this season, as leg injuries in motorsports should not be underestimated. “This is a racing driver’s dilemma, because the left foot is the braking foot,” Grasser explains. “The guys have to be able to apply 130 kilos of pressure. So the recovery has to be thorough to ensure it heals properly.”
The situation is much better for Kelvin van der Linde, as the German-South African driver experienced pain in his left arm and left leg after the Lamborghini crashed into the door of the Schubert BMW. An examination at the medical center revealed that there were no serious injuries.
Schubert on Kelvin van der Linde: “Thank God nothing’s broken”
Van der Linde also underwent a checkup at the hospital as a precaution—an MRI also revealed no serious injuries. “We had extensive examinations yesterday; he was at the hospital for almost five hours,”
Paul hit the outside wall while braking, lost control, and crashed into Kelvin DTM2026DTMjp. https://t.co/dqhozP9Pva pic.twitter.com/WFJvAFAKDm
— Nikko -nikko- (@hntzk5523) July 4, 2026
“In the end, thank God, it turned out that nothing was broken. There were a few comments here and there, but we always received a lot of information—and in the end, it turned out that it was all just bruises.”
Kelvin van der Linde has a “sprained foot because the pedal box—and everything else—collapsed.” Fortunately, given the circumstances, everything turned out relatively well—and the team expects “that he’ll be back in action in just two weeks at the test in Oschersleben.”
Kelvin van der Linde: “Driving Today Wasn’t the Right Thing to Do”
Kelvin van der Linde will not be able to compete on the second day of racing at the Norisring, even though the team tried everything on Saturday to get the Schubert BMW—which was actually intended for the ADAC GT Masters—to Nuremberg as a replacement car. However, that couldn’t be arranged in the end.
Kelvin van der Linde was apparently back in the paddock on Saturday evening and said he was doing well considering the circumstances, but that it was still too early for him to race. “I’m glad nothing serious happened, and that Max is okay,” he said.
“A lot of it really hurts—especially when you’re 30; I didn’t think it would hurt this much,” said the German-South African, who celebrated his 30th birthday a few weeks ago, already in a joking mood again. “I’m just glad things are moving forward, that I can tell this story just like that. But I don’t think driving is the right thing for me right now.”
