Maximilian Paul’s Lamborghini team is leaving the DTM: why no other races are planned, what the team will be doing in 2026 and what the prospects are for a comeback
What will become of Maximilian Paul’s Lamborghini team in 2026? The small Paul Motorsport squad from Dresden, which has fielded the 26-year-old’s Lamborghini Huracan GT3 Evo2 in the DTM over the past two years, is not only withdrawing from the DTM but will also not be competing in the ADAC GT Masters and GT World Challenge Europe (GTWCE) this year.
What does this mean for Maximilian Paul?
After Maximilian Paul’s promotion to Lamborghini works driver and his return to Grasser, does this mean the end of the racing team run by his father Tobias Paul? “We haven’t planned any races this year, but are concentrating on other motorsport projects that we’re keen on,”
“We had a mega team last year – and the core team is still together,” he says, making it clear that the racing team will continue. “We also still have a car that will be used. It looks like 2026 will be a quieter year, but we are already setting ourselves up for 2027.”
Paul team to provide Lamborghini expertise in 2026
But what projects will the team be focusing on in 2026? “The guys are supporting friendly and well-known teams in order to pass on the expertise that Paul Motorsport has gained in recent years,” explains the young racing driver, who was known for working on his car himself. He does not want to name any names, but he speaks of “two teams”.
The fact that the Paul squad is the only team from the previous year that will no longer be competing in the DTM in 2026 is due to the fact that Lamborghini only has a limited number of new Temerario cars available – and only Grasser and Abt will receive these in the DTM. The manufacturer did not want to see the Huracan GT3 Evo2 used to date being used in parallel.
A comeback with racing commitments is planned for 2027, but it remains to be seen in which championship and with which brand.
Although Paul Motorsport continues to exist, some key employees have also moved to Grasser for 2026. These are Chief Engineer Tom Schuster, who will work for the Austrian team as a performance engineer for both cars, as he will for SSR Performance in 2024, and Maximilian Paul’s Greek race engineer Pavlos Votzakis.
“It’s pretty cool that this has turned out this way,” he said, pleased about the continuation of the collaboration. Katrin Rycerova, who was in charge of coordination for the Paul team, will also support the Grasser team in 2026.