DTM Finale: Thomas Preining Crowned 2026 Drivers' Champion as Auer and Engel Win at Hockenheim

DTM Finale: Thomas Preining Crowned 2026 Drivers' Champion as Auer and Engel Win at Hockenheim

The 2026 DTM season concluded with a thrilling finale at the Hockenheimring, where Porsche factory driver Thomas Preining crowned a brilliant campaign by securing the Drivers' Championship title.

Event Overview

  • Event: DTM Round 8 (Season Finale)
  • Track: Hockenheimring (4.574 km)
  • Series: DTM
  • Dates: 10 - 11 October 2026

Race 1 Podium

Race 2 Podium

Highlights

  • Preining Seals DTM Drivers' Championship: A steady 5th-place finish in Race 1 followed by a 3rd-place podium in Race 2 sealed the 2026 DTM Drivers' Championship for Manthey Porsche driver Thomas Preining.
  • Lucas Auer Dominates Race 1: Lucas Auer delivered a commanding drive in the #22 Mercedes-AMG Team Landgraf entry, leading home Mirko Bortolotti (+4.777s) and Marco Wittmann (+8.157s).
  • Maro Engel Victorious in Race 2: Maro Engel claimed victory in Sunday's Race 2 for Mercedes-AMG Team RAVENOL, finishing ahead of Manthey Porsche teammates Ricardo Feller (+3.058s) and newly crowned champion Thomas Preining (+3.698s).

Support Series Wrap-Up

  • Porsche Sixt Carrera Cup Deutschland: C. Kieffer (#11 Schumacher CLRT) claimed victory in Race 1 (+2.868s over W. Boerekamps), while N. Langeveld (#10 Laptime-Performance) won a wet Race 2 ahead of teammate S. Freymuth (+2.726s).
  • ADAC GT Masters: Haupt Racing Team's Kiano Blum and Niklas Kalus (#2 Ford Mustang GT3) secured victory in Race 1 (+1.891s over LIQUI MOLY Team Engstler Motorsport). Race 2 was won by Felix Hirsiger and Finn Zulauf in the #63 LIQUI MOLY Team Engstler Motorsport Lamborghini Huracan GT3 EVO 2 (+5.680s over FK Performance Motorsport).
  • ADAC GT4 Germany: Gabriele Piana and Benjamin Sylvestersson (#51 FK Performance Motorsport BMW M4 GT4 Evo) took the top step in Race 1 (+8.614s over AVIA W&S Motorsport). Race 2 saw an AVIA W&S Motorsport 1-2 finish with Lachlan Robinson and Denny Berndt (#31 Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS CS) edging out teammates Alon Gabbay and Maximilian Schreyer by 3.784 seconds. In Race 3, Philipp Gogollok and Jan Philipp Springob (#4 COSY Racing by ESM Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT4 EVO) claimed victory with a 17.588-second margin over Robinson and Berndt.
  • BMW M2 Cup: Farin Megger (#45 Riller & Schnauck powered by Cerny Motorsport) took the win in Race 1 (+3.816s over Noah Eichele), while Niklas Hirsch (#3 Hofor Racing by Bonk Motorsport) won Race 2 ahead of Christopher Holst (+10.630s).

Photo credits: Porsche Newsroom