A fourth-place finish on debut made sure Joel Eriksson burst onto the DTM stage in emphatic style two weeks ago at Hockenheim. As the championship resumes this weekend at Lausitzring, the Swedish BMW rookie is eager to once again put his more experienced rivals under pressure.
Eriksson qualified a shock third for the Sunday race at Hockenheim to immediately challenge the leading DTM contenders on his touring car introduction, and then battled for the podium (and even the win) in an exceptionally intense and memorable race.
Eventually finishing fourth, just a few tenths off the rostrum, 19-year-old Eriksson made an eye-catching impression in what marked one of the strongest DTM debuts in recent times.
Leaving the season-opening double-header a commended sixth in the overall standings, Eriksson is now ready to resume racing at the second round of the championship.
“Hockenheim was great and I’m happy to have performed at that level, but I still felt there was more in it and that a podium was within reach,” says Joel Eriksson. “I’m racing to win and will never be entirely satisfied until I do, no matter how stiff the competition. At the same time, you need to respect the task at hand. DTM is an extremely close championship and the slightest mistake in qualifying can put you back seven or eight places. I need to keep my head down and hopefully I will be competitive again this weekend.”
Hosting this weekend’s races is the 4.570 km Lausitzring, located roughly 150 km south of Berlin to make it the easternmost track in Germany. Joel Eriksson won a race at the venue on his way to second place in the 2015 ADAC Formula 4 championship, but has not competed at the track since.
DTM action gets underway on Friday with 30 minutes of free practice, followed – as per usual – by the two qualifying/race doubles on Saturday and Sunday (both days also feature another practice session each).
TIME TABLE
All times local (GMT+02:00)
DTM | Round 2
Laustizring (Germany)
Friday 18 May
Free Practice 1: 17.00-17.30
Saturday 19 May
Free Practice 2: 09.15-09.45
Qualifying 1: 11.10-11.30
Race 1: 13.30-14.30
Sunday 20 May
Free Practice 3: 09.00-09.30
Qualifying 2: 11.25-11.45
Race 2: 13.30-14.30
CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS
After 2/20 races
1: Timo Glock (GER), BMW, 44 p.
2: Gary Paffett (GBR), Mercedes, 43 p.
3: Mike Rockenfeller (GER), Audi, 18 p.
4: Lucas Auer (AUT), Mercedes, 18 p.
5: Pascal Wehrlein (GER), Mercedes, 18 p.
6: Joel Eriksson (SWE), BMW, 13 p.
FURTHER INFORMATION
Entry list: DTM 2018
Rules: how the championship works
FOLLOW JOEL (IF YOU CAN…)
Website: www.joelerikssonracing.com
Facebook: JoelErikssonRacing
Instagram: JoelEriksson
Live streaming: www.dtm.com/live
