Mercedes and Porsche Dominate the Dtm Season Opener at Oschersleben

The 2025 DTM season kicked off with a fierce battle between Mercedes and Porsche. The two brands split the victories across Race 1 and Race 2, taking the lion’s share of podium finishes, with only Lamborghini managing to break the German stronghold. This was the scene at Oschersleben, which hosted the opening weekend of the new DTM season — the third consecutive with Pirelli as exclusive tire supplier — featuring two important innovations: the debut of Pirelli’s new P Zero DHG slick tyre and a mandatory second pit stop during Sunday’s races across all eight events.

Race 2 victory went to Ayhancan Güven, driving the Manthey EMA Porsche 911 GT3 R 992. It marked the Turkish driver’s first-ever DTM win. Joining him on the podium were Jules Gounon, who started from pole in his Mercedes-AMG GT3 for the Mercedes-AMG Team Mann-Filter, and Güven’s teammate, Thomas Preining.

Saturday’s race was dominated by Lucas Auer in the Mercedes-AMG GT3 for the Mercedes-AMG Team Landgraf. Starting from pole, Auer led from lights to flag to claim his tenth DTM career win. Tyre management proved crucial, not only securing Auer’s victory but also helping Maro Engel (Mercedes-AMG Team Winward Racing) climb to third thanks to a delayed pit stop strategy, overtaking Thomas Preining, who finished fourth. Between the two Mercedes drivers, Jordan Pepper took second place at the wheel of a Lamborghini for the TGI Team.

’’The first event of the 2025 DTM season lived up to expectations,’’ said Matteo Braga, Pirelli’s Circuit Activity Manager. ’’We saw intense battles and great on-track action, with an enthusiastic crowd filling the grandstands and paddock. From a technical standpoint, the impact of Sunday’s second mandatory pit stop still needs to be fully assessed, but overall, the goal of increasing race dynamics and entertainment was clearly achieved. We are also very pleased with the DTM debut of the new P Zero DHG tyre, which from this year becomes the reference tyre for all major GT competitions.’’

In GT4 Germany, a support series also supplied by Pirelli, it was a double victory for the SR Motorsport Racing team, whose Mercedes-AMG GT4 claimed wins in both Race 1 and Race 2, driven by Enrico Förderer and Jai Härtling respectively.