Safenwil – Switzerland, 18th September 2023
When the DTM visits the Red Bull Ring this coming weekend, it will be a special race meeting for Emil Frey Racing. The Swiss team is celebrating almost a home-race there due to its close cooperation and working relationship with Max Verstappen and Red Bull. With this extra portion of motivation, they are hoping for two good race results in order to not lose touch with the Top-5 in the team standings.
The race meeting at the Red Bull Ring is the second DTM race outside Germany.
At the first away-race in Zandvoort, local hero Thierry Vermeulen celebrated on home soil. However, things went disappointingly in both races and therefore all hopes lie on the races in Austria now. The historic and adrenaline-charged atmosphere of the Red Bull Ring not only excites the team and the drivers, but will once again attract a large crowd, as it does every year. The circuit has a length of 4.318 kilometres and a maximum gradient of 12 percent. Especially the long straight after the Niki Lauda corner leading up to Remus demands good downforce as well as good speed.
With four DTM races still to go in this season, Emil Frey Racing has a good chance of securing a place in the Top-5. The team is currently in 7th place in the standings, 17 points behind fifth place.
The penultimate round of the DTM season will take place at the Red Bull Ring from 22nd to 24th September 2023. The weekend kicks-off with two Free Practice Sessions on Friday at 10.35 am and 3.10 pm for 45 minutes each. An early Qualifying session on Saturday at 8:55 am will determine the starting grid for the Race on the same day, which will start at 1:30 pm. On Sunday, Qualifying will also occur at 09.35 am, with the Race again following at 01.30 pm.
Team Quotes Emil Frey Racing
Jürg Flach, Technical Director: “The Red Bull Ring is an interesting circuit because of its topography. It is also relatively high at just under 700 metres above sea level, which is normally an advantage for the cars with turbo engines. With its uphill passages, high engine power is needed in the first sector, whereas sectors 2 and 3 require agile handling of the cars. The race at the Red Bull Ring is particularly important for us because of the cooperation with Thierry and therefore with Verstappen.com and Red Bull. So, we will do everything we can to be at the front of the field.”
Lorenz Frey-Hilti, Team Principal: “The races at the Red Bull Ring are a very important event for us, because of the collaboration with Max Verstappen and Thierry Vermeulen. So, we are really looking forward to the weekend. We have already gained experience there in a test and are well-prepared. It is difficult to estimate where we will be compared to the competition. For sure it will be a big event for us, and we will give our best as always.”
Driver Quote Ferrari 296 GT3 #14
Jack Aitken (Great Britain): “The Red Bull Ring is a track we know well and where there is almost always good racing! However, the track doesn’t suit the Ferrari 296 GT3 that much, so it will be interesting for us to try and take to fight with the other cars, because you never know what can happen.”
Driver Quote Ferrari 296 GT3 #69
Thierry Vermeulen (Netherlands):”I am looking forward to racing at the Red Bull Ring. It’s a nice event for me to race there because I’m sponsored by Red Bull, and of course it’s a beautiful place to race. We had two promising test-days there earlier this year, but with the long straights uphill it is always unpredictable, and performance is very important. We should be well-prepared to perform to our potential and it will definitely be a nice weekend. We’ve had a couple of race weekends in a row now, the team is in a good flow and we’re all really looking forward to it.”