Team RMG, who finally secured the DTM Team Title yesterday afternoon at Circuit Park Zandvoort, have been the team to beat this year, as between 2014 DTM Champion Marco Wittmann and “Rookie of the Year” Maxime Martin, the Niederzissen-based outfit has taken five wins, meaning that they will be hunted as of the first race in 2015.
Team Principal Stefan Reinhold stated in a recent interview that their triumph to take the title over Audi Sport Team Abt Sportsline by over 90 points with a round to spare “means an awful lot to us.”
He said that Wittmann’s triumph at Lausitzring to take the Drivers’ Title was “a sensational success in it’s own right,” but the hard work was worth it for all at Team RMG: “However, the DTM Team title also means an awful lot to us. After all, it is the reward for all the hard work we have put in over the past months and years. The title also shows that, as well as the outstanding Marco, Maxime Martin has also done a fantastic job – and in his first season in the DTM. We are very proud of that. We have really performed superbly as a team this year.”
The bar was already set high in terms of the goal, when it came to Team RMG’s aspirations for this year. It was the motivation that provided the positive step forward that the team needed: “I stood up in front of the team at our Christmas party and told them in no uncertain terms that we are in it to win in 2014. In motorsport, you simply cannot be satisfied with being in the middle of the pack. Everyone embraced this approach and pulled their weight. It is always important to think positively in sport.”
Since the team had their motivational pep talk from Herr Reinhold, the team went into this season’s campaign with their heads held high, even though they didn’t have the best of luck last season: “The guys are now obviously hugely satisfied to be on top after many years of hard work –especially in such a hard-fought series as the DTM.”
BMW Motorsport have always been helpful to get the best results possible through co-operating with the likes of Team RBM and Team Schnitzer. The current champions have also been given the same opportunity to build a closer relationship with the Munich manufacturer, as Reinhold explained: “I am also pleased for the many colleagues at BMW who have given 100 per cent for the cause behind the scenes. I am also very grateful to everyone in Munich who has contributed to our success.”
As with any team, the direction that they go in over the course of a given season ha to be compromised to suit the drivers as best as possible, which was very much the case with both Wittmann and Martin: “Both have performed superbly this season. Marco had a sensational year, while Maxime, as a rookie, has improved consistently. A lot of things came together very nicely for both of them.”
However, Reinhold said that the celebrations for Team RMG will be heartily fulfilled at the season finale in three weeks’ time, which could coincide with BMW potentially securing its second clean sweep of DTM titles in three years.
But the focus will remain in earnest, as the final piece of the puzzle for Munich has not yet been put into place. Theywill be there to help in any way they can to ensure another historical moment takes place on a very special anniversary for the DTM.
