Martin Tomczyk - Photo Credit: dtm.com
Newly-crowned DTM champion Martin Tomczyk laid down a marker for the final race weekend of the current generation of cars, by setting the pace in first free practice at Hockenheim. The session started an hour later than scheduled due to heavy fog at the circuit.
The older-spec Phoenix Audi driver knocked older-spec Persson Mercedes driver Christian Vietoris off top spot at the end of the session. Vietoris was relegated to third by the end of the session when another driver of an older Mercedes, Maro Engel, slotted into second place. The Mucke Motorsport driver was 0.168 seconds shy of Tomczyk's time.
Mike Rockenfeller was the best of the drivers of current-spec machinery in fourth, ahead of Vietoris' teammate Renger van der Zande and the Abt Audi duo of Mattias Ekstrom and Timo Scheider.
Filipe Albuquerque was eighth, ahead of a new name in the DTM. Susie Stoddart married Williams F1 shareholder Toto Wolff since the previous round at Valencia, and she finished her first session as Susie Wolff in ninth. Fellow Scot David Coulthard completed the top ten.
Bruno Spengler was the best of the HWA Mercedes quartet in 12th just behind Edoardo Mortara. Spengler's teammates Gary Paffett and Jamie Green were 15th and 16th, with Ralf Schumacher 18th and last. The former Grand Prix winner was yesterday confirmed with Mercedes for 2012.
First free practice times:
| Pos. | Driver / Entrant | Laps | Time | Gap |
| 1. | Martin Tomczyk Audi Sport Team Phoenix Schaeffler Audi A4 DTM |
30 | 1:33.621 | |
| 2. | Maro Engel GQ AMG Mercedes GQ AMG Mercedes C-Klasse |
33 | 1:33.789 | 0.168 |
| 3. | Christian Vietoris Junge Sterne AMG Mercedes Junge Sterne AMG Mercedes C-Klasse |
28 | 1:33.884 | 0.263 |
| 4. | Mike Rockenfeller Audi Sport Team Abt Sportsline E-POSTBRIEF Audi A4 DTM |
36 | 1:33.983 | 0.362 |
| 5. | Renger van der Zande stern AMG Mercedes stern AMG Mercedes C-Klasse |
39 | 1:34.039 | 0.418 |
| 6. | Mattias Ekström Audi Sport Team Abt Sportsline Red Bull Audi A4 DTM |
23 | 1:34.089 | 0.468 |
| 7. | Timo Scheider Audi Sport Team Abt AUTO TEST Audi A4 DTM |
24 | 1:34.259 | 0.638 |
| 8. | Filipe Albuquerque Audi Sport Team Rosberg TV Movie Audi A4 DTM |
32 | 1:34.337 | 0.716 |
| 9. | Susie Wolff TV Spielfilm AMG Mercedes TV Spielfilm AMG Mercedes C-Klasse |
28 | 1:34.485 | 0.864 |
| 10. | David Coulthard Deutsche Post AMG Mercedes Deutsche Post AMG Mercedes C-Klasse |
32 | 1:34.504 | 0.883 |
| 11. | Edoardo Mortara Audi Sport Team Rosberg Playboy Audi A4 DTM |
32 | 1:34.511 | 0.890 |
| 12. | Bruno Spengler Mercedes-Benz Bank AMG Mercedes-Benz Bank AMG C-Klasse |
27 | 1:34.553 | 0.932 |
| 13. | Miguel Molina Audi Sport Team Abt Junior Red Bull Audi A4 DTM |
32 | 1:34.602 | 0.981 |
| 14. | Oliver Jarvis Audi Sport Team Abt Audi Sport performance cars A4 DTM |
31 | 1:34.632 | 1.011 |
| 15. | Gary Paffett Thomas Sabo AMG Mercedes Thomas Sabo AMG Mercedes C-Klasse |
34 | 1:34.747 | 1.126 |
| 16. | Jamie Green AMG Mercedes AMG Mercedes C-Klasse |
33 | 1:34.819 | 1.198 |
| 17. | Rahel Frey Audi Sport Team Phoenix Glamour Audi A4 DTM |
33 | 1:34.930 | 1.309 |
| 18. | Ralf Schumacher Salzgitter AMG Mercedes Salzgitter AMG Mercedes C-Klasse |
34 | 1:34.986 | 1.365 |
