After starting from pole position, Rene Rast went on to win the opening DTM Series race at the Moscow Raceway.
Rast inherited pole position after Marco Wittmann had a five place grid penalty after receiving three reprimands.
From there Rast was able to maintain the lead which he held until in the end of the race as he claimed a lights-to-flag victory ahead of team-mate Mike Rockenfeller and Wittmann.
“It was an awesome race.
“The car was mega, the pit stop superb – a big thank you to the team!”
Rast came under pressure from team-mate Rockenfeller in the closing stages despite the latter recovering from a broken metatarsal in his left foot, the gap between the leading Audi duo was just 0.770 seconds at the line.
“My start wasn’t optimal, but after that, it went really well. I led the race throughout and I am happy to be back in the lead of the points’ standings.”
This victory meant Rast leapfrogged his way to the lead of the championship at the halfway point of the season after a difficult race for other title contenders.
Fourth place in the second race of the weekend added another 12 points to Rast’s tally but it was not enough to retain the championship lead as Mattias Ekström reclaimed the lead by one point.
