DTM 2001 - Hockenheim II - Highlights
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00:00This is the German Touring Car Masters today, coming to you from Hockenheim, the last race
00:13weekend of the season.
00:33Hockenheim and the area around it, quiet, idyllic, a typical German town, well not quite
00:43so typical, you see, besides all the beauty, all the structures, there's also a racetrack.
00:50A racetrack that has hosted all types of races from around the world and the guests spend
00:55their time here, in the village of Hockenheim.
01:06But today, it's not quite as quiet as it would seem.
01:11This is the last race weekend for the German Touring Car Masters.
01:15Hello everyone, I'm Milt Fitzwater, welcome to Hockenheim.
01:19The championship has been decided, second place is up for grabs, but more importantly,
01:25some 65,000 fans are here to celebrate their Touring Car Series.
01:33They come in all colors, all shapes and sizes to watch this man, Michel Bartels, who will
01:38be on the pole, among all the other drivers who have competed throughout the season in
01:43the German Touring Car Masters.
01:51The field is set to go, 22 cars, they'll run the qualifying race, six laps around this
01:574.23 mile circuit, fastest course that they'll run all season long.
02:07Right now the conditions are very difficult, the circuit is not very dry and not very wet,
02:13so I don't know which tires we have to choose.
02:17I think under these conditions, the main important thing is to stay on the track, especially
02:22with slick tires.
02:26I don't know really, because it's very difficult.
02:30Here's how they're going to line up today, here at Hockenheim.
02:33On the pole, Michel Bartels, for the first time this season, the best starter course
02:36for an Opel, Patrick Huisman next to him in the best start for the Eschmann Mercedes team.
02:42On the next row, starting third, Bernd Meilander, Huisman's teammate, and then Matthias Ekström,
02:46the young Audi driver who's had such a spectacular season so far.
02:51Then come the teammates, Peter Dumbrek and Bernd Schneider, Schneider, the man with the
02:55yellow mirrors, is already the champion for the series.
02:59Here we go, and we're underway!
03:02And Patrick Huisman gets the brake on Michel Bartels.
03:06Huisman leads Michel Bartels into the first corner, and down the long straightaway, here
03:12at Hockenheim.
03:16They head out into the back part of the course, a car has gone off the course, a car has gone
03:21off the course, and this is Fesler.
03:25Fesler has gone off the course, and so has Jochen Winkelhock, oh, and his car's badly
03:30damaged.
03:33And the rest of the field continues to work their way around, here in the fall at Hockenheim.
03:39Heading now out onto one of the fastest parts of the course, you can see the course is a
03:43little bit wet, they'll get up to speeds of 167 miles an hour down this long, bending
03:47straight as they hit the east corner.
03:49Huisman out in front, then comes Bartels, then comes Meilander, and the field continues
03:56to work its way around here beautifully.
04:01X-Room sitting in fourth, but the battle is going on right now, all the way back in the
04:05pack, you can see Dumbrak and then Schneider trying to move up in the pack.
04:10We're in the first lap of six, here in the qualifying race.
04:14Here's what happened in the back, Fesler bumped into Tomczyk, and his race was over.
04:20The problem was the toe, the toe bar was broken after the shunt with Tomczyk, we touched us
04:27in the first corner, he spun, I want to try to go on the right side to overtake him, and
04:33he touched me on the rear wheel, so the toe was broken and we have to repair the whole
04:39thing.
04:41There you get another look at it, they bump, it goes up, they're going to have time though
04:45to get the car ready for the second race if they can get it in to the pit area.
04:52Hussmann is out in front, and this is Winkelhock coming back to the pit, and what a disappointing
04:56year it has been for him.
05:00Immediately after the start of the first corner, there was, yeah, somebody was confused, the
05:06car spun in front of me, and I don't know who was it exactly, it was a Mercedes, he
05:12touched me in the rear right side, so I spun off into the barrier, the car now, yeah, doesn't
05:19look so good anymore, the car is completely destroyed, so for me the season is finished.
05:25And no chance to look ahead and hope, there's what happens, you can see that orange car
05:29getting bumped from the back, he goes off into the wall heavily, comes back out, lucky
05:33that he isn't hit again, and then the car goes right back on the grass against the wall.
05:39Meanwhile, Hussmann continues to lead with a big margin, he continues to pull away as
05:46the rest of the field straightens itself out here at Hockenheim.
05:50Coming into the motor drum section, you can see the large lead that Hussmann has over
05:56Michel Bartels, and Bartels has started on the pole, Hussmann got a good jump at the
06:00beginning.
06:02Some thought it might have been a little bit of a jump start, but the officials didn't
06:06stop it, so Hussmann is out in front.
06:11Dumbrek, Meunier, what happened to Schneider, he was running up there somewhere, oh, there
06:17he is, Bernd Schneider went off.
06:21The champion, decided last month actually, is off the course, and it looks like they're
06:27going to have to try to get that car back in the pits to get him ready for the second
06:29race.
06:31This will be a disappointment for him, it's one of the first times he's dropped out of
06:33a qualifying race.
06:38Hussmann continues to roll here, Patrick, 32-year-old from the Netherlands, and there's
06:44what happened to Bernd Schneider, he went off, got up into that little part of the track
06:50that's still wet, went off the course, lucky it wasn't more serious damage than that, and
06:54the pace car is out.
06:56The pace car is out, but way out early.
07:00Hussmann and company are way in the back, so he's going to have to slow down and let
07:05him catch up, so he's supposed to pull out in front of the lead car.
07:15Here he comes, and now the pace car is going to have to wait to pick up Patrick Hussmann,
07:19that's a shame for Hussmann, because he had picked up a big lead, and had some comfort
07:23zone, and then all of a sudden that comfort zone disappeared.
07:35Marcel Fesler is back on the course, that was him you saw just a moment ago, so the
07:39car is running.
07:43And he is going to be able to get back into the pit area.
07:49The rest of the field coming around, waiting to catch up to the pace car here at Hockenheim,
07:53and a car has flipped over.
07:55One of the Audis has flipped over.
07:57Which one is it?
07:59It is the Audi of Aiello.
08:02Aiello's Audi flipped over, and the track crew is coming to him very, very quickly.
08:12And there he is, he's climbing out on his own, he's okay.
08:16Laurent Aiello, who in the beginning of the season was in the championship race, ends
08:22the season in a spectacular fashion.
08:26Laurent Aiello has destroyed the Audi, but the Audi's way it's built certainly protected
08:32him, the cage around the driver, there it is, he got off the course, the wheel dug into
08:36the gravel, and the car just started to flip.
08:40Oh, and you got a chance to ride with him, with an onboard camera.
08:44Take a look, the car spins, hits the gravel, and now it starts to roll, and you get a complete
08:50view.
08:53So, one of the top Audis is out of the pack, there he goes, nothing happened to him, he
08:59just went off, and when he went off, the wheel dug in, and the car flipped over.
09:05Aiello's season is now behind him, as he's walking to the pits.
09:11He had been in the battle for the second place, or actually third place, in the points race.
09:22But the unfortunate accident for Laurent Aiello means Alsen has secured second place.
09:26It was a tough ride, though, for the Frenchman.
09:32The problem was that I was inside of the corner, where it was completely damp.
09:36I was expecting my teammate to let me go in the right line, but there was no space, and
09:42then I lost the car and rolled it.
09:47So, it's a tough qualifying race, here in the last qualifying race of the 2001 season.
09:55Tomczek is bringing his car in, and they're going to be checking out his car, see if they
10:03can get him ready for the second race.
10:09So the Audis, who had been so strong, are having their share of problems.
10:16That's the Opel of Winkelhock, who had gone up against the wall.
10:20This is a very expensive last race.
10:22It's good they don't have to rebuild the cars for another weekend of racing.
10:30As we take a look at the cars coming around once again, that's the car of David Salins.
10:36You can see the damage that was done to his car.
10:38That was done early in the race, but he's still out there.
10:40Pace car is still out on the track.
10:43Husman, your leader, then comes Bartels, then comes Meilander.
10:49And behind Meilander is Dumbrek.
10:53And behind Dumbrek is Ekström, Mattias Ekström, a 23-year-old Swedish driver.
11:05So shortly, the track should be cleared of all the debris for this rather exciting segment
11:10of the qualifying race.
11:13The object of the qualifying race is to set the field for the main race.
11:18Some drivers push a little harder than others, but as much damage to cars
11:23as we've seen here in the last few minutes, we have not seen almost all season long
11:27in a qualifying race.
11:29Very, very difficult.
11:33There are your top six. Uwe Ahlson running back in sixth place in the Mercedes driver.
11:39Ahlson's been battling all the way to learn the car.
11:41He's done extremely well.
11:43Manuel Reuter, one of the top Opel drivers, is in 11th position.
11:47He's had a very disappointing season, as have all the Opel drivers so far.
11:52And there you see what the situation is.
11:53Aiello has dropped all the way back.
11:55Of course, he's out for the day.
11:57There was your pole sitter, who was beaten out at the start
12:02by that man right there, Patrick Husman.
12:05Pole sitter being Michel Bartels.
12:09So we're still running under caution.
12:11Lights blinking on top of the safety car.
12:17This is the Schneider car.
12:20They're getting that into the pits.
12:21They'll have to do the repair work to see if they can get him out
12:24and ready to go for the main race.
12:28The pace car has let everyone know it's time to get started again.
12:42It will be Patrick Husman who will have the right to get the jump here.
12:48He'll come around and see when he gets to see the light, and then he can go.
12:53And there he goes.
12:54And once again, a very good start for Patrick Husman.
12:59He's had a season to rebuild a career.
13:01He started off as a very successful driver in other manufacturer series.
13:04And then he comes into this one, and he had to get used to the car.
13:07But now, all of a sudden, he's there.
13:09And his teammate, Mylander, is getting by Michel Bartels.
13:13And Dumbrek is going by.
13:15The Mercedes, getting off to a great start.
13:18And Dumbrek is going by.
13:20The Mercedes, getting off to a great jump here.
13:22Michel Bartels, who had started on the pole,
13:24is now fighting for his life back in fourth position.
13:30Matthias Ekstrom is next to him, trying to move up another slide.
13:34There's his Olsen.
13:37So Michel Bartels, who had such an optimistic start,
13:41is all the way back in fourth.
13:44Now let's see what Uwe Olsen does.
13:46He's that black Mercedes with the red mirrors,
13:47coming up behind the yellow Audi.
13:53As the rest of the field works its way around.
13:56Husman, a good jump in front of his teammate, Mylander.
13:58Then comes Peter Dumbrek.
14:01And then Michel Bartels.
14:07Ekstrom follows him.
14:08Then comes Olsen.
14:09Then comes Timo Scheider.
14:13Christian Abt.
14:15And bringing up the tail end, it looks like Olivier.
14:19But Patrick Husman, sailing here, out in front.
14:23You're riding with Peter Dumbrek, back in the course,
14:25as you can see the battle going on.
14:27He wants to get by Bartels, and does.
14:30This is that restart after the safety car phase.
14:36And now it looks like the field has settled down,
14:39as we're trying to bring the qualifying race to its conclusion.
14:43Husman, Mylander.
14:46Peter Dumbrek.
14:48Michel Bartels.
14:49Timo Scheider.
14:51Matthias Ekstrom, in that yellow Audi.
14:54And then comes Olsen.
14:56And Olsen's really being pushed by Christian Abt.
14:59These two have been fighting all season long.
15:02And of course, after the race in Zandvoort,
15:04where Olsen passed him in the last corner of the last lap,
15:07to take, well, next to the last corner,
15:09to take the victory away from him.
15:11There's no love lost between these two.
15:13But now the chequered flag goes to Patrick Husman.
15:17His first victory of any kind in the German Touring Car Masters.
15:21Bear Mylander is second.
15:23And then comes Dumbrek, Bartels, Scheider, Ekstrom, Olsen,
15:27Abt, and the rest of the field.
15:30So a great day for Mercedes,
15:32after it looked like they were not going to be that well qualified.
15:36They came out and finished 1st.
15:38Meanwhile, Manuel Reuter came in 11th,
15:40and he's one of the top Opel drivers.
15:42But it was another great day for Mercedes.
15:45Yeah, it was quite an exciting race.
15:47Only six laps, but a couple of accidents.
15:49Very spectacular.
15:51Well, it's, for us now, a very good pace for the race.
15:54And here comes Michel Bartels.
15:56And next to him, Timo Scheider.
15:58Scheider, the young driver with a great future.
16:00And then comes Dumbrek, Bartels, Ekstrom, Olsen.
16:02And then comes Dumbrek, Bartels, Ekstrom, Olsen.
16:04And then comes Dumbrek, Bartels, Ekstrom, Olsen.
16:06And then comes Dumbrek, Bartels, Ekstrom, Olsen.
16:08He's got a great future.
16:10He's being touted as another Formula One driver of the future.
16:12Bartels is going to have to figure out what happened and what went wrong.
16:16Teams go to work between races to get themselves ready for the feature event.
16:21That will be 15 laps here on the Grand Prix course.
16:24This is the last time that they're going to run the Grand Prix course.
16:27It's going to be rebuilt and shortened through the woods.
16:30There is the Aello car.
16:32The new course here at Hockenheim
16:35will be about 2.7 miles long.
16:37currently 4.2 they'll get rid of the long straights out in the back area they're
16:41doing this basically for the Formula One series which also runs here so there's
16:45your winner of the first race Patrick Huseman heading back out and here's the
16:52starting lineup they start according to how they finished in that race Huseman
16:56and Mailanders starting first and second then comes Dumbreck and Bartles so the
17:02Opels still up there in front although that's probably a little bit of a
17:05disappointment to them after they had started on the pole position
17:10Timo Scheider and Ekström two of the young drivers in the third row the
17:19fourth row made up of Mercedes and Audi Altson and Opt the two drivers that
17:26love to battle each other and the remainder of the field is being set
17:30Huseman comes into this incidentally to try to pick up his first big victory as
17:35they come around he had it did not finish at the beginning of the season he
17:38was seventh at Nürburgring Ostersleben he was ninth third at the Sachsenring
17:42seventh at the Norrisring at the Euro Speedway he was fifth Nürburgring third
17:46the fifth down at the in Austria fourth in Zandvoort so you can see how much
17:51better he's getting and now he's won the qualifying race and we're underway and
17:55he gets to jump again or at least it looks like it is if one of the cars goes
18:00off yes he does Patrick Huseman gets the jump ahead of
18:05Mailander Dumbrek pulls into third Timo Scheider has moved into fourth and a car
18:11has spun here Mamoru the independent driver has spun Patrick Huseman heading
18:20out on the long straightaway now but look at this the fourth car back Timo
18:23Scheider the 22 year old German driver everyone is picking a great future for
18:30this young man into the first chicane
18:36Huseman, Mailander, Dumbrek and a three-car sandwich back in the back
18:43that straightened out a little bit of bunching way back in the pack and
18:54Michel Bartels just continues to drop back after his great pole position it is
19:00kind of surprising that he's had the problem because when he took the pole he
19:03did it totally without any windscreen of any for any drivers there was no slip
19:07streaming at all he did it by himself and everybody thought gee that car is
19:10gonna run but he's sitting back now and battling for a good position here as we
19:15get underway in the main race you're riding with Uwe Ahlsen as he's trying to
19:22move up on Michel Bartels who's on the left side of him right now as we take a
19:30look back in the pack here Mamoru bumped into Olivier and then Mamoru was the
19:38one that spun and Huseman once again gets a great jump a man from the
19:48Netherlands in the last race of the season proving that he certainly belongs
19:53in the German touring car championship and as we noted this race started he's
19:56got nothing but get better since the midpoint of the season seventh fifth
20:01third fifth fourth amazing those in the finishes in the main race and here he is
20:07out in front this is the race for drivers like Huseman to prove they
20:12belong and want a contract again for next year Bartels has dropped all the
20:17way back to seventh place Reuter has lost a position from 11th until 12th
20:22Baron Schneider who started back in the back your champion and defending
20:27champion is way back in 15th but he started 19th so he's made up four
20:31positions here the slipstreaming is going on there's Baron Schneider right
20:40in the middle of your screen right going by the gray Mercedes with the yellow
20:44mirrors he wants to move up he may have the title and everything else but he
20:49certainly wants to continue to move up he got inside but is he going to get by
20:54he's upside Christian Albers and gets by him
21:07the Schneider is by Albers and ahead of him is Albers teammate Thomas Jaeger
21:16there's the Mamoru car coming into your screen losing parts on the course that
21:22could be dangerous some of these parts getting into those tires the piece the
21:29main piece seems to have gone off if there are any small pieces out there
21:32that can bite into a tire and end a race day real quick here
21:37Michel Bartels get a look at his Opel as he continues to roll but right now the
21:43top Opel is Timo Schneider you're riding back in the pack once again with Uwe
21:48Nielsen the German driver who's had to literally battle himself and the Mercedes
21:56getting used to it after coming to Mercedes from Opel last year now he's
22:01proven himself he's won a couple of races and he certainly is no one to mess
22:06with when you're going to want to try to pass he's not afraid of saying hello I'll
22:09bump you to get a good look at the course here at Hockenheim coming into
22:14the long straightaway in front of the pit area
22:19coming out of this you have a right-hander
22:24and then you head back out into the woods
22:30and there goes David Salins off their course
22:35Salins in the service 24 Mercedes but he got off into the grass so he should be
22:41able to get back on well he also got a little bit of a spin here he gets the
22:46car straight now to get back on the course
22:52Salins came into the season about the third race when Pedro Lamy left the team
22:59there's Timo Schneider the young German driver
23:05and he is currently battling with Matthias Ekström Ekström right behind him
23:11so Husemann Mailander Mercedes and a third Mercedes with Dumbrak then comes
23:16Scheider Ekström Uwe Ahlsen Bartels all the way back to seventh
23:21Darren Turner has moved up to eighth position that's good for him Reuters
23:24picked up a spot up into the 11th slot and look at Baron Schneider he's in 12th
23:28he had started way back in the pack in 19th position so he is now 12th in the
23:34field and continuing to roll in fact he's the last car in this four-pack
23:40right here Manuel Reuters the car right in front of him that yellow and white
23:46open Schneider's gonna have to work his way to get by that group that's not an
23:51easy group to get by but he's pulling up on Manuel Reuter
23:59Schneider and Reuter two of the veterans of the German touring car scene
24:06Manuel wants to get by Christian Abt but he also has to keep Baron Schneider at
24:11bay he's got his hands full and Abt comes up against Manu and bumps him
24:22so Manure is off the course and the question is can Manuel Reuter take
24:31advantage of the slowed-down situation of the Audi ahead of him there's Uwe
24:39Ahlsen Ahlsen now is running in the sixth place but here's the battle going
24:48on back in the pack Timo Scheider leading this pack here as Ahlsen is
24:52getting by Ekström and they do so Uwe Ahlsen has moved up another slot Ekström
24:58goes off and so does Uwe Ahlsen oh this is a day for everybody going off course
25:05at least on this case here everybody stayed out there and was able to keep
25:09going that came to the disadvantage of Manuel Reuter who had pulled up a
25:15little space between himself and Baron Schneider and Reuter slowed down look at
25:18that Schneider pulls right up on the back bumper again
25:23Schneider who's proven to be one of the more difficult drivers to hold back I
25:31guess would be a nice way to phrase it no matter where you put him in the in
25:35the field he just seems to battle his way to the front he's come from all the
25:38way back in the back to win eventually amazing and Timo Scheider's car has
25:43pitted oh what a shame the young driver had done so well here in the feature
25:47race and now he's got problems something's wrong with the car obviously
25:55but his race day is over
26:02but the battle remains back here in the pack that's Ekström followed by Reuter
26:10followed by Baron Schneider and we have pit stops to come yet the mandatory four
26:15tire change pit stops have to come yet
26:22working our way through the pack Ekström Reuter and Baron Schneider
26:28actually this is a great accomplishment for Schneider just to be this far
26:32forward and with cars falling out it's truly amazing well a little bit of a tap
26:39there the question was was there an original tap it's hard to see there's
26:44what happened when you goes off but the battle now is up front
26:52Uwe Ahlson back in the pack and there you get Michel Bartels going by
27:02as Ekström goes off the course Ahlson had also gone off the course busy busy day here
27:15here comes Schneider inside of Manuel Reuter and he's by him
27:24so Baron Schneider continues to roll here as the top three are out in front is
27:29Husemann Meilander and Dumbrak they've led from the start three Mercedes but
27:34it's almost time to go to the pits Bartels in fourth Ahlson is now fifth
27:41Reuter is up into seventh with Schneider in eighth Wow so Baron Schneider has done a
27:48great job they have gotten by Christian Acht and the pit stops have started and
27:56a car stalls going out what a shame that is the Ekström car he had been
28:05running so far up front and now all of a sudden a stall pit can ruin you in this
28:09series remember it's a mandatory pit stop have to change all four tires
28:18he's out but he lost valuable time
28:25here you see Patrick Husemann and how they're using the curbs here the car
28:31bounces everywhere they use every bit of the racetrack plus more to get the most
28:37out of the car and Husemann certainly showing his talents here at Hockenheim
28:44Bernd Meilander another story this season missed three race weekends after
28:48he injured himself injured his foot in a training accident he was working out
28:52hurt his foot had to sit out for three races Marcel Thiemann came in and did a
28:56great job in the car which put pressure on Meilander when he came back and now
29:00look at Meilander he's sitting in second place here in the final race of the
29:05season Meilander certainly has not had what you'd call though the greatest of
29:15seasons besides the fact that he had the injury and missed those three races
29:19he's also had a DNF and a DNS did not finish and did not start in the last
29:25couple of races in the main feature events so he's had his problems but now
29:32Meilander is taking the lead as Husemann heads into the pits Patrick Husemann
29:38this is a key one now he needs to get in and get out as quick as he can knowing
29:43that the rest of the field has to pit and he has to then make up that
29:46difference on the track all four tires have to be changed
29:54uh-oh they've got a problem with the back tire something's wrong oh what a
30:00shame this is valuable time that Husemann is losing and he's losing the
30:09race right here with a problem with the back tire oh my he's out but now the
30:18question is going to be how bad is it coming back out on the track he had the
30:25opportunity to hold that lead comes back out but he is down on time
30:30seriously down on time Meilander has taken the lap and the lead on lap six
30:42and Husemann is dropping all the way back it looks to be on the chart at
30:47about 10th position but everybody else still has to pit so it's going to be
30:51interesting to see what happens here
30:57he's actually dropped back a little further than that but now we have to
31:02wait and see where we get to in this one because it's now critical that is
31:09Olivier going off the leader is Bernd Meilander
31:18and the question is going to be who's going to be able to pit where here
31:23Mamereau and Salins that's why Mamereau went off he and Salins bumped quite
31:33frankly a lot of drivers want to prove they belong and they're not holding back
31:37anything here Dumbrec who has been running third in and out
31:47all the leaders are starting to pit right now this is the big time for
31:51everyone there comes Meilander out and he's still out in front after the pit
32:02stop and because Husemann had the long pit stop there Meilander came back out
32:07in front Darren Turner with problems getting back
32:15onto the course but there's your leader Hubert Haupt
32:23still out on the circuit but he's been lapped
32:29there comes Meilander
32:40the rest of the field sorting itself out very nicely but Dumbrec has come
32:45out right behind Meilander so those are your top two cars now Meilander is the
32:50second in the row here that's Darren Turner ahead of him then comes Meilander
32:58then comes Hubert Haupt was being lapped and then comes a second place car right
33:01there Dumbrec will look like he was making the move on Hubert Haupt so the
33:07Eschmann team coming back in a big way here out in front have won the
33:16qualifying race leading in the main race here at Hockenheim once again Uwe
33:22Alsen he goes off the course boy he's been battling that car today he and
33:27Michel Bartels bumped so Alsen is having his day of difficulties keeping the car
33:36on the course there's Darren Turner but there's your leader
33:43Bernd Meilander Meilander had a great pit stop he now is out in front with a
33:53nice little lead over Peter Dumbrec Darren Turner is actually running in
34:00third place going into the pits though
34:06Schneider has moved all the way up into fifth position after starting in 19th
34:12an amazing way to go Alsen sitting in sixth Reuter who's back in 11th and 12th
34:19position has moved up into seventh in the Opel
34:24the field continues to sort itself out after the pit stop break here in the
34:31German touring car masters at Hockenheim the season finale there's Olivier in the
34:37pits and he's gone
34:43next year there'll be 11 races on the season four of them planned outside of
34:48Germany
34:53promises to be another exciting year
34:57here's the battle back in the pack with Schneider and Alsen
35:08Schneider trying to get by him on the inside does it work here
35:12Alsen a drop back away so Schneider must have picked it up somewhere and this
35:16must be it here they are running as close as you want to get without touching
35:21amazing driving. Bernd Meilander your leader then comes Peter Dumbrec
35:27Hubert Haupt
35:32we've passed the halfway point
35:37there is Bernd Schneider, Uwe Alsen, Manuel Reuter and Michel Bartels
35:45the three drivers behind Schneider certainly have a lot to prove this
35:49season and in particular the Reuter and Bartels want Opel to have at least a
35:55strong finish heading into next year it's been a terrible year for Opel you
35:59can't make it a pretty scene at all they have had a hard year all year long they
36:06have really not been that competitive
36:10and for one of them to finish on the 1-2-3 position and make it to the
36:14podium after the race that would be an accomplishment and a way to look forward
36:17next year with a very positive outlook
36:21right now you're riding with Uwe Alsen heading out into the back of the pack
36:26Alsen is the second car in the four cars you're seeing here on the screen
36:33Schneider changed the rearview mirror on that one side normally he has two yellow
36:37mirrors and one was changed after he went off into the tires the first lap of
36:41the qualifying race Schneider, Alsen, Reuter and Bartels
36:52then comes Husman after that miserable stop he is in eighth position but pretty
36:58much out of the chase for the title unless some more dramatic things happen
37:01here for the championship I mean of today's race here at Hockenheim
37:09Bernd Schneider the dominator all season long last couple of races have been
37:16battles for him but the pressure is certainly off when he won the title
37:23earlier there's Husman really pushing gosh he really wants to move up he
37:30probably upset at his crew himself and everybody else and wants to use up
37:34every bit of the track he can to try to get back up toward the lead but it's
37:37going to be very very difficult Dumbrecht going into the lower part of
37:42your screen here comes Bernd Schneider, Uwe Alsen, Manuel Reuter and Michel Bartels
37:52and Bartels is falling back Reuter is staying up on the bumper of Alsen
38:03this could be an interesting battle right through all the way because
38:06Schneider is not going to back off obviously he has the title but the man
38:10wants to win no matter what the situation is and when you consider he
38:14started 19th and is running fourth at this moment truly amazing well now he's
38:22running third Hubert Haupt has pitted so Bernd Schneider who started 19th is
38:26running third amazing Bartels got a stop-and-go
38:34he got a stop-and-go penalty too fast on pit lane and well that kind of takes his
38:39day away from him he's not gonna have to make up that difference which would be
38:44impossible at this point of the race
38:49so Bartels who had so optimistically started for himself and for Opel drops
38:55back in the pack meanwhile Bernd Meilander continues to roll
39:04he was in second place for the first five laps took the lead in the sixth
39:08lap and then held the lead through the pit stop and has led ever since
39:14Dumbrecht who is now running second had been running third going into the fifth
39:18lap then Husemann went to the pits Dumbrecht moved up into second position
39:23and has been sitting there ever since
39:29Husemann and his crew have to be kicking themselves immensely here and Bernd
39:36Schneider boy what a great race he's had running in third position and the
39:42Olivier car has gone off that's the team car with Manuel Reuters the Opel he's
39:50had a very very difficult year in his first year in the German touring car
39:54masters the car went off obviously something wrong with it
39:58so all the Opel drivers looking forward to next year and certainly have a lot to
40:04prove and Bernd Meilander boy this is finally a great combination of the
40:09season for him he drives the pace car in Formula One and he's had an up-and-down
40:13year more down than up in the German touring car masters and now all of a
40:17sudden he's leading the final race of the season and the Mercedes crew has
40:23dominated again and if you looked at qualifying you wouldn't have believed it
40:27but now they're running one through four and the yellow and white Opel is Manuel Reuters
40:34he is two positions away from a podium spot a chance for Opel to
40:41stand up on the winners podium but he's got a lot of work ahead of him to get
40:46that far particularly he'd have to get by this man Uwe Ahlsen the man you're
40:52riding with here at Hockenheim Ahlsen is tough to get by as we've seen in the last
40:58couple of races he doesn't hold back
41:05so Schneider, Ahlsen, Reuter as we work our way down to the final laps here at
41:13Hockenheim on the Grand Prix course the last race on this version of the
41:18Hockenheim circuit the long course will disappear what was 4.2 miles will become
41:252.7 miles they'll cut it right in the middle through the wooded area
41:29cutting out the two long straightaways look at them use the curbs and
41:35everything to hold on to their position Manuel Reuter wants by Ahlsen this and
41:42Ahlsen isn't giving up no space whatsoever
41:48Ahlsen is going to be tough to pass and this is the real difficult time for Opel
41:58they need some success here they go into the corner and Reuter and Ahlsen are
42:03bumping all remnants of last race except it was Abt and Ahlsen this time it's
42:10Reuter who was not to be stopped he gets by
42:18so Manuel Reuter moves up a slot and Opel has a chance to possibly get up on
42:26the podium Reuter is running fourth it would be a
42:30psychological win for Opel the third place car is right there in front of him
42:37Reuter can see him Reuter's got some room between himself and Uwe Ahlsen
42:43obviously the Ahlsen car was getting slower the Opel quicker and now the
42:52battle comes down to Manuel Reuter and can he catch the champion
42:57Bernd Schneider the laps are running out watch this inside goes Reuter Ahlsen had
43:04gone a little high nobody's holding back here enough bumping to handle
43:10anybody going back and forth and this is where Reuter takes advantage right here
43:18ooh and the smoke coming from tires rubbing question is the tires rub and go
43:24down well we'll wait and see there's the pass right there from Uwe Ahlsen's view
43:30so Manuel Reuter was not to be denied here but can he catch this man in front
43:35of him Bernd Schneider
43:40time really is running out only a couple of laps left the top two seem to be
43:47pretty well set Mylander out in front Dumbrecht behind him but this is where
43:56the battle is and this is another battle going on the back
44:00Husemann and Ahlsen and Husemann goes into the sand is he going to get out
44:08Ahlsen is on the grass and out and he's gonna fall way back
44:18Ahlsen is going to fall way way back and certainly will be out of contention here
44:27wait and see how they come across the line here but he's going to drop several
44:31places back Husemann walks away from his car has to be a great disappointment for
44:36him Ahlsen has dropped back all the way to 13th Husemann wanted to go inside
44:46Ahlsen gave him absolutely no room Husemann spun Ahlsen kept the car going
44:52he's gonna have to get through the sand and that's the trick the gravel and here
44:58he goes you get the chance to ride with him you know he wants to get to that
45:01grass once he's on the grass he can get back out onto the course
45:08but there is Patrick Husemann he has to be very very disappointed but he made
45:14his point he won the qualifying race led in this race until the crew had a
45:23problem with the back tire and threw him way back in the pack
45:28Mylander now out in front the second place car right here Peter Dumbrek but
45:34this is the man of the race Bernd Mylander he was ninth at Hockenheim in
45:40the opening race of the season 20th at the Nürburgring still learning the car
45:45then he had the injury and was out missing Oschersleben Sachsenring and
45:49the Norrisring coming back at the Eurospeedway he was 13th at the
45:54Nürburgring seventh which up to this point was his best then in Austria he
46:00didn't finish and in Zandvoort he didn't start the main race now here at
46:06Hockenheim he qualified third finished second in the qualifying race and is
46:11leading here in the main race so Bernd Mylander is making up for what has been
46:17a very difficult season now he just has to bring it home
46:24of course he also has to now go through it all hoping that nothing happens to
46:29the car it's just now a matter of driving at home
46:34Dumbrek is not pushing him they're in the final lap a little less than four
46:42miles to go and Bernd Mylander will have his first victory in the German
46:49Touring Car Championship he's won another series we mentioned he's the
46:53pace car driver in Formula One
46:58now he's about to go into his first victory lane in the German Touring Car
47:06Masters
47:11Peter Dumbrek satisfied with second place in this position Dumbrek will
47:19finish third in the points race Schneider won it
47:24Alston second Dumbrek will finish third and if Fessler can finish this race he
47:30will be one point ahead of Laurent Aiello to take over fourth Aiello who
47:34flipped his car in the qualifying race will drop back to fifth in the points
47:39race and looking ahead here if it goes like it is Mercedes then will have 15
47:45total wins seven in qualifying eight in the race Audi has won the only other
47:51races Opel did not win a victory the Eschmann team the way they're going here
47:58will finish third in the team championship the D2AMG Mercedes team
48:03that's the Bernd Schneider team finished first the Varsteiner team came in second
48:08that's with Uwe Alston and then comes the Eschmann team here with Mylander and
48:14Usman and then fourth will be the App Sports line team but now it's time for
48:21Bernd Mylander to smile and enjoy the fruits of victory it takes a whole
48:26season to get there but here he takes the checkered flag in the German touring
48:30car masters the final race of the season and it's a very happy crew that meets
48:38him
48:41Dumbrek pulls up alongside Bernd Mylander can smile now Dumbrek second
48:50Bernd Schneider with a great drive finishing third Manuel Reuter just missed out coming in
48:54fourth position Fesler after the incident in the first race coming up and
48:59finishing fifth a great finish for him and there's the remainder of the field
49:02here in the final race of the season here on the long course at Hockenheim
49:08and of course the happiest man of the day certainly has to be Bernd Mylander
49:11I really just can't believe it but it's a wonderful feeling and you could get
49:18used to it the last two or three laps were the longest of my life
49:22Hockenheim was 10 kilometers long a lap and now at 6.8 kilometers it was a
49:28wonderful feeling here particularly the last lap here in the motodrome and you
49:32know nothing more can happen I believe that I have a four and a half second
49:37lead I thought that all I had to do is drive the home to the finish it was a
49:40wonderful feeling and right behind him Peter Dumbrek Dumbrek can also smile
49:46when he heads home tonight yeah I'm very happy I think now I'm third in a
49:50championship also so it's a good good result and a great relief for me to get
49:56the extra position because I've had a few bad races now and now I get back on
50:01the podium and it's a great feeling and there it is as the fans celebrate the
50:07final race of the season in the German touring car masters Bernd Schneider long
50:12the champion already Uwe Allison second Dumbrek as he said moved up to third and
50:15look at that Marcel Fessler moves into fourth and there's the rest of the
50:20championship Manolo Reuter coming in ninth of course as we mentioned it was a
50:23very disappointing year for the Opel crew but the man of the year is
50:29certainly Bernd Schneider I was on the podium every race except
50:34Nürburgring that we had a problem doing the pit stop and I think there will be
50:40no way to top this in next year but I really looking forward now for next year
50:45because all others really the Opel's and Audi's getting stronger and all my
50:50teammates are very quick in the end of the season that means it will be a tough
50:53season next year and that does it for our coverage of the German touring car
50:57masters 2001 I'm Milt Fitzwater hope you'll join us next year when the German
51:03touring car masters returns
51:45you