Maro Engel remains at the top of the 2026 DTM Drivers’ Championship after Round 6 at the Nürburgring, but Thomas Preining has reduced the Mercedes-AMG driver’s provisional advantage to just one point with four races remaining.
Preining produced one of the strongest weekends among the title contenders, finishing second behind Matteo Cairoli in Race 1 before taking third behind Marco Wittmann and Tom Kalender on Sunday. Meanwhile, Wittmann transformed his own championship position with third on Saturday and victory in Race 2, climbing from seventh to fifth and moving firmly into the title fight. DTM’s current standings list Engel on 160 points, Preining on 159, Nicki Thiim on 139, Lucas Auer on 136 and Wittmann on 135.
However, all three championship classifications remain provisional. TGI Team by GRT has formally appealed Mirko Bortolotti’s disqualification from Oschersleben Race 2, and the DMSB Appeals Court has yet to rule on the case. Therefore, the amended Oschersleben result — and the Drivers’, Teams’ and Manufacturers’ Championship points affected by it — remain subject to change.
Engel holds on to championship lead by one point
Engel arrived at the Nürburgring with a provisional 25-point advantage following Bortolotti’s Oschersleben disqualification, which promoted him to victory in Race 2. However, the Mercedes-AMG Team Ravenol driver endured a much more difficult sixth round.
He qualified sixth for Saturday’s race and finished in the same position, collecting 10 points as Cairoli controlled the contest ahead of Preining and Wittmann. Engel therefore increased his championship total from 150 to 160 before Sunday. However, his second race ended without points following an opening-lap incident involving Auer and Kelvin van der Linde.
Consequently, Engel remains provisionally first on 160 points but has lost almost all of his pre-event advantage. With two rounds and four races remaining, Preining sits just one point behind.
Preining surges from fourth to second
Preining entered the Nürburgring fourth on 121 points but added 38 across Qualifying and the two races. He began his weekend by qualifying second to Cairoli and collecting two bonus points before following the Ferrari home in Race 1 for another 20.
The Manthey driver then qualified eighth on Sunday but worked his way into podium contention during an eventful Race 2. He eventually finished third behind Wittmann and Kalender to add another 16 points, increasing his total to 159.
Preining therefore jumps Thiim and Auer to move from fourth into second. More significantly, the 29-point provisional deficit he carried into Round 6 has fallen to a single point.
Thiim drops to third despite double points finish
Thiim scored in both Nürburgring races but could not match Preining’s haul. The Comtoyou Racing driver finished 11th on Saturday to collect five points before improving to seventh in Race 2 and adding nine more.
His 14-point weekend moves him from 125 to 139. However, Preining’s two podium finishes push Thiim from second to third in the provisional standings.
Thiim now trails Engel by 21 points. Nevertheless, with 112 championship points still potentially available across the final four races and Qualifying sessions, he remains firmly within the leading title group.
Auer loses ground after Sunday retirement
Auer also started the weekend firmly in championship contention and initially strengthened his position. He qualified third on Saturday to collect one bonus point before finishing fifth in Race 1, adding another 11.
However, his Sunday ended on the opening lap following the incident that also eliminated Engel and van der Linde. As a result, Auer left the Nürburgring without adding to his Saturday haul and increased his total from 124 to 136.
The Mercedes-AMG Team Landgraf driver drops from third to fourth. He sits 24 points behind Engel but only one ahead of the rapidly advancing Wittmann.
Wittmann charges into title fight after victory
Wittmann made the largest championship gain among the leading contenders. He arrived seventh on 94 points but left the Nürburgring fifth on 135 after scoring 41 points across the two races.
The Schubert Motorsport driver finished third behind Cairoli and Preining on Saturday, collecting 16 points. He then produced an even stronger Sunday performance, moving through the strategic phases of Race 2 before taking the lead and holding off a late challenge from Kalender to claim his 20th DTM victory.
The victory added another 25 points and allowed Wittmann to jump Maini and Cairoli in the standings. He now sits only 25 points behind Engel, placing five drivers within the equivalent of one race victory at the top of the provisional championship.
Cairoli remains within reach after Race 1 victory
Cairoli also delivered a major Nürburgring points haul. The Emil Frey Racing driver claimed pole for Race 1, earning three bonus points, before controlling Saturday’s race to secure his third DTM victory and another 25 points.
He added another Qualifying point by taking third on Sunday morning, although Race 2 proved more difficult. Cairoli eventually finished 13th and collected three points. His 32-point weekend therefore moves him from 95 to 127.
Despite that considerable gain, Wittmann’s 41-point haul pushes Cairoli from fifth to sixth. The Ferrari driver nevertheless sits only 33 points behind Engel and remains within mathematical title contention heading to the Sachsenring.
Maini retains seventh as Dörr and Engstler make gains
Maini endured a difficult Saturday and failed to score, but the HRT Ford Racing driver recovered strongly in Race 2. Fourth place added 13 points and increased his total from 95 to 108, keeping him seventh in the standings.
Dörr moves from 77 to 92 in eighth after taking fourth in Race 1 and second in Sunday’s Qualifying. However, his Race 2 ended prematurely, preventing him from adding further points.
Engstler climbs into ninth on 88 points after one of the most consistent Nürburgring weekends. DTM’s current Race 1 classification places the Red Bull Team ABT driver seventh before he followed that result with sixth on Sunday, giving him 19 additional points.
Gounon pole highlights midfield changes
Thierry Vermeulen completes the championship top 10 on 83 points after scoring in both races. Gounon follows three points behind after finishing eighth on Saturday, claiming pole position with a new Qualifying record on Sunday and eventually taking 14th in Race 2.
Ricardo Feller sits 12th on 77 points, while van der Linde remains on 73 after failing to score throughout the weekend. Wiebelhaus also remains unchanged on 63.
Bortolotti provisionally occupies 15th after his amended Oschersleben total left him on 48 points entering the weekend. He failed to score on Saturday but finished fifth on Sunday to reach 59. However, his championship position could change significantly depending on the outcome of GRT’s appeal.
Meanwhile, Kalender made the largest move lower in the order after claiming his maiden DTM podium with second in Race 2. His 20-point result moves him from 24 to 44 points and from 18th to 16th.
2026 DTM Drivers’ Standings after Round 6 at the Nürburgring
DTM’s current championship table reflects the provisionally amended Oschersleben classification.
- Maro Engel — Mercedes-AMG Team Ravenol — 160 points
- Thomas Preining — Manthey — 159 points
- Nicki Thiim — Comtoyou Racing — 139 points
- Lucas Auer — Mercedes-AMG Team Landgraf — 136 points
- Marco Wittmann — Schubert Motorsport — 135 points
- Matteo Cairoli — Emil Frey Racing — 127 points
- Arjun Maini — HRT Ford Racing — 108 points
- Ben Dörr — Dörr Motorsport — 92 points
- Luca Engstler — Red Bull Team ABT — 88 points
- Thierry Vermeulen — Emil Frey Racing — 83 points
- Jules Gounon — Mercedes-AMG Team MANN-FILTER — 80 points
- Ricardo Feller — Manthey — 77 points
- Kelvin van der Linde — Schubert Motorsport — 73 points
- Finn Wiebelhaus — HRT Ford Racing — 63 points
- Mirko Bortolotti — TGI Team by GRT — 59 points
- Tom Kalender — Mercedes-AMG Team Landgraf — 44 points
- Bastian Buus — Land-Motorsport — 43 points
- Marco Mapelli — Red Bull Team ABT — 41 points
- Timo Glock — Dörr Motorsport — 29 points
- Nicolas Baert — Comtoyou Racing — 7 points
- Maximilian Paul — TGI Team by GRT — 5 points
- Christian Engelhart — TGI Team by GRT — 2 points
Manthey slashes Winward Racing’s advantage
The Teams’ Championship has also tightened considerably. Winward Racing entered the Nürburgring provisionally leading Manthey by 32 points following the amended Oschersleben classification, but the Porsche squad dramatically reduced that margin.
Engel’s sixth place and Gounon’s two points from Race 2 helped Winward increase its total from 211 to 231. However, Manthey enjoyed a much stronger weekend, with Preining contributing second and third while Feller scored ninth and 11th. Their combined race results added 48 points, taking Manthey from 179 to 227.
Therefore, only four points now separate the leading two teams.
Wittmann moves Schubert into third
Wittmann’s podium and victory also transformed Schubert Motorsport’s Teams’ Championship position. His 41 race points carried the BMW operation from 160 to 201 despite van der Linde failing to score.
Schubert consequently moves ahead of Emil Frey Racing into third. However, the Ferrari team remains only four points behind on 197 after Cairoli and Vermeulen combined for 35 race points across the weekend.
Landgraf Motorsport sits fifth on 176, while HRT Ford Racing follows on 160. Comtoyou Racing remains seventh ahead of ABT Sportsline, Dörr Motorsport, TGI Team by GRT and Land Motorsport.
2026 DTM Teams’ Standings after Round 6 at the Nürburgring
The current Teams’ Championship gives Winward Racing only a four-point advantage over Manthey, while Schubert and Emil Frey Racing remain similarly close in the fight for third.
- Winward Racing — 231 points
- Manthey — 227 points
- Schubert Motorsport — 201 points
- Emil Frey Racing — 197 points
- Landgraf Motorsport — 176 points
- HRT Ford Racing — 160 points
- Comtoyou Racing — 136 points
- ABT Sportsline — 124 points
- Dörr Motorsport — 117 points
- TGI Team by GRT — 66 points
- Land Motorsport — 43 points
Mercedes-AMG retains Manufacturers’ Championship control
Mercedes-AMG remains comfortably ahead in the Manufacturers’ Championship despite a mixed Nürburgring weekend. Using the provisionally amended Oschersleben total of 283 points and the two highest-scoring drivers from each manufacturer in each Nürburgring race, Mercedes-AMG adds 43 points to reach 326. The manufacturer scoring system counts the two highest-scoring drivers from each marque in each race.
Porsche makes a slightly larger gain through Preining, Feller and Buus. The manufacturer adds 49 points across the two races and increases its total from 198 to 247, reducing Mercedes-AMG’s provisional advantage from 85 to 79.
Ferrari and BMW separated by three points
Ferrari retains third after Cairoli’s victory provided a major boost to its Nürburgring total. Cairoli and Vermeulen combine to add 35 manufacturer points across the weekend, moving Ferrari from 174 to 209.
BMW sits only three points behind after Wittmann supplied almost all of its Nürburgring haul. His third place and Sunday victory add 41 points to BMW’s total, taking the manufacturer from 165 to 206.
Lamborghini also makes significant progress despite the uncertainty surrounding its Oschersleben result. Engstler and Christian Engelhart supplied its strongest Saturday scores before Bortolotti and Engstler finished fifth and sixth on Sunday. Those results provisionally move Lamborghini from sixth to fifth on 187 points.
Ford follows on 171, while Aston Martin reaches 156 and McLaren completes the classification on 133.
2026 DTM Manufacturers’ Standings after Round 6 at the Nürburgring
Applying the amended Oschersleben classification and DTM’s Nürburgring results produces the following provisional Manufacturers’ Championship:
- Mercedes-AMG — 326 points
- Porsche — 247 points
- Ferrari — 209 points
- BMW — 206 points
- Lamborghini — 187 points
- Ford — 171 points
- Aston Martin — 156 points
- McLaren — 133 points
Nürburgring transforms DTM title fight ahead of Sachsenring
Round 6 has significantly compressed the championship battle. Engel still holds the lead, but Preining has transformed a 29-point pre-event deficit into a single-point gap. Meanwhile, Thiim, Auer and Wittmann all remain within 25 points of first, while Cairoli sits only another eight points behind Wittmann.
The Teams’ Championship has tightened just as dramatically, with Winward Racing’s 32-point provisional advantage reduced to four. Mercedes-AMG retains more breathing room among the manufacturers, although Porsche reduced its deficit during a strong Nürburgring weekend.
However, the championship picture still carries an important qualification. GRT lodged its formal appeal against Bortolotti’s Oschersleben disqualification on 17 August, and no hearing date had been set at the time of the latest update. If the appeal succeeds, the Oschersleben Race 2 classification and the points attached to it could change again.
The DTM now heads to the Sachsenring for Round 7 from 11–13 September, before the championship concludes at Hockenheim in October.
