Emil Frey Racing experienced both the highs and lows of DTM competition at the Nürburgring, as Matteo Cairoli delivered the team’s standout performance of the 2026 weekend with his third win of the season, while Thierry Vermeulen faced a more difficult event that included heavy contact on Saturday and a challenging second race.
Despite Sunday’s disappointment, Team Principal Lorenz Frey-Hilti and Technical Director Jürg Flach both stressed that the team remains firmly focused on the championship fight heading to the Sachsenring.
Cairoli dominates Saturday from pole
Cairoli began Saturday by producing a superb Qualifying lap to secure pole position by just 0.036s over Thomas Preining. He then led from the first corner in the No. 14 Ferrari 296 GT3 Evo and quickly opened a gap of more than three seconds, putting himself in control before the pit-stop window even opened.
His 6.2-second stop kept him ahead once the strategies cycled through, although Preining briefly applied pressure on warmer tyres. Cairoli responded by rebuilding his advantage, setting the fastest lap and eventually taking the chequered flag almost 10 seconds clear. The performance earned him Driver of the Day honours and his third victory of the campaign.
However, the Italian left the weekend with mixed emotions after Sunday prevented him from converting another competitive run into a major result.
“On one hand it’s a very good feeling, but on the other it’s a very frustrating end to the weekend, because today’s race had so much potential. It’s simply a real shame that the pitstop problem happened. Nobody is to blame for it, it’s just unfortunate. But everything is still open and we will be back on the attack at the Sachsenring.”
Sunday pit-stop problem costs Cairoli another opportunity
Cairoli started Race 2 from third despite carrying 20 kilograms of success ballast and again remained firmly among the leaders during the opening stint. He held third through the early Safety Car period and stayed in the fight before making one of the later stops among the front-running group.
However, a rear-left wheel issue transformed his race. The stop lasted 24.8 seconds and dropped him to 11th, while later developments only increased the sense of a missed opportunity. Jules Gounon, who had entered the pits alongside Cairoli while leading, subsequently received a penalty for speeding in the pit lane, meaning a clean stop could have placed the Ferrari in a particularly strong position.
Cairoli recovered several places after the restart and moved into ninth, but the same spring-related problem created further delays at his second stop. He eventually finished 13th, leaving Emil Frey Racing to reflect on how close the team had come to another major result.
Frey-Hilti praises Cairoli but rues lost 2026 DTM Nürburgring points as Vermeulen struggles in Sector 1
Team Principal Frey-Hilti viewed Saturday as evidence of Cairoli and the team operating at a very high level, but Sunday’s mechanical problem left him frustrated by the points that slipped away.
“Yesterday, Matteo Cairoli was outstanding and produced an incredible lap in Qualifying. What followed was a smooth race and a sensational victory. Thierry Vermeulen struggled a little, particularly in the first sector.
“On Sunday, Matteo again did a great job in Qualifying to start from third. After a strong opening stint, the rest of the race was very bitter. During the pitstop, a wheel nut came loose due to a spring that was not tensioned firmly enough, and that cost us a lot of time at the box. The same spring then caused problems again at Matteo’s second stop.
“Very bitter, and a real shame that Thierry was unable to score more points. But the championship is not lost yet, even if we could definitely have reduced the gap today. We head to the next round at the Sachsenring with a 39-point deficit in the Teams’ Championship, but there are still enough races and points available.”
The comments underline how strongly Emil Frey Racing believes the weekend could have altered its championship position. Cairoli had already demonstrated the Ferrari’s outright pace on Saturday, while his Sunday Qualifying and opening stint suggested that the added success ballast had not removed the team from contention.
Instead, the pit-stop issue prevented the squad from translating that performance into another substantial haul.
Vermeulen’s Saturday ends with heavy contact
Vermeulen endured a more difficult opening race after starting from 14th, although he steadily gained ground before the first pit window. He reached 11th during the opening stint and continued fighting around the edge of the points after his stop.
His race then ended in frustration at the final chicane. Christian Engelhart made contact with the No. 69 Ferrari on the last lap, sending Vermeulen into the gravel and leaving the car with significant damage. The incident not only denied him a stronger result but also forced the Emil Frey Racing crew into an intensive overnight repair programme.
Vermeulen nevertheless returned to the grid on Sunday and immediately gained positions from 17th. He moved as high as 10th after passing Mirko Bortolotti but could not maintain that position and ultimately finished 12th.
Vermeulen searches for missing pace after Cairoli 2026 DTM Nürburgring victory
Although Vermeulen felt comfortable with the Ferrari across both days, he admitted that he could not reproduce Cairoli’s outright pace. For him, the main task after the Nürburgring involves understanding why the performance failed to materialise despite positive feedback from inside the car.
“A very difficult race and weekend for me. Even though I was happy with the car on both Saturday and Sunday, I was unable to match Matteo’s pace. The heavy accident on Saturday left significant damage to the car, so a huge thank you to the whole team who worked through the night, because without that effort a start on Sunday would have been impossible. We now need to analyse why the pace was not there for me.”
The accident also complicated his weekend beyond the immediate Race 1 result. However, the team’s overnight work allowed him to continue competing and gather further data on Sunday, which should help with the analysis before the Sachsenring.
Flach highlights fine margins between success and disappointment
Technical Director Flach felt the Nürburgring weekend demonstrated how quickly small details can alter the outcome of a DTM event. Saturday delivered pole position and maximum race points for Cairoli, while Sunday turned a potential victory challenge into a low-scoring finish because of one pit-stop component.
“As this weekend showed, small details can make all the difference between success and disappointment. After free practice, I was not yet convinced that we could fight for podiums or even a win. With Matteo Cairoli, we then had a perfect Saturday, with three points for pole position and then the full 25 for the outstanding victory. On Sunday, unfortunately, a wheel nut came out of the rim at the first pitstop while Matteo was running third, costing us around 18 seconds. For Thierry Vermeulen, things unfortunately did not go positively either, with the low point being the accident caused by Christian Engelhart.”
That contrast defined Emil Frey Racing’s entire weekend. The team proved it could produce the fastest car in the field and execute a dominant race, yet Sunday showed how little margin exists when technical problems intervene.
Sachsenring offers next chance to respond after difficult 2026 DTM Nürburgring for Cairoli and Vermeulen
Emil Frey Racing therefore leaves the Nürburgring with clear positives alongside considerable frustration. Cairoli’s Saturday victory confirmed the team’s ability to compete at the front, while his Sunday pace suggested another win remained realistic before the pit-stop problem struck.
Vermeulen, meanwhile, now has a different challenge. The Dutchman must understand why his pace fell short of Cairoli’s despite feeling comfortable with the Ferrari, while the team will also assess the consequences of Saturday’s accident and the points lost across the weekend.
With a 39-point deficit in the Teams’ Championship, Emil Frey Racing still sees enough opportunity ahead to remain part of the fight. The Sachsenring now offers the next chance to turn the Nürburgring’s underlying performance into a more complete weekend.
