DTM | 2026 Lausitzring | Qualifying 2 | Maini claimed historic first Ford DTM

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Arjun Maini claimed Ford’s first GT3 pole position in the DTM after setting the pace in Sunday’s Qualifying 2 at the Lausitzring. The HRT driver produced a 1:19.750 to beat Emil Frey Racing’s Matteo Cairoli by 0.128s, securing the second pole position of his DTM career. Maini had already shown the strength of the Ford Mustang GT3 Evo by qualifying second on Saturday, but he went one better in the second session of the weekend to deliver a landmark result for the manufacturer.

His previous DTM pole came at the Red Bull Ring in 2024, when HRT still competed with Mercedes machinery. Sunday’s performance therefore marked his first pole since the team switched to Ford and highlighted the progress made during the Mustang’s second season in the championship.

HRT endured a challenging first campaign with the car, but its pace at the Lausitzring suggested the team had taken a significant step forward. Maini’s front-row start on Saturday was followed by an even stronger qualifying display on Sunday, while team-mate Finn Wiebelhaus also placed the second Ford inside the top four.

The result gave HRT two cars on the opening two rows and placed Maini in the strongest possible position for the second race of the weekend.

Cairoli joined Maini on the front row

Cairoli continued his competitive Lausitzring weekend by qualifying second for Emil Frey Racing, missing pole by just over a tenth of a second. The Ferrari driver remained in contention throughout the session and secured a clear view into the first corner, while Nicki Thiim completed the top three for Comtoyou Racing. Thiim finished 0.157s behind Maini after once again showing the qualifying potential of the Aston Martin Vantage GT3.

The Dane had set a new qualifying lap record with a 1:19.463 on Saturday, but the field could not match those times during Sunday morning’s session. Overnight rain appeared to reduce the available grip, while the warmer conditions also created a different challenge for the drivers. Air temperatures had already reached 27 degrees Celsius during qualifying, with the track measuring approximately 30 degrees. Despite the heat, the times remained closely matched, and only 0.157s separated Maini from Thiim in third.

Wiebelhaus secured fourth in the second HRT Ford and continued an impressive weekend for the rookie. He initially faced an investigation for allegedly blocking Nicolas Baert, but the stewards took no further action and allowed him to retain his place on the second row. The two Ford drivers, therefore, started inside the top four, confirming the Mustang’s strength over one lap despite a minor Balance of Performance adjustment before Sunday’s running.

Ford and Aston Martin both received small changes following Saturday’s action, but neither manufacturer disappeared from the front of the grid. Instead, Maini and Thiim remained among the leading drivers as seven different brands filled the first eight positions at DTM Qualifying 2 at the Lausitzring

Seven manufacturers featured inside the top eight

Luca Engstler qualified fifth as the leading Lamborghini driver and placed the new Temerario GT3 within 0.243s of pole position.

The ABT Sportsline driver finished ahead of Manthey Porsche’s Thomas Preining, who secured sixth and placed himself directly in front of Maro Engel. Engel ended the session just 0.015s behind Preining, setting up another potential battle between the pair during the race. Marco Wittmann completed the top eight for Schubert Motorsport, leaving Ford, Ferrari, Aston Martin, Lamborghini, Porsche, Mercedes and BMW represented across the opening four rows.

Wittmann finished 0.330s behind Maini after Schubert made a small set-up adjustment that improved the BMW’s performance by approximately one and a half tenths. The German had struggled to maximise the M4 GT3 Evo’s pace in several qualifying sessions during the season, despite producing consistent results in the races, so eighth provided a welcome return to the top 10.

Mirko Bortolotti narrowly missed out on a place inside the first eight after qualifying ninth for Grasser Racing. The Lamborghini driver ended the session 0.371s away from Maini, with Ricardo Feller following closely behind in the second Manthey Porsche. Feller completed the top 10, while Kelvin van der Linde placed the second Schubert BMW in 11th. Jules Gounon followed in 12th for Winward Racing, with only two thousandths of a second separating the pair.

The narrow gaps continued throughout the order, as the top 12 drivers all finished within 0.414s of pole. That closeness reflected the competitive nature of the field and left several drivers with realistic opportunities to move forward during the race.

Auer and Dörr remained outside the top 10

Lucas Auer endured a more difficult qualifying session and finished 13th in his Mercedes, 0.417s behind Maini’s benchmark. The championship contender missed the top 10 by only a small margin, but his place on the seventh row left him with more work to do in the race. Saturday winner Ben Dörr lined up alongside him after qualifying 14th for Dörr Motorsport.

Dörr inherited his maiden DTM victory following Marco Mapelli’s post-race penalty on Saturday. The Lamborghini driver crossed the line first but received a 15-second penalty after briefly exceeding the 80km/h speed limit under Full Course Yellow, which promoted Dörr to the top step of the podium.

However, the McLaren driver could not carry that momentum into DTM Qualifying 2 at the Lausitztring. He finished only two thousandths behind Auer and 0.419s away from pole, although the result reflected the difficulties the McLaren faced at the Lausitzring.

The circuit offered relatively little grip, which made it harder for the McLaren to bring its tyres into the correct operating window over a single lap. The team had expected a more challenging qualifying performance, particularly as the car appeared better suited to longer race runs than short qualifying efforts.

Timo Glock endured an even tougher session in the second Dörr Motorsport McLaren and qualified 20th, placing him second-last on the grid. The former Formula 1 driver finished 0.793s behind Maini after another difficult start to the day. Technical problems had already limited his running during practice, while his Saturday race ended early when the car suddenly lost power. Although Glock faced a difficult starting position, his early retirement from the opening race left him with a potentially useful tyre advantage for Sunday.

Fresh tyres opened further strategic possibilities

Each driver received three sets of slick tyres for the two race days, making tyre management an important part of the weekend. Because Glock retired early on Saturday and started that race on wet tyres, he carried two completely new sets of slicks into Sunday’s contest. With the second race featuring two mandatory pit stops, those fresh tyres could give him an opportunity to make progress from the back of the field.

Bortolotti also entered the race with a favourable allocation. The Grasser Racing driver had two sets that had only completed qualifying laps, as well as one completely unused set. Wiebelhaus, Engstler and Bastian Buus held similarly useful tyre options, which could influence the order once the mandatory pit-stop sequence began. Drivers with fresher rubber potentially had more freedom to extend stints or attack after their stops, particularly if degradation became a factor in the warm conditions.

Maini nevertheless held the clear advantage at Qualifying 2 at the Lausitzring before the start after delivering Ford’s first DTM pole of the GT3 era.

His performance completed a strong qualifying weekend for HRT and underlined how far the team had progressed with the Mustang. With Cairoli alongside him, Thiim and Wiebelhaus on the second row and seven manufacturers represented inside the top eight, the grid promised another closely contested race at the Lausitzring.