DTM | 2026 Sachsenring | Race 2 | Dörr takes shock victory as late chaos shakes up title fight

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Ben Dörr claimed victory in Race 2 of the 2026 DTM weekend at the Sachsenring, finishing ahead of Thomas Preining and Ricardo Feller.

DTM returned to the Sachsenring on Sunday for Race 2, with Maro Engel securing pole position alongside Ricardo Feller on the front row. Engel mastered the wet conditions in Sunday morning’s Qualifying 2 to take pole with a 1:26.307. Feller secured second for Manthey, 0.448 seconds behind the Mercedes-AMG driver, while Jules Gounon completed the top three. The result also allowed Engel to close the gap to championship leader Thomas Preining ahead of the race.

Preining qualified sixth after entering Sunday with a six-point championship lead over Engel. Meanwhile, Saturday’s Race 1 winner Marco Wittmann endured a difficult session and qualified 19th after moving himself firmly into championship contention with victory the previous day.

The Stewards made further changes to the Race 2 grid after Qualifying. They handed Maximilian Paul a three-place grid penalty for blocking Gounon during the session, dropping the Lamborghini driver three positions from his original qualifying result. The Stewards also disqualified Mirko Bortolotti from Qualifying 2 after his car breached Article 28 due to excessive turbo overboost. Bortolotti originally qualified eighth but received permission to start Race 2 from the back of the grid.

Difficult conditions create a tyre dilemma

Although the rain had stopped before the start, sections of the Sachsenring remained wet following the morning’s rainfall. Race Control delayed the start by ten minutes while the circuit underwent further cleaning, giving teams additional time to assess whether slicks or wet-weather tyres offered the better option. Most of the field eventually selected slicks, including pole-sitter Engel and championship rival Preining. However, Bastian Buus, Thierry Vermeulen, Timo Glock, Nicki Thiim, Tom Kalender and guest driver Simon Connor Primm committed to wet tyres.

Race Control ordered two formation laps because of the difficult conditions. Even before the start, Engel demonstrated just how little grip remained as he briefly slid into the gravel during the formation lap before recovering and returning to his position at the front. When the race finally got underway, the wet-tyre runners immediately made their advantage count. Buus launched into the lead, while Engel initially held second. Vermeulen also surged through the order as several drivers struggled for grip on slick tyres.

Further back, the opening lap produced several off-track moments as drivers attempted to find grip on the damp circuit. However, the advantage soon began shifting towards those who had started on slicks as the racing line continued to dry.

Dörr takes control as the track dries

Dörr quickly emerged as one of the fastest drivers on the circuit. Having started fourth, the McLaren driver made his way ahead of Engel before closing rapidly on Buus. At the beginning of Lap 5, Dörr completed his charge into the lead as the wet tyres started to lose their advantage. From there, the 21-year-old immediately began building a gap at the front.

Buus gradually fell backwards as his tyres deteriorated, while Engel also struggled to maintain his early position. Kelvin van der Linde and Preining both found their way ahead of the pole-sitter before Luca Engstler added further pressure. As Dörr stretched his advantage beyond seven seconds, Engstler continued his progress and overtook Van der Linde for second. Preining remained firmly in contention behind them as the first mandatory pit-stop window approached.

First pit stops shake up the order

The drivers who had started on wet tyres immediately headed into the pits once the first mandatory window opened, switching to slicks after their early gamble had run its course. Preining became the first of the leading slick runners to stop on Lap 11. Engstler, Van der Linde and Engel followed two laps later, while Dörr remained on track until Lap 14.

Preining’s earlier stop allowed him to gain ground during the pit sequence. Once the first round of mandatory stops had concluded, Dörr retained the lead ahead of Preining and Feller. Matteo Cairoli had climbed to fourth after starting 14th, with Van der Linde, Engstler, Vermeulen, Wittmann, Engel and Gounon completing the top ten. Cairoli continued his progress after the stops. The Ferrari driver passed Feller for third on Lap 18 and began closing on Preining, while Dörr extended his advantage at the front to around 13 seconds.

Engel also began recovering from his difficult opening stint. He passed Vermeulen before later finding a way ahead of Engstler, moving himself back towards the fight at the front ahead of the second mandatory pit window.

Gounon and Thiim collision triggers late Safety Car

Feller, Van der Linde, Engel and Engstler formed part of a large group of drivers who immediately stopped when the second pit window opened on Lap 26. Wittmann and Gounon followed on the next lap, but an incident shortly after Gounon left the pit lane transformed the closing stages of the race.

Thiim arrived at Turn 1 and collided heavily with Gounon, with Engstler also becoming caught up in the incident. Both Gounon and Thiim retired from the race. Preining completed his second mandatory stop on Lap 28 before Dörr, Cairoli, Lucas Auer and Paul followed one lap later. Once every driver had completed the required stops, Race Control deployed the Safety Car to allow officials to clear the damaged cars.

The intervention completely erased Dörr’s sizeable advantage and placed Preining directly behind the McLaren for the restart. Cairoli sat third ahead of Feller, Van der Linde and Engel.

Late drama as Engel hits Van der Linde

With the scheduled race time already completed, Race Control extended the contest by three laps following the Safety Car period. Dörr immediately opened a small advantage when racing resumed, while the battle behind him intensified. Preining had to defend second from Cairoli, but the Ferrari driver could not complete the move.

Feller took advantage of the fight and moved ahead of Cairoli to claim third. Behind them, Engel attacked Van der Linde for fifth. The Mercedes-AMG driver ran into the rear of Van der Linde’s BMW at Turn 1, sending the Schubert Motorsport driver into the gravel and forcing Race Control to deploy the Safety Car for a second time. Officials cleared the incident quickly enough to allow one final racing lap.

Dörr once again controlled the restart and created enough breathing room to keep Preining behind. Feller remained third, while Cairoli held off Engel in the battle immediately behind the podium positions. Wittmann also continued his recovery by finding a way past Vermeulen in the closing moments.

Dörr crossed the line to take his second DTM victory of the season and his first after taking the chequered flag at the head of the field. His previous victory at the Lausitzring came after a post-race penalty promoted him from second place. Preining finished 1.219 seconds behind in second, while Feller completed a double podium for Manthey in third.

Engel penalty deals major blow to title hopes

Engel initially crossed the line in fifth, but the Stewards investigated his collision with Van der Linde after the race. They found Engel responsible and handed him three Penalty Laps, converted into a 15-second time penalty after the finish of DTM Race 2 at the Sachsenring. The tightly packed field following the late Safety Car periods meant the penalty dropped Engel out of the points altogether.

Cairoli therefore secured fourth after an impressive recovery from 14th on the grid, while Auer moved into fifth. Saturday winner Wittmann completed another strong comeback to finish sixth, with Vermeulen and Engstler following in seventh and eighth. The penalty also had major consequences for the Drivers’ Championship. Preining leaves the Sachsenring with 197 points and a 23-point advantage over Engel, who remains on 174. Wittmann sits just one point behind Engel on 173 after his productive weekend.

With 56 points still available across the final two races and qualifying sessions, the championship battle will now head to the Hockenheimring for the season finale from 9–11 October.