GRAND-AM Road Racing and the International Motor Sports Association (IMSA) are planning a US-based race series for DTM racecars, which includes manufacturers like Audi, BMW and Mercedes-Benz.
A dedicated platform for DTM cars should be in place in the United States in 2015 at the earliest, organizers said during a press conference in New York on Tuesday. Officials from Internationale Tourenwagen-Rennen (ITR), which administers DTM, have concluded a corresponding cooperation with their partners in America, following a similar agreement with the Japanese Super GT Championship organizers.
This means DTM race cars will be seen in the future not only on European racetracks, but also in the US and Asia. The North American DTM series could run as part of United SportsCar Racing event weekend. United SportsCar Racing was announced March 14 as the name of the new series resulting from the merger of GRAND-AM and the American Le Mans Series (ALMS).
Audi has already manifested its support for DTM’s expansion plans. “As a globally active company, this is exciting and interesting for Audi,” said Wolfgang Dürheimer, member of the board for technical development at Audi AG.
“It’s fantastic news that there could soon be a US DTM. The Audi RS models are very popular in America. I’m convinced that our customers will be delighted to see the Audi RS 5 DTM in action,” added Scott Keogh, president of Audi of America.
Audi teams have won the DTM title in Europe eight times to date: 1990 and 1991 with the Audi V8 quattro, 2002 with a Coupé based on the Audi TT plus 2004, 2007, 2008, 2009 and 2011 with the Audi A4 DTM.
For the new DTM regulations introduced last year, Audi Sport developed the Audi RS 5 DTM, with which three teams join the grid with eight drivers in 2013. The new DTM season begins on May 5 around the Grand Prix circuit at Hockenheim.
By Dan Mihalascu
PHOTO GALLERY
