As Motorsport.com reports, Maro Engel fought off a trio of Posche machines at the Hockenheim title decider, only to miss out on the ultimate prize by 12 points as Thomas Preining secured third place and the championship.
Driving for Winward Mercedes, the lone-fighter status was real. Engel found himself surrounded by Stuttgart machinery in the early running, leaving him questioning the grid. "Looking ahead and looking in the mirror, I thought, am I in the wrong race? Am I in the Porsche Cup?" the new DTM runner-up said. "But these guys showed a very strong performance today and made my life very difficult."
I wanted to stay out of the championship - not to play any role to destroy anyone's race,
The opening phase was brutal, mirroring a foretaste he felt at the Sachsenring where he was pushed toward the wall with heavy contact. But knowing he needed a race victory, Engel charged forward. Starting right behind Ricardo Feller, the Mercedes driver wasted no time on the opening lap. He lunged past Feller on the straight before the Motodrom, leaving his wing mirror barely hanging on. "I saw the wall very close - very, very close," Engel said of the move, noting he simply trusted his rival not to turn him straight into the barrier.
Feller, racing for the Manthey team alongside Preining, saw the duel more calmly and noted that Engel simply had superior pace. Feller also denied playing tactical team games to protect the championship lead. "I wanted to stay out of the championship - not to play any role to destroy anyone's race," he insisted.
Next in Engel's crosshairs was pole-sitter Bastian Buus in the Land Porsche. Though his race engineer suggested waiting for the pit stops, Engel pushed for action on track. On lap 10, the move came at the Mercedes-Arena, resulting in more bodywork friction. "He turned in as if I hadn't been there," Engel said. Buus defended his cornering line by arguing the Mercedes was late on the brakes, finishing the day fourth while maintaining he was racing for himself rather than shielding Preining. Up ahead, the new champion watched the sparks fly with cautious distance, happy to let them battle while he collected the points he needed.
