All of this, though, had allowed Ekström to close the gap on the pair to less than five seconds with nine laps left to go, as Schneider redoubled his efforts to find a way past Paffett for the final point and Spengler continued his defence of sixth position against a charging Kristensen.

Just four seconds blanketed the leading three cars with six tours remaining, with Scheider's advantage a scant half a second going into the final tour – but that would prove enough, as the championship leader strengthened his grip on the drivers' standings with a flawless triumph on British soil.

Di Resta sealed another rostrum finish and maintained his own title challenge with second place at the close, ahead of the charging Ekström, Green – who had slipped some distance adrift of the podium finishers at the flag – Tomczyk, Spengler and Kristensen, with Paffett narrowly holding off a determined Schneider to secure the final point.

“That was a really important day in the battle for the title,” asserted the race-winner afterwards. “Now I am nine points clear with three rounds to go – that is a good margin. I am very happy with my second win, especially as I have never scored a good result here in previous years. Thanks to Mercedes-Benz and especially Bernd Schneider for the fair move towards the end of the race.”

“All-in-all, it has been a good performance throughout the weekend and we can be happy with the result,” added runner-up di Resta. “Now we are preparing for Barcelona. There, we should be able to do better than here.”

“A good weekend after all,” agreed Ekström. “I came here with my eyes set on victory. However, after my gearbox problem in qualifying and the subsequent seventh place on the grid, this result is alright.”

Following the Brands Hatch meeting, Scheider looks odds-on to claim the crown, but with Green and di Resta now tied for second place in the title chase, neither can be discounted and the three-pointed star's challenge will continue apace – as Audi well recognises.

“It was a hard and entertaining race, that of course was fun for these enthusiastic spectators,” remarked the Ingolstadt manufacturer's motorsport director Dr Wolfgang Ullrich. “Timo led all the way, but there was no room for him to ease off as Paul di Resta was in his slipstream throughout. Mattias Ekström also showed a strong performance, making his way up from seventh to third with great lap times and a perfect strategy.

“This was a DTM race as good as they come. We have improved our position in the championship with a margin of nine points, but with three races remaining, there is no way to relax. I am also happy with the fact that the race was particularly fair.”

“Congratulations to Audi,” added Mercedes-Benz Motorsport Vice-President Norbert Haug. “Timo Scheider didn't make a mistake – Paul di Resta had been waiting for that – but with ten kilograms of additional weight, Paul has done a great job. Lewis Hamilton, who watched the race standing next to me on the pit wall, was also very impressed.