Marcel Fassler drove far above his 26 years as he held off DTM maestro Bernd Schneider to score his first win of the season at the A1 Ring.
The Swiss born AMG Mercedes driver took advantage of a chaotic start to the eighth round of the 2003 Championship to hold on to his pole position during an early safety car period and, when the two mandatory pit windows weren’t jumbling the order, wasn’t headed for the rest of the day.
Although the lead swapped hands several times over the course of the 40-lap blast around the rather slippery Austrian venue, Fassler was always in control as he kept fellow factory Mercedes driver Schneider at bay for a full 30 laps.
Once Schneider had manoeuvred his Vodafone sponsored Mercedes ahead of Express Service Mercedes driver Christijan Albers into second place thanks to a lightning fast first pit stop, he trailed Fassler mercilessly, waiting for the young, less experienced driver to make a mistake.
But it never came.
Twice in the final ten laps Schneider took a glance to Fassler’s inside as the pair raced towards the tight second hairpin at the top of the circuit but twice Fassler had him covered. On the 40th and final tour the defending A1 Ring winner ran inches wide going into the above turn and Schneider briefly drew alongside but, in a style similar to that played out in the classic final laps of last year’s DTM race at the Austrian track, Fassler showed a little muscle and a little more black paint in keep the multi-time Champ at bay.
