Mercedes' sporting director Norbert Haug lauded: "Gary has rewarded us for the trust we put in him. We have a great team, but this season will be no joyride, considering the fact that all three brands' lap times were nearly identical."
As best Audi pilot, Matthias Ekström managed to join Paffett on the winners' rostrum. When crossing the finishing line, Swede Ekström lagged Paffett by 9.200 seconds. "1:0 for the youngsters", Ekström rejoiced after the race. "This was a very good debut for Audi's factory-side comeback to DTM. I was fast on track. Unfortunately, Mercedes was a little faster today. We will work hard until Estoril, in order to be on top by then," he said – a challenge for the next race in Portugal in two weeks.
Audi's sporting director Dr Wolfgang Ullrich was not only pleased by Ekström's third place, but also about ranks four and five by DTM novice Tom Kristensen and Audi junior Martin Tomczyk.
"Having three Audi drivers among the first five is good," he noted, "Still, today we weren't able to attack Mercedes and to win the race. Maybe our tyre choice was a little too conservative. We will definitely put on something. Just give us some time. We can promise you: things will be hot."
One of the main protagonists of the race was Dumbreck. In a spectacular manner the Scotsman fought himself up from a 21st and last start position to rank six. "It was a great race having a perfectly set up Opel Vectra," Dumbreck commented. "I pushed as hard as possible and fought my way through the field. However, when I was on six, right behind Martin Tomczyk, I had exhausted my tyres so much that I couldn't attack any more. All in all, I am satisfied with the result."
All through the race, Dumbreck's times were as good as those of the leading, which makes Opel sporting director Volker Strycek very happy: "Lap times are good. Peter was extremely fast. Otherwise he couldn't have got from 21 to 6. This was also proven by Timo Scheider."
