Former DTM champion Thomas Preining, who has already won three times at the Norisring, lost his cool after finishing ninth in Saturday’s DTM race in Nuremberg. It is “relatively obvious that this has nothing to do with sport,” the Porsche factory driver fumed about the Balance of Performance (BoP). “We are catastrophically shit in terms of pace. It’s zero fun. The countdown to my vacation is on.”
That is now the focus, because after Sunday’s race, his flight leaves at 7 p.m. “I’m looking forward to that, because there is absolutely nothing positive here,” the 27-year-old said, unable to hide his frustration. The current situation is jeopardizing his future in the DTM. “I’m really close to saying: This makes no sense anymore, I’m quitting,” he said, openly discussing a potential retirement.
Sunday’s race likely did not change those thoughts: Although the Porsche 911 GT3 R Evo was 30 kilograms lighter compared to Saturday’s qualifying, where Preining finished 15th, the top Porsche driver could manage no better than 11th on the grid. In the race, he finished ninth again. This does not meet the standards of the “Grello” driver, who wants to capture his second DTM title.
“You could put the cooks from catering in the other cars”
Particularly bitter: On Saturday, Preining had been vaulted from 11th to fourth place thanks to his pit stop just before the horror crash that triggered a Full Course Yellow. However, he was defenseless against his pursuers at the restart and was shuffled back to ninth. “Sorry, but this is just complete bullshit!” he complained over the radio about the fact that his rivals only needed 200 meters to complete an overtaking maneuver.
“I tried to make the Porsche as wide as possible, but in the end, you could put the cooks from catering in the other cars – and they would drive right past you,” the Austrian said sarcastically after the race.
Preining’s desperate struggle: Norisring winner left without a prayer in 2026
Foto: ADAC Motorsport
The main problem is the lack of straight-line speed. The Porsche landed at the bottom of the top speed rankings at the Norisring every day: Preining was usually missing around 10 km/h compared to the leading Ford Mustang cars.
“I’m the best overtaker in DTM and I have zero overtakes”
This is despite the fact that the Porsche was equipped with the large 43mm restrictor before the weekend, which is 1.5 millimeters larger than during Preining’s victory at the Norisring last year. This was compensated for with 30 kilograms of ballast, which was removed again by Sunday through two BoP changes. There are doubts in the paddock as to whether the large restrictor really provides that much power, as the small Porsche boxer engine is already operating at its limit anyway.
Preining agrees. “That brings absolutely nothing,” he says. “We are completely chanceless; we’ve basically been nowhere all year. At the Red Bull Ring, we were lucky that the others were still in hibernation and that we understood the tire faster – otherwise, we only benefit from mistakes,” Preining explains regarding the disappointing course of the season after his home win at the season opener.
The Norisring straights were pure poison for the Porsche 911 GT3 R Evo this year
Foto: ADAC Motorsport
He also feels he can no longer utilize his well-known overtaking strength in 2026. “I’ve done a lot of overtaking in my career. In my opinion, I’m the best overtaker in the DTM,” says Preining. “This year, I have zero overtakes so far. Zero overtaking attempts even, because it’s simply hopeless. We are so far away,” he says, visibly annoyed.
One possible explanation for the top speed weakness is that the Evo version of the Porsche 911 GT3 R introduced this year generates more drag than the base car used until the end of 2025. The rear wing, for example, was fitted with a four-millimeter Gurney flap, which provides more downforce and less top speed – and was actually intended to widen the set-up window.
