DTM
Loeb's DTM entry surprised championship boss Berger
DTM chief Gerhard Berger admits he was surprised to learn that World Rally Championship legend Sebastien Loeb will be making his debut in the series with Red Bull this month.
Rachit Thukral Sven Haidinger
Edited: Apr 20, 2022, 7:12 AM
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Loeb will be making his first circuit racing outing of the year when he lines up on the grid at Portimao on April 30 at the wheel of an AF Corse-run Ferrari 488 GT3, replacing Nick Cassidy in Red Bull’s two-car crew.
This would make the 48-year-old the first rally driver to compete in the DTM since countryman Sebastien Ogier, who made a wildcard entry with Mercedes at the Red Bull Ring in 2018.
The addition of Loeb lends extra star power to Red Bull’s DTM programme following the departure of Alex Albon to Williams in Formula 1 and Liam Lawson’s return to Formula 2, after the latter's heartbreaking title defeat to Mercedes driver Maximilian Gotz in 2021.
Loeb joins the DTM at a time when the championship bosses are trying to establish a place for the series in the crowded GT3 arena, having ditched Class One cars and reduced manufacturers dependence in favour of a customer-focused formula.
Asked if he had a role in luring Loeb to the DTM to bolster the profile of the series, Berger said: "No, Loeb was absolutely Red Bull's idea - to my own surprise. Thomas [Uberall, a marketing manager] from Red Bull told me that it was our idea. And then it clicked with me.”
Nick Cassidy, AF Corse Ferrari 488 GT3 Evo
Photo by: Andreas Beil
Despite primarily being known for his rally prowess, Loeb has dabbled in circuit racing on several occasions during his career, famously finishing second at the Le Mans 24 Hours with Pescarolo in 2006 and winning races in both the FIA GT Series and the World Touring Car Championship.
The Frenchman also has had an eventful year so far, kicking off the season with a second-place finish in the Dakar Rally with the Prodrive/Bahrain Raid Xtreme team before uniting with M-Sport and beating Ogier in a WRC battle for the ages at Monte Carlo.
The remainder of his schedule includes a second WRC outing in Portugal, a full season in the Extreme E series, as well as potential further appearances in the DTM subject to Cassidy's existing duties in Formula E and the FIA World Endurance Championship.
Berger, a former grand prix racer with 10 race wins to his name, said Loeb is a living example of how versatile modern drivers can be across various disciplines of motorsport.
"Nine-time world champion - I'd say that's in the same category as [Valentino] Rossi. Wherever he has competed, he has ambitiously pursued his goal until he was right at the front. He even won the Race of Champions against Sebastian Vettel and has super calibre.
“He always delivers such a brutal performance. When I hear racing drivers saying I'm a single-seater specialist, I can't do anything else, then I say: what nonsense! A racing driver can drive everything or nothing.
"And Loeb is just such an example. He has won the World Rally Championship nine times, then quickly wins the Race of Champions against Vettel, and then he finishes second in the Dakar Rally.
“[Two-time WRC champion and 1981 Le Mans winner] Walter Rohrl was like that, too. He also jumped in quickly and drove straight away. Or Sebastian Vettel, who always drove everything and had fun with everything. It's always a pleasure and a blessing for me to meet such racing drivers."
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