The team traveled to the Hockenheimring with a changed line-up and was highly motivated. However, a serious accident of Dennis Olsen (NOR) in the first race shocked the fans.
- DTM finale at the Hockenheimring
- P14 for Christian Engelhart in the first race
Race 1
The final weekend started with a line-up change at SSR Performance. Porsche contract driver Christian Engelhart took over the wheel of the #92. Everyone was highly motivated for the qualifying at the Hockenheimring on Saturday, but the team once again struggled with the positions. In the first race then the moment of shock. After a safety car phase at the beginning, Christian Engelhart managed to position himself in the front third at the restart. His team-mate in the #94 car was hit by an opponent as a result of an immediate accident, which led to a very hard impact. The engine block was ripped out of the car and burst into flames. Luckily, Dennis Olsen was able to get out and was then taken to the medical center. He was doing well considering the circumstances, but the chassis was beyond repair. That was the end of the season for the crew of the green car with the red design accents. Christian Engelhart finished the race on P14.
Race 2
After this shocking experience, the team wanted to end the season on a high. Unfortunately, the hoped-for result did not come about. The #92 had qualified for the fourth row of the grid, but had to be parked on the first lap due to a tire puncture. Only 12 cars made it to the finish line of the 4.574 kilometer route.
After the successful previous years, the DTM debut season was particularly tough for SSR Performance. Nevertheless, some successes could be celebrated. A special thank you to the entire team for their tireless, hard work. We would also like to thank all sponsors and partners for their support.
Mario Schuhbauer, Team principal SSR Performance
“Of course, I had wished for a completely different season finale. We wanted to collect a lot of points for the team championship. I’m very happy that Dennis was okay after the serious accident on Saturday. I would also like to thank Christian for his job at the weekend.”
Maike Frik, Team manager SSR Performance
“In its first DTM season, the SSR Team showed that it is absolutely competitive and can fight for victories. Unfortunately, after the moment of shock on Saturday with Dennis Olsen’s accident, we weren’t able to end the season as we had hoped. Christian Engelhart also retired on Sunday after just one lap due to a puncture. Nevertheless, we look back on a racing season that brought many ups and downs and, in addition to challenges, also gave us many unforgettable memories – such as Dennis’ victory in Spa.”
Christian Engelahrt, #92 driver SSR Performance
“Thanks to the entire team of the #92 and to Stefan for the opportunity to start in the DTM finale. The circumstances made it very difficult for us. On Saturday we had a strong start, which unfortunately wasn’t rewarded with points. It was a pleasure to work with my champion team again and everyone on the team really gave their all – I could feel that.”
Dennis Olsen, #94 driver SSR Performance
“The weekend was very tough for us. I had a serious accident on Saturday and luckily I got away with a few bruises. As a result, we were unfortunately unable to score points in either the team or driver championships. We’ve had some ups and downs this year. We were able to celebrate great successes – the Norisring and Spa in particular were great races.”
Results 1st DTM race at Hockenheimring
1. #22 Lucas Auer // Mercedes-AMG Team Winward // Mercedes
2. #31 Sheldon van der Linde // Schubert Motorsport // BMW
3. #11 Marco Wittmann // Walkenhorst Motorsport // BMW
14. #92 Christian Engelhart // SSR Performance // Porsche
DNF #94 Dennis Olsen // SSR Performance // Porsche
Results 2nd DTM race at Hockenheimring
1. #11 Marco Wittmann // Walkenhorst Motorsport // BMW
2. #33 Rene Rast // Team Abt // Audi
3. #31 Sheldon van der Linde // Schubert Motorsport // BMW
DNF. #92 Christian Engelhart // SSR Performance // Porsche
Team ranking after the 8th DTM weekend
1. Schubert Motorsport // 226 points
2. Mercedes-AMG Team Winward // 152 points
3. Abt Sportsline // 152 points
8. SSR Performance // 119 points
Driver ranking after the 8th DTM weekend
1. Sheldon van der Linde // 164 points
2. Lucas Auer // 153 points
3. Rene Rast // 149 points
10. Dennis Olsen // 89 points
18. Laurens Vanthoor // 30 points
About SSR Performance
The young and dynamic Munich based SSR Performance GmbH was founded by a car and motorsport enthusiast. The exclusive automobile company has had an exciting start to 2020. After moving to a new High Performance Automotive Center in the north of the Bavarian metropolis, which has seven floors and around 10,000 square meters of floor space, the motorsport department at SSR Performance had its first full season in the ADAC GT Masters 2020 on the program ended with Michael Ammermüller and Christian Engelhart winning the driver and team classification as well as the title in the team championship. Another year in the ADAC GT Masters followed in 2021, with Michael Ammermüller and Porsche factory driver Mathieu Jaminet competing for SSR Performance. After winning the title in the debut season, the team continued the success story as vice champion.
For SSR Performance GmbH, which takes care of repairs, maintenance and service of sports cars and vintage cars of all brands in their day-to-day business, motorsport is an integral part of the still young group of companies.
Stefan Schlund, CEO of SSR Performance GmbH from Munich emphasizes: “For us, our involvement in races with GT sports cars offers an excellent platform to demonstrate our competence in motorsport and the sports car sector derived from it.”
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