First points for SSR Performance in the DTM

With three top ten finishes in Portimao, the team collected important points for the championship.

#94 on P19 and #92 on P26 in first qualifying
Strong comeback on Saturday with the #94 on P5 and the #92 on P8
#92 on P11 and #94 on P16 in the second qualifying
Solid Sunday race with the #92 on P7 and the #94 on P11

Race 1

After the first qualifying at the Autódromo Internacional do Algarve Portimao, Portugal,the Balance of Performance (BoP) was slightly adjusted for the race, after the initial shock for the Porsche in the field. Dennis Olsen and Laurens Vanthoor made their DTM debut at the 4.653 km circuit from 19th and 26th place. A good start and the right pit stop strategy allowed the #92 and #94 cars to clear up the field from the back. With 17 laps remaining, things got exciting again. The safety car was deployed, allowing the SSR drivers to attack again. The strikingly designed Porsche 911 GT3 R crossed the finish line on fifth (Dennis Olsen) and eighth (Laurens Vanthoor) positions, making for a strong comeback.

Race 2

Sunday’s qualifying was more positive than the one the day before. Porsche factory driver Laurens Vanthoor started the race from eleventh position and was seventh after the first lap. He was able to defend until the end. Dennis Olsen started the race in 16th position and made up five places in the 33 laps.

In total, the SSR Performance drivers collected 20 points for the championship. In addition, the team had the strongest Porsche in both races.

The next DTM weekend will take place from May 20th to 22nd at the Lausitzring, Germany.

Mario Schuhbauer, Team principle SSR Performance

“I am very proud of our team. We did a very good job this weekend. The whole team worked very hard, but unfortunatelym we didn’t have a chance of getting a better place this weekend because the classification in the strong field wasn’t right. However, we will not let this unsettle us and are coming back to the Lausitzring highly motivated with the goal of winning.”

Stefan Schlund, Team owner SSR Performance

“We traveled to Portimao full of anticipation. Unfortunately, we weren’t ranked correctly in terms of BoP, which took away our chance of a podium. I see a need for action here for the next races. Nevertheless I am satisfied. The team got along well and did a good job. We keep working and do our best to be perfectly positioned for the next rounds.”

Laurens Vanthoor, #92 driver SSR Performance

“It wasn’t an easy start to the championship. The first qualifying was a shock for all of us. In the race we fought back. It’s the first time in the DTM for all of us, we learn something new every time we’re on the track. It went better today. We also moved up the front in the race, but there is definitely room for improvement.”

Dennis Olsen, #94 driver SSR Performance

„It was a difficult weekend. We did a good job in general and had a good car. But despite a good effort, we didn’t get the results we wanted. Still, I was happy to get some points yesterday. It’s pretty clear that something has to change for the upcoming events. We are not competitive at the moment but we are going to keep on working hard.”

Race 1 results DTM Portimao:

1. #22 Lucas Auer // Mercedes-AMG Team WINWARD // Mercedes

2. #4 Luca Stolz // Mercedes-AMG Team HRT // Mercedes

3. #63 Mirko Bortolotti // GRT Grasser Racing Team // Lamborghini

5. #94 Dennis Olsen // SSR Performance // Porsche

8. #92 Laurens Vanthoor // SSR Performance // Porsche

Race 2 results DTM Portimao:

1. #51 Nico Müller // Team Rosberg // Audi

2. #74 Felipe Frage // Red Bull Alphatauri AF Corse // Ferrari

3. #63 Mirko Bortolotti // GRT Grasser Racing Team // Lamborghini

7. #92 Laurens Vanthoor // SSR Performance // Porsche

11. #94 Dennis Olsen // SSR Performance // Porsche

Team championship after Portimao:

GRT Grasser Racing // 35 points
ABT Sportsline // 30 points
Team Rosberg // 28 points
Mercedes-AMG Team WINWARD // 26 points
SSR Performance // 20 points

Driver championship after Portimao:

1. Mirko Bortolotti // 35 points

2. Nico Müller // 28 points

3. Lucas Auer // 26 points

8. Dennis Olsen // 10 points

11. Laurens Vanthoor // 10 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.”

About EDAG Engineering GmbH

EDAG Group – YOUR GLOBAL MOBILITY ENGINEERING EXPERTS

The EDAG Group is the world’s largest independent engineering service provider for holistic solutions in the mobility industry. With a global network of around 60 locations, EDAG offers services in the segments of vehicle development, electrics and electronics as well as production solutions. Worldwide networked know-how combines with German engineering to create innovative and comprehensive development expertise. In addition to leading international OEMs and Tier 1 suppliers, the EDAG Group’s customers also include start-up companies from the automotive and non-automotive industries.