59th ADAC Rally Erzgebirge
DRM starts with an endurance test in the Erzgebirge
March 13, 2024, 2:18 p.m
Top driver duos, balanced classes and a new strong special classification: The 59th ADAC Rallye Erzgebirge offers fans the full motorsport program at the traditional DRM season opener on March 15th and 16th, 2024. The first tour stop in Saxony is a real endurance test for the 68 teams.
The best German rally pilots, top foreign experts and ambitious amateur athletes face 137.62 kilometers of competition with fast circuits and difficult asphalt and gravel roads that place the highest demands on the crews and material.
Championship duel between Marijan Griebel and Julius Tannert
Marijan Griebel became German rally champion for the third time last year after a convincing performance. This season too, the Hahnweiler is hot title contender together with co-driver Tobias Braun in the Škoda Fabia RS Rally2. “I want to defend my title, my toughest competitor is Julius Tannert. I don’t feel much pressure at the start in the Erzgebirge. Julius, who as a local hero in his home country has to win, has that. I’m trying to annoy him and want to be on the podium,” explained the 34 year old. Brand colleague Julius Tannert wants to get off to a good start at his home race together with co-driver Frank Christian. “We want to build on the start of the 2023 season when we won the Erzgebirge Rally. Getting started at the start of a championship is difficult, you don’t want to make any mistakes. For me it is always something very special to drive in front of the home fans and sponsors “, said the 33-year-old runner-up from Zwickau. The strong Danish duo Kenneth Madsen and Mette Felthaus (Citrôen C3 Rally2) also have a good chance of winning in Saxony.
New champion in DRM2
There will be a new overall winner in the DRM2 classification for two-wheel drive vehicles at the end of the season, as defending champion Martin Christ has switched to the special DRM Masters classification. Jonas Ertz and Maresa Lade could take over in the Opel Corsa Rally4. The duo were in the top three for a long time last year before they were thrown back after unfortunate failures. Co-pilot Maresa Lade: “We want to be at the front, but there are some very fast cockpit combinations in our class. We therefore have to score consistently and not allow ourselves to have any self-inflicted failures. The weather plays a big role in the Erzgebirge. Sometimes it rains , a little later the sun is shining. Last year we changed the tires on the front axle six times before a test and it didn’t fit. That shouldn’t happen to us again.” The toughest competitors in the fight for the top places in Saxony are their brand colleagues Konstantin Keil, Patrick Pusch and Alexander Kattenbach, third overall in the 2023 season.
Strong field at the DRM Nationals / Premiere for the DRM Masters
The DRM Nationals are most strongly represented at the 59th ADAC Rallye Erzgebirge. 36 vehicles are chasing times in up to nine different performance classes. Defending champion Tarek Hamadeh-Spaniol is competing in the NC4 and is well prepared for the start of the season with Henry Wichura in the Citroën C2 Challenge. “We got our car fit in the winter because the ores are hard on the material. There is a high proportion of gravel, some concrete sections have sharp edges on which you can quickly get a puncture. Of course, defending your title is in the back of your mind, but first “We want to find our way into the rally,” says the Saarbrücken native, setting out the route. Andreas Dahms, second overall at the 2023 DRM Nationals, has replaced his tried and tested green 911 with a Porsche 996 GT3. “I spent a year completely renovating this car and tailoring it to my needs. We now have more modern technology, unfortunately the vehicle is quite heavy for a rally car. Nevertheless, we want our NC1 class victory in the Ore from last year Repeat this year,” says the Lübeck native, who won the DRM Classic 2023 together with co-driver Paul Schubert, but is no longer competing there. This makes Walter Gromöller and René Meier the top favorites in this category with the Opel Ascona 400.
The premiere of the DRM Masters is awaited with great excitement in the Erzgebirge. Dennis Rostek, who moved to the new special classification as winner of the DRM Trophy, is a clear candidate for the title together with Stefan Kopczyk in the Skoda Fabia RS Rally2. Martin Christ and co-driver Lina Meter are looking forward to the start in the Hyundai i20N Rally2. “It’s my first time driving an RC2 car. I wouldn’t have dreamed of it ten years ago, when I was still driving a Trabbi. Last year we finished second in the DRM2, but this “It doesn’t count. We want to first gain experience with the Hyundai in the strong DRM Masters and explore the limits. And we want to do that from bottom to top and not the other way around.”
In the second special DRM Trophy there is no clear favorite after the Rostek era. Last season’s runner-up, Oliver Bliss, with co-driver Simon Julius in the Skoda Fabia R5, together with his brand colleagues Fred Teschner and Nico Otterbach, is considered the most promising candidate for the top podium place in the Erzgebirge.
This is new in DRM
The 59th ADAC Rallye Erzgebirge is the first of seven stations in the German Rally Championship. Six stops are on the program for all classes, and participants in the DRM, DRM2 and DRM Masters will also tackle the Hunsrück Rally on May 25, 2024. The one-day sprint is on the calendar for the first time and covers around 70 kilometers in accordance with the Rally 70 format. Another DRM debut will be celebrated at the ADAC Baltic Sea Rally, which will take place on 6/7. September is the last stop and season finale. The DRM Masters will be integrated into the German Rally Championship this season as a further special classification and will celebrate its premiere at the “Erze”. Drivers aged 40 and over are eligible to take part, sitting in the cockpit of state-of-the-art and proven RC2 vehicles and ensuring even more rally spectacle.
Starters in the top DRM class can collect additional points at the newly launched Pop-Up Power Stage. However, it will only be announced shortly which WP it will be used for. The top three in this test will be rewarded with three, two and one points respectively. In addition, the Power Stage remains in use for DRM, DRM2 and DRM Classic, which is determined before the event. The winner of this special stage receives five points, the following drivers up to fifth place each receive one point less.
Twelve special stages, gravel roads, unpredictable weather
At the 59th ADAC Rallye Erzgebirge, the drivers have 137.62 kilometers ahead of them. The honorary start takes place on Friday at 4:55 p.m. at Markt Stollberg. Then we go to the first test on the Jahnsdorf spectator circuit, the fourth and last special stage of the day takes place in Gelenau after dark. On Saturday morning the starters will be welcomed with gravel in Oberdorf at 8:25 a.m. before another circuit follows in Bad Schlema. The last of the eight special stages of the day take the field into the upper Ore Mountains. The unpredictable weather, which has caused “white” slopes in the past, can play an important role here. The winners and runners-up will be presented to the spectators on the finish ramp at Stollberg market around 7 p.m. after a total of twelve special stages. The official award ceremony will take place in “Arnolds Café Am Airport” (Jahnsdorf) from 10 p.m. Afterwards there will be a rally party with participants, fans and helpers. Admission is free. A 68-page program booklet with all information for spectators as well as route maps and starter lists is available at 40 ticket sales points (mainly gas stations) in Chemnitz, the Erzgebirge and the surrounding area.
The highlights of the German Rally Championship can be seen exclusively on n-tv on free-to-air television. On the Sunday after the racing events, the news channel broadcasts the 30-minute DRM magazine “PS – DRM German Rally Championship”. Alternatively, the magazine can be accessed online at any time in the n-tv media library or the streaming platform RTL+.
“PS – DRM German Rally Championship” – The broadcast times
ADAC Rally Erzgebirge
Sunday, March 17, 24 11:15 a.m
Sunday, March 17, 2024 7:15 p.m. (week)
ADAC Actronics Rally Sulingen
Sunday, May 5, 24, 11:15 a.m
Sunday, May 5, 2024 7:15 p.m. (week)
ADAC Middle Rhine Rally + Hunsrück Rally
TBA
ADAC Saarland-Palatinate Rally
Sunday, June 30, 24 11:15 a.m
Sunday, June 30, 2024 7:15 p.m. (week)
ADAC Rallye Stemweder Berg
Sunday, August 11, 24 11:15 a.m
Sunday, August 11, 2024 7:15 p.m. (week)
ADAC Baltic Sea Rally
Sunday, 09/08/24 11:15 a.m
Sunday, September 8, 2024 7:15 p.m. (week)