Motorsport as a “sensitive topic”
The DTM is fighting for its future in the climate crisis
10/07/2022 10:18 am
The “new” DTM ends its second season this weekend, series boss Gerhard Berger sees good prospects for the future – but will motorsport have any chance of surviving below the all-encompassing Formula 1 in times of the climate crisis?
It’s getting noisy again in Hockenheim, tires are smoking, the smell of petrol is in the air. And it’s probably pretty crowded in the stands too. This is excellent news for Gerhard Berger. Because his DTM has successfully completed its transformation, it is now a GT3 series, so one of many – and yet it still pulls, people still come to the tracks.
The new DTM concludes its second season at the weekend, and Berger is happy to chime in at this point. “I always resist it,” he says in an interview with the sports information service, “it’s not a new DTM, it was always the same DTM.” Although there are new technical regulations, a completely different one in fact, the brand has “grown historically”. He is optimistic about the future.
“The Most Efficient Engines”
However, it is not just the cars that have changed that are used – the environment in which all motorsport takes place is also changing, not exactly suddenly, but gradually. Berger, the long-time Formula 1 driver, is also aware of this: In a world that is urgently looking for sustainable solutions, petrol-powered motorsport is a particular focus. The Austrian thinks that’s not unjustified, even if it’s often a bit short-sighted. After all, modern motorsport uses “the most efficient engines,” he says, “and when it comes to CO2 emissions, the 20 to 30 cars driving in circles are negligible.”
The big burden comes from the major events around it, “that’s where you have to start the discussion,” says Berger, “however, that applies to all events – from the World Cup to ski races to concerts.” In fact, experts calculate that the CO2 emissions from a single football World Cup are many times higher than those from an entire Formula 1 season. And yet the image of 30 cars on the race track alone seems increasingly out of date. “Sensitivity on this issue” has increased, says Berger, “everyone is now aware that a contribution to sustainability must be made.” That is very positive. At the same time, it puts motorsport under pressure to explain.
“Motorsport must be an innovation laboratory”
Formula 1 justifies its relevance quite successfully with the fact that it spends a lot of money driving innovations that can ultimately ensure clean mobility on the road – series like the DTM tend to use technology that is already there. For Berger, however, this idea does not go far enough. Sustainable fuels, for example, are “tested and used under extreme conditions in the DTM”, and this information is then made available to the manufacturers. A GT series can also fulfill a completely different function than Formula 1: The advantage is “that the manufacturers use cars in the DTM that are very close to series production.”
However, he wants to lead the way in the field of electromobility. The DTM Electro is a project in development, “by the end of next year” the cars with 1300 hp should be on the racetrack and thus also provide impetus for the road. In order to remain relevant, says Berger, “motorsport has to be an innovation laboratory”.