Top league with a record starting field: DRM celebrates half-time in the vineyards

Top league with a record starting field
DRM celebrates halftime in the vineyards

6/7/2023 1:24 p.m

The German Rally Championship celebrates halftime on the Moselle. The Rallye ADAC Mittelrhein is on 9./10. June will be the third of a total of five championship races and, following the successful premiere last year, is considered a highlight on the DRM calendar.

A total of 83 vehicles take part in the rally through the vineyards, which partly leads through passages of the former ADAC Germany Rally. A record starting field of 22 cars will compete in the top class DRM, including strong guest drivers from the Netherlands and Denmark.

Declaration of war by Christian Riedemann

After second place at the last meeting in Sulingen, Julius Tannert and co-driver Frank Christian drive to the Rallye ADAC Mittelrhein as leaders in the DRM rating. The goal of the crew of the Škoda Fabia RS Rally2 is to keep the pursuers at bay. “We want to place ahead of Christian Riedemann and Philip Geipel and increase the points advantage. Marijan Griebel as a local hero is probably unbeatable on the Moselle, but after his failure in Sulingen he only has small chances of winning the championship. If we get through without making a mistake, we’ll be right at the front with us,” promises Julius Tannert. Christian Riedemann and Nico Otterbach want to prevent that in the Hyundai i20N Rally2, who are a hot candidate for the title after their clear success in Sulingen as second in the table. “I said before Sulingen that the cards would be reshuffled and that’s how it happened. The fight for the championship is open. I drove the special stages in the region around Föhren during the World Championships and did well at the debut of the Rallye Mittelrhein last year managed. The stretches through the vineyards are something very special and unique in the world. As the local hero, Marijan knows the best here and has to score points after the failure in Sulingen. We are primarily looking at Julius, we want to stay in front of him and so on Shorten the distance to him”, reveals Christian Riedemann his plan.

Third overall and current German rally champions Philip Geipel and Katrin Becker (Škoda Fabia Rally 2 Evo) are considered outsiders. The duo finished fourth on their first appearance in the vineyards in 2022, but with the knowledge of the track they gained, they are definitely good for a top place. The clear favorite for his home rally is Marijan Griebel, who lives in Hahnweiler, an hour’s drive away. However, the two-time DRM champion and winner of last year is under pressure with co-driver Tobias Braun in the Škoda Fabia RS Rally2 after the zero-point stop in Sulingen and must win in order to catch up with the leaders from fifth place.

Jonas Ertz wants to get involved at the front in his home game in the DRM2

The DRM2 classification is also well represented at the Rallye ADAC Mittelrhein with 18 teams. Martin Christ leads the table together with Lina Meter in the Opel Corsa Rally4 with 14 points and wants to repeat last year’s victory. But his brand colleague, who is second overall, Jonas Ertz, also has big plans for his home rally. “We want to build on the second place from Sulingen and fight for victory. I live near Morbach, about half an hour from the Föhren rally center and was at the track for the World Championship rounds of the ADAC Germany Rally as a child. Last year I I drove here myself for the first time and I want to defend and extend my lead in the Pirelli Junior rankings in front of the home fans,” explains the 22-year-old, who is supported in the cockpit by Maresa Lade. You absolutely have to have Raffael Sulzinger and Lisa Kiefer in the Ford Fiesta Rally4 on the bill. In 2022, the duo led the DRM2 competition at the ADAC Mittelrhein Rally for a long time before a technical defect destroyed all dreams of victory, but still managed to finish fourth.

Nationals Champion Wolf intervenes again

38 vehicles are at the start of the DRM Nationals. Andreas Dahms and Paul Schubert lead the overall standings with their Porsche 911 after two victories in the NC1 classification. Tarek Hamadeh-Spaniol, who has the same record with the Citroën C2 Challenge in the NC4 class, is behind him with the same number of points. Andreas Dahms: “It will be difficult because the current champion Sebastian Wolf is back with us and the other classes are also strong. We have worked a lot on the reliability of the car, are well prepared and have the necessary track knowledge. Important is to arrive safely and thus extend the lead in the DRM Classic.”

The return of defending champion Sebastian Wolf, who is only now entering the season for professional reasons, is eagerly awaited. “We have completely revised our Mitsubishi Evo. However, I haven’t driven since the 3-city rally last year, so my expectations are not very high, also when it comes to defending the title. Nevertheless, we want to be on the podium and the rally Middle Rhine, which for me is the highlight of this DRM season,” says returnee Sebastian Wolf. The special classification DRM Trophy, which is held in two divisions, is even closer. In the overall classification, three vehicles have the same number of points. Defending champion Dennis Rostek (Škoda Fabia Rally2 Evo) has 54 points, as does Georg Berlandy in the Škoda Fabia R5.The second division is led by Ralf Mangertseder (Škoda Fabia Rally2), also with 54 points.

Ten special stages through the Eifel and along the Moselle

Routes from the former ADAC Rallye Deutschland were activated again this year for the Rallye ADAC Mittelrhein. A total of ten special stages with a length of a good 133 kilometers in the Eifel and along the Moselle lie ahead of the participants. With the exception of the Bergweiler circuit for spectators, only start-finish tests are on the program. On the first day, the pilots will be challenged on hard slopes and fast asphalt roads, before heading into the winding hilly landscape of the vineyards on Saturday. The start is on Friday at 4:30 p.m. on the starting ramp in the Trier Region Industrial Park (IRT) in Föhren, where the rally center is also located. The award ceremony will also take place there on Saturday after the last special stage at around 4:30 p.m.

The highlights of the German Rally Championship can be seen exclusively on free-to-air television on n-tv. Every weekend after the racing events, the news channel broadcasts the 30-minute DRM magazine “PS – DRM Deutsche Rallye-Meisterschaft” on Saturday afternoon and Sunday morning. Alternatively, the magazine can be accessed free of charge at any time in the n-tv media center or the RTL+ streaming platform.

“PS – DRM German Rally Championship” – The broadcast times