Ayhancan Guven has clinched the 2025 DTM title with victory in a thrilling Hockenheim finale, passing Marco Wittmann in a frantic final-lap fight.
Starting the finale fifth in the standings and 17 points behind the championship leader, the Manthey Porsche driver snatched both the race win and the title just before the finish line ahead of Wittmann in second, while Maro Engel completed the podium in third.
“We made history. I’m so proud, so happy,” Guven, who became the first Turkish DTM champion, told ran.de. “I can’t even put it into words – I just want to thank everyone. I know it wasn’t easy, but we made it, and in the end, that’s all that matters.”
Previous points leader Lucas Auer crossed the line in sixth, but the Landgraf Mercedes driver moved up to fourth after a post-race reshuffle, due to a incident involving Jordan Pepper (Grasser Lamborghini) and Jack Aitken (Emil Frey Ferrari). Both title contenders had overtaken Auer under yellow flags during the race and were handed three penalty laps each, but since neither driver served their penalties, they were both shown the black flag.
DTM rookie Tom Kalender celebrated his best-ever result with fifth place for Landgraf Mercedes, followed by Thomas Preining (Manthey Porsche) and Mirko Bortolotti (Abt Lamborghini). Lucas Engstler (Grasser Lamborghini), Ricardo Feller (Land Audi), and Maximilian Paul (Paul Motorsport) completed the top 10.
Heading into the final race of the year, seven drivers still had a realistic shot at the title, but one contender’s hopes were shattered in the first lap.
Rene Rast had made a perfect start and climbed to third into the first corner, and on the run to the hairpin, the three-time champion even passed Guven, but the Turkish driver fought back and pushed Rast wide. Behind them, Jules Gounon triggered a costly chain reaction; the Winward Mercedes driver braked too late and hit Ben Green in the Emil Frey Ferrari who then slammed into Rast’s Schubert BMW.
Ayhancan Güven, Manthey EMA Porsche 911 GT3-R
Photo by: Alexander Trienitz
The 38-year-old spun into the pack, where he was struck again by Thierry Vermeulen’s Emil Frey Ferrari. Rast’s BMW suffered severe damage to the right-front suspension, forcing him to retire which caused the first safety car.
After the restart, polesitter Gilles Magnus in the Comtoyou Aston Martin led the field, and just one lap later, the first of two pit window opened. BMW driver Wittmann was among the first to stop and immediately began setting fastest laps on fresh tyres. When points leader Auer finally pitted late in the window, Wittmann had already climbed into the lead group and gained several positions, battling Magnus for track position.
That allowed Guven to take the lead after the first round of stops, which he held until the second pit window opened, while Magnus retired just before his second stop due to a broken suspension.
After the second round of stops, Guven stayed ahead of Wittmann, who came under pressure from Engel. The Mercedes driver had pitted one lap earlier and had his tyres up to temperature, but he couldn’t find a way past.
Behind them, Pepper and Aitken made their costly mistake by overtaking Auer under yellow flags. The stewards handed both three penalty laps each, while the safety car came out again to recover Magnus’s stranded Aston Martin.
Wittmann kept the pressure on Guven and waited until the final lap to attack, and the BMW driver briefly took the lead, but Guven countered in the Motodrom section to regain the lead.
With his fifth win of the season, the Manthey Porsche driver sealed the title in the very last race. Landgraf Mercedes’ Auer, who scored points in every race this season, secured the runner-up spot in the standings.
DTM Hockenheim – Race 2 results
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– The Autosport.com Team
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