Mercedes confirms drivers for the 2017 DTM season

The Mercedes-AMG confirmed driver line-up for the 2017 DTM season with two new names – Edoardo Mortara and Maro Engel.

After BMW and Audi confirmed their drivers before the end of 2016, Mercedes evaluated its options and finally decided which six drivers will compete in the following season. The only name which was known earlier was Edoardo Mortara, Italian driver and the series runner-up who arrived from Audi at the end of 2016.

Mercedes opted to retain the services of former champions Gary Paffett and Paul Di Resta, while Robert Wickens and Lucas Auer are also staying with the team. Completing the sextet is former DTM driver and ex-FIA GT World Champion Maro Engel. Daniel Juncadella, Maximilian Gotz and Christian Vietoris are dropped from the team for 2017.

Paul Di Resta, Gary Paffett and Robert Wickens

“In 2017, all of us manufacturers will be up against major challenges. We have a new car, new tires and a reduction in the number of drivers on the grid. The standard of competition is, therefore, going to be higher than ever before in the DTM. That’s precisely why I am glad we have put together such a high-calibre squad. Edo, Lucas, Paul, Gary and Rob have all won DTM races and are well capable of having a say in the destination of the title. But therein lies yet another major challenge for the team and the drivers – to succeed this year, we need to function as a homogenous and resolute unit. Added to which, we have Maro who also has a lot of experience and is a title winner in his own right,” said Ulrich Fritz, head of Mercedes-AMG DTM.

The new DTM season kicks-off May 6/7 at Hockenheimring.

Photo: dtm.com