McLaren’s Ben Dörr tops Hockenheim DTM test as Comtoyou fields Aston Martin’s F1 reserve driver

After his victory at the Sachsenring on Sunday, Ben Dörr (Dörr‑McLaren) continued his strong form by setting the fastest time, 1:37.118, during the final official test of the 2026 DTM season at the Hockenheimring on Wednesday. The outing served as a dress rehearsal for the season finale scheduled for 9–11 October.

Dörr was 0.127 seconds ahead of Matteo Cairoli (Emil‑Frey‑Ferrari), with Marco Wittmann (Schubert‑BMW) third, 0.150 seconds behind the leader. Thierry Vermeulen (Emil‑Frey‑Ferrari) followed another 0.011 seconds slower, and Arjun Maini (HRT‑Ford) completed the top‑five.

The afternoon brought optimal conditions—sunshine and temperatures around 22 °C—allowing 18 drivers to use the nearly seven hours of track time to fine‑tune their car set‑ups before the season finale. Not all regular 2026 DTM drivers were present, however.

Comtoyou fields Formula 1 reserve driver for testing

Surprisingly, Comtoyou did not include Nicki Thiim and Nicolas Baert in Wednesday’s session. Instead, junior driver Jak Crawford, currently an Aston Martin Formula 1 reserve driver, took the wheel of Baert’s car.

“We are using today’s test to evaluate Jak Crawford with a view to our DTM plans for 2027,” explained Comtoyou DTM boss Mario Schuhbauer when speaking to Motorsport‑Total.com. “As an Aston Martin Formula 1 reserve driver he brings an interesting background, and we look forward to giving him the chance to test our DTM car.”

Jak Crawford fuhr den einzigen Aston Martin von Comtoyou

Foto: ADAC Motorsport

“Because we are deliberately focusing on driver evaluation today, we are running only one car and using our other resources for other tasks. That’s why Nicki and Nico are not in action today,” Schuhbauer added. The young American improved throughout the day but finished as the slowest of the 18 participants, 1.413 seconds off the pace.

Why Gounon and Glock missed the test

Winward driver Jules Gounon was absent because he is competing in the FIA World Endurance Championship at Fuji, Japan, this weekend. He was replaced by Fabian Schiller, who posted the sixth‑fastest time.

The 29‑year‑old German, who has not yet raced in DTM, is familiar with the Mercedes‑AMG GT3 and the Winward team, having won the Nürburgring 24‑hour race together with Maro Engel earlier this year.

Timo Glock, also a factory driver, did not attend because he had travelled to Baku for an F1 broadcast as a TV pundit. Abt driver Marco Mapelli was likewise absent, leaving Luca Engstler as the only Lamborghini‑team driver on the track.

Among the title contenders, Marco Wittmann (Schubert‑BMW) was the fastest in third place overall. Maro Engel (Winward‑Mercedes) improved to eighth in the afternoon (+0.364), while championship leader Thomas Preining (Manthey‑Porsche) set the 12th‑fastest time (+0.476).

DTM Hockenheim test final times

1. Ben Dörr (Dörr‑McLaren) – 1:37.118

2. Matteo Cairoli (Emil‑Frey‑Ferrari) – +0.127 s

3. Marco Wittmann (Schubert‑BMW) – +0.150 s

4. Thierry Vermeulen (Emil‑Frey‑Ferrari) – +0.161 s

5. Arjun Maini (HRT‑Ford) – +0.202 s

6. Fabian Schiller (Winward‑Mercedes) – +0.245 s

7. Kelvin van der Linde (Schubert‑BMW) – +0.340 s

8. Maro Engel (Winward‑Mercedes) – +0.364 s

9. Finn Wiebelhaus (HRT‑Ford) – +0.406 s

10. Luca Engstler (Abt‑Lamborghini) – +0.437 s

11. Mirko Bortolotti (Grasser‑Lamborghini) – +0.444 s

12. Thomas Preining (Manthey‑Porsche) – +0.476 s

13. Maximilian Paul (Grasser‑Lamborghini) – +0.483 s

14. Ricardo Feller (Manthey‑Porsche) – +0.508 s

15. Lucas Auer (Landgraf‑Mercedes) – +0.570 s

16. Tom Kalender (Landgraf‑Mercedes) – +0.646 s

17. Bastian Buus (Land‑Porsche) – +1.025 s

18. Jak Crawford (Comtoyou‑Aston Martin) – +1.413 s

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