Tom Blomqvist “shocked” at level of competitiveness in DTM

With three rookies making their mark in the Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters (DTM) this year, Britain’s Tom Blomqvist is currently the best of the trio, having joined the ranks along with Mercedes duo, Lucas Auer and Maximillian Götz.

The Team RBM driver took his first win in the last race at Oschersleben two weeks ago, becoming the youngest BMW driver in the series’ history to do so, along with leading Bert Mampaey’s team’s first 1-2 in the DTM.

“I have to say that this is most probably my most satisfying result of my career to date,” explained the Formula 3 graduate to TouringCars.net, ahead of this weekend’s action at the Nürburgring.

“It is my first year as a professional racing driver and rookie season in the DTM. It is such a competitive championship and getting a win in my rookie year is quite something.”

The New Zealand-raised racer was the first driver since Team RMG’s Maxime Martin to take a win in a début season in the DTM, which sees him on 41 points, just five behind the Belgian in the standings.

It was a rocky start for the Brit, who suffered three retirements in the first five races, along with a disqualification at the Norisring, despite showing great pace in qualifying. But his prowess has come through, as a result of racing in the FIA Formula 3 European Championship, who are one of the current support series.

“I was quite shocked at how competitive the DTM was, especially when it came to the racing side of things. It was a big step up from Formula 3 and the racing is extremely tough,” said the 21-year-old, who says that he is stronger as a result of the mistakes that have been made at the beginning of the season.

“I have learnt more and more as the year has gone on and I now have a better understanding of what is needed in the DTM.”

Being the son of rally legend Stig Blomqvist had a impact on the Briton’s racing escapades on the race track, as opposed to rallying, as he admitted that it “has had a big influence on who I am today.”

Nevertheless, he still made his way up the ranks from karting, but in a different atmosphere: “But I grew up in NZ with mainly my mother and did all my go karting in New Zealand.”

“My father is quite chilled out and doesn’t get in the way of things, but he will always give his opinion to me and I respect that. I have learnt a lot from him over the years. More in the way he approaches things, discipline etc.”

Despite the Team RBM teammates finishing strong at Oschersleben, which saw BMW Motorsport dominant all weekend, the “home” race of the Munich brand is something Blomqvist is looking forward to, along with team mate Augusto Farfus:

“We are both extremely motivated for Nürburgring, I don’t know yet how much it will suit our car but you can bet on us to give it our all. We had a strong weekend in Oschersleben and the whole team is fully motivated for more strong results at the last two rounds.”

Blomqvist also gave his thoughts on the current championship fight in both the drivers’ and manufacturers’ standings:

“It’s very tight, and it seems to be getting tighter and tighter with each race. It’s not so much a case of it being between the two leaders, but with who is actually in with a chance of winning the championship.

“The manufacturers’ championship is also tight. We are aiming to try and win that for BMW. It would be magnificent if we could, especially after the tough start to the season.”