Liqui Moly Team Engstler’s Martin Andersen has secured the first pole position of the season in TCR Germany, edging out ROJA Motorsport’s Jessica Bäckman by just under three tenths of a second.
It is the second successive season that Dane Andersen has bagged the first pole, having done the same also in 2021.
The Honda Civic driver, who is a title favourite this year, was comfortably faster than Bäckman in her Hyundai Veloster.
Andersen secures ten points for his championship challenge with pole in the process. “I’m very happy with pole position,” said the 27-year-old. “We were able to do a lot of testing in preparation and I feel really comfortable in the car. I know that all eyes are on me, and I want to confirm that in the race.”
NordPass’ Jonas Karklys put his Hyundai i30 N in third, a further tenth and a half adrift of Bäckman.
René Kircher, this year racing a Hyundai for ROJA Motorsport, was fourth in the team’s i30 N car, ahead of Pole Szymon Ładniak in fifth, who was over eight tenths slower than team-mate Andersen and the last driver with a second of pole.
ROJA’s Robin Jahr was sixth in the second Veloster N, ahead of series returnee Vincent Radermecker in seventh.
The top ten was completed by Albert Legutko in his older-spec Honda Civic, Patrick Sing in his self-run Hyundai i30 and the third Team Engstler Honda of Roland Hertner.
In total 13 cars will take the start of race one, which is scheduled to get underway at 14:40 CEST (13:40 BST).
Session results
| POS | NO | NAT | DRIVER | ENTRANT | CAR | LAPS | TIME | GAP |
| 1 | 19 |  |
Martin ANDERSEN | Liqui Moly Team Engstler | Honda Civic Type-R FK8 TCR | 8 | 1:30.851 | – |
| 2 | 26 |  |
Jessica BÄCKMAN | ROJA Motorsport by ASL Lichtblau | Hyundai Veloster N TCR | 9 | 1:31.148 | 0.297 |
| 3 | 27 |  |
Jonas KARKLYS | NordPass | Hyundai i30 N TCR | 9 | 1:31.310 | 0.459 |
| 4 | 8 |  |
René KIRCHER | ROJA Motorsport by ASL Lichtblau | Hyundai i30 N TCR | 10 | 1:31.526 | 0.675 |
| 5 | 21 |  |
Szymon ŁADNIAK | Liqui Moly Team Engstler | Honda Civic Type-R FK8 TCR | 7 | 1:31.658 | 0.807 |
| 6 | 22 | |
Robin JAHR | ROJA Motorsport by ASL Lichtblau | Hyundai Veloster N TCR | 10 | 1:32.299 | 1.448 |
| 7 | 11 |  |
Vincent RADERMECKER | maurer motorsport | Holden Astra TCR | 8 | 1:32.525 | 1.674 |
| 8 | 77 | |
Albert LEGUTKO | Albert Legutko Racing | Honda Civic Type-R FK2 TCR | 9 | 1:32.582 | 1.731 |
| 9 | 34 | |
Patrick SING | RaceSing | Hyundai i30 N TCR | 5 | 1:32.703 | 1.852 |
| 10 | 9 | |
Roland HERTNER | Liqui Moly Team Engstler | Honda Civic Type-R FK8 TCR | 6 | 1:33.031 | 2.180 |
| 11 | 13 | |
Max GRUHN | Gruhn Stahlbau Racing | Audi RS3 LMS TCR 2021 | 8 | 1:34.855 | 4.004 |
| 12 | 38 | |
Kai ROSOWSKI | K-Ro Racing | Audi RS3 LMS TCR | 9 | 1:38.038 | 7.187 |
| 13 | 17 |  |
Michael MAURER | maurer motorsport | Holden Astra TCR | 9 | 1:45.484 | 14.633 |