After just two weekends of racing in the 2017 Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters season, Mercedes-AMG Motorsport’s Lucas Auer feels in a very comfortable position in the current drivers’ standings.
The Austrian, along with Audi Sport Team Rosberg’s Jamie Green, are the only two drivers to have won races so far this season, but the Team BWT driver has been a consistent points scorer to end up leading the way by 16 points after the Motorsport Festival at Lausitzring.
The 22-year-old will face further tests at the next round of the championship, which is being held at the Hungaroring between the 16th and 18th of July, and is not one to be considering a title onslaught just yet.
“We’ve had four out of eighteen races so far. Of these, I’ve managed to win two, which is crazy in itself,” said Auer, who is currently on 69 points.
“I’m simply enjoying the fact that it’s going well and that I feel at ease in the team and in the car. But I would be stupid if I started thinking about the championship or anything else at this early stage.”
In recent times, drivers that have taken an initial hold on the standings, which include the likes of Gary Paffett and Green, have not ended up on the top step of the championship podium at the Hockenheim finale.
Auer is aware that the fight for wins and points scores will not be an easy task, especially with last year’s race weekend being a difficult one for all concerned. Robert Wickens was eliminated from the title hunt after a weekend to forget, whilst Daniel Juncadella would be denied his only podium in the series, due to a technical infringement.
“We haven’t looked all that good in recent races on this track. Sure, we now have a new car that has worked so far, but I’m still cautious about making forecasts,” said Auer, who will still be hunting for points, even if he is unable to challenge for victory.
He will still be keeping his reflexes razor sharp ahead of the trip to Hungary, as he will be racing on home soil this coming weekend, as he replaces Stefan Mücke for the forthcoming ADAC GT Masters round at Spielberg.
“I’m obviously delighted to be driving my first race in a Mercedes-AMG GT3. Added to which, it’s Spielberg and I’ll be partnering Sebastian Asch who is a really strong GT3 driver,” admitted Auer, who will be reunited with Mücke Motorsport just over a year after his took his maiden DTM career win with the outfit.
“I myself don’t have quite as much experience with the car, so the first thing I have to do is develop a feeling for it. But I’m determined to put on a good show.”