The DTM is considering strict penalties for teams that manipulate their performance to influence Balance of Performance (BoP). The Manthey team, which recently won the DTM opener, is at the center of this controversy after a significant qualifying time improvement raised concerns among competitors.
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Could the DTM introduce draconian penalties in the future for teams that hide their performance to gain a more favorable Balance of Performance (BoP)? In the US-based IMSA series, this is already common practice - and according to information from Motorsport-Total.com, teams and manufacturers in the DTM are now calling for similar measures.
At the heart of the debate is the Manthey team, winners of Saturday's DTM opener in Spielberg. Thomas Preining was 1.280 seconds faster in Saturday's qualifying than he was the previous day during a qualifying simulation in a specially scheduled BoP session. This did not sit well with the competition.
"We showed what we are capable of in the practice sessions and the qualifying simulation; we are totally transparent, we disclose everything, and we push. And others don't do that," says a frustrated Thomas Jäger, who serves as the Sporting Director for Mercedes-AMG's DTM project.
"It's a bit disappointing because we all have the goal of seeing this platform develop well. That will only work if we have as little discussion as possible surrounding this topic," says the former DTM driver.
"That's why I believe everyone should play along when we do these BoP runs. When you see how big the difference is between the BoP runs and the qualifying result, there's no point in doing them." In order to allow for a fair classification, one should "not try to cover anything up just to gain an advantage later on," says Jäger, who sees this as a clear case of "sandbagging."
While he does not mention Manthey directly by name, the suspicion is obvious, especially as others in the paddock are being more vocal. "How can it be that Manthey is at the back during the BoP run, and then qualifies near the front the next day?" wonders HRT Team Principal Ulrich Fritz.
"And what happened the next day, no one understands anymore," he adds, referring to Manthey's lack of performance on Sunday following Thomas Preining's Saturday victory. "Either they have no clue what they're doing, or they are playing games," he says. "And Manthey is not a team that has no clue."
What is his stance on draconian penalties for a BoP bluff? "I am absolutely in favor of it," Fritz replies. "I cannot judge whether Manthey deserved a penalty because I don't have the data, but this additional session cost too much money, too much attention, and too much time."
The DTM is contemplating harsh penalties for teams that hide their performance to gain a favorable Balance of Performance (BoP), similar to measures already in place in the IMSA series.
Thomas Preining is a driver for the Manthey team, which won the DTM opener; his qualifying time raised suspicions about performance manipulation among competitors.
Thomas Jäger, Sporting Director for Mercedes-AMG's DTM project, expressed frustration, stating that the Manthey team is transparent about their performance while others are not.
The DTM is considering implementing stricter penalties for performance manipulation, similar to the IMSA series, where such practices are already common.
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But let's look at the facts: The qualifying runs, which were called on short notice for Friday as a 20-minute session with a new set of tires and subsequent technical scrutineering, were dominated by Mercedes-AMG. Lucas Auer set the fastest time of 1:28.204 - just 0.002 seconds ahead of Jules Gounon and 0.006 seconds ahead of Maro Engel.
Preining, the best driver in the new Evo version of the Porsche in eighth place (1:28.731), was 0.527 seconds off the pace. This was striking, as the Manthey driver had already clocked a 1:28.351 during the official test in Spielberg, nearly four-tenths faster. In Saturday’s qualifying, pole-setter Engel set a new lap record with a 1:27.403, while Preining took third with a 1:27.451 - 1.280 seconds faster than his Friday BoP run.
How does Manthey explain the jump? Patrick Arkenau, who acts as Racing Director at Manthey, points to the track conditions and the ECE correction factor. This is the standard procedure for normalizing dyno measurements to eliminate environmental influences such as air pressure and temperature.
The ECE value was "two percent worse on Friday at that time than during the test and the actual qualifying," Arkenau explains. "In the end, that accounts for almost exactly two percent of engine power." With an output of 500 hp, that amounts to ten hp. "A large part of the difference can be explained by that alone."
But doesn't that also play a role for the Mercedes-AMG GT3? "We had a track temperature that was 13 degrees higher on Friday than in qualifying," Arkenau adds. "We know our car is sensitive to that - that's also part of the explanation. And we are still learning with the new tire."
What does he think about draconian penalties if someone bluffs on the BoP? "I would also welcome more transparency, but there are two sides to the coin," he says critically. "How can I even differentiate between normal development and sandbagging? Do I want to punish a driver who had a bad day and then has a good day? I can't punish something I can't prove."
Arkenau couldn't resist a small dig at Mercedes-AMG: "If three cars from one manufacturer are within six-thousandths of a second in that run, you could also say they might know exactly how fast they need to drive. Before leaning out the window as a manufacturer, I would perhaps sweep my own doorstep first."
What is also frustrating some teams: Before the new season, new standardized sensors had to be installed in the cars. These measure, among other things, tire pressure, tire temperature, ride height, and fuel flow to make BoP classification more accurate and to monitor the teams more effectively.
For older models like the Mercedes-AMG GT3, this resulted in costs of around 100,000 euros per team. "It was completely unnecessary if you see that data was taken during this BoP run - and then a participant who is almost a second and a half faster afterward isn't penalized," says one team member who wished to remain anonymous.
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