“We are very pleased that Schaeffler and Schaeffler Paravan are making Markus Winkelhock’s entry possible,” says team principal Thomas Biermaier. “Markus is one of the most experienced and successful GT3 drivers in the Audi Sport customer racing driver squad and simply a great guy who fits in well with our team.”
“I drove for ABT for the first time at Oschersleben in 2007,” Markus Winkelhock recalls. “Back then I was a substitute for Tom Kristensen, who had a serious accident at Hockenheim. That was my very first race for Audi in the DTM. To be back in the DTM after ten years of abstinence and to be able to take the wheel for ABT again so many years later is something very special. I’m really looking forward to it. The Nürburgring is one of my favourite circuits. In this respect, I hope that I can achieve a good result there for ABT.”
In 2007 Markus Winkelhock made Formula 1 history at the Nürburgring when he replaced Christijan Albers at Spyker and led the Grand Prix on his debut in the early stages after being the only driver to switch to rain tyres before the start. The Swabian won the 24-hour race at the Nürburgring three times with the Audi R8 LMS.
At the Nürburgring in 2019, Winkelhock wrote another chapter in motorsport history: he was the first driver to use the steer-by-wire technology Space Drive in a race, which was developed by Schaeffler Paravan Technologie GmbH & Co. KG and will also be used in the DTM this season. Winkelhock has been involved in the development of the pioneering technology from the very beginning. No other driver has more experience with the innovative steering system.