Qualifying turned out to be an event full of drama due to torrential rain leading to the second session having to be abandoned due to flooding shortly after it started.  On his second lap, Oliver slipped into the side rails damaging the car with insufficient time to go out again.  Consequently, he was pushed towards the rear of the field, having to start the race from an uncharacteristic 18^th on the grid.

Shortly before the actual race start, it looked as though a thunderstorm was imminent.  Audi’s contracted meteorologists predicted rain forecast to last for 30 minutes from the beginning of the race so most of the Audi A4 DTM cars started the formation lap on wets (tyres). It soon became apparent during the formation lap that the forecast rain was not going to materialise and many drivers immediately changed to slicks, starting from the pit lane.

Watched by a crowd of some 85,000 spectators, Oliver knew he had a tough job ahead but was confident of making up ground.  In view of the dry track, the team opted to start on slicks. “We had nothing to lose really starting from 18^th,” says Oliver. “The decision was right and the first lap was great.”In the first section of the race, Oliver was following Susie (Stoddart) for a long time.  They both pitted on the same lap and Oliver once more came out behind her.  Oliver by this time had made some considerable ground.

“The team called me into the pit lane early which proved a good decision.  I was running in ninth place when the rain started to get heavier.  I should have switched to wets a bit earlier,” explains Oliver. “When I came in for wets, the air jack failed and I lost 20 seconds, so I only finished 13^th.  Still, the team did a great job and we had a chance to score points.”