In the crucial final qualifying segment Oliver outperformed his rivals by more than half a second on the demanding circuit along the Dutch North Sea coast – at the wheel of the Audi A4 DTM in which Martin Tomczyk started last year.

"Audi Sport Team Phoenix did a fantastic job," enthused the Briton after taking his first pole position in the DTM. "We knew that we’re fast and that we’re able to do it. It’s wonderful that everything fit together so perfectly. If I manage a good start on top of this, I’ll have a real chance of winning."

Head of Audi Motorsport Dr. Wolfgang Ullrich shared the joy of Ernst Moser’s team and their youngest protégé about the sixth consecutive pole position Audi has achieved in the DTM: "I’m incredibly proud of Oliver, who yet again demonstrated the potential he’s got. He dominated today’s qualifying. As far as our championship candidates are concerned, we’ll sit together and develop a sound strategy to get them on the podium tomorrow. That’s definitely our goal."

"Wow, what a great moment! Not just for me, but also for my squad from Audi Sport Team Phoenix. We experienced two unfortunate weekends together, so we’re all the more relieved by this result today. I want to thank everyone who made this possible. But no matter how great this feeling is now: We know that the race tomorrow will be tough and will strictly concentrate on that from now on,” said Oliver.

Dr. Wolfgang Ullrich went on to say: "Oliver’s performance in a year-old car cannot be emphasized emphatically enough: He was in control of qualifying and clinched pole on the crucial lap by posting all the fastest sector times. We’ve always known that he’s got this kind of potential – and today he impressively proved it.”

A total of six Audi A4 DTM cars will start from the top ten grid positions on Sunday. Markus Winkelhock will go into the race from position twelve, Katherine Legge from 14th place.