The third race weekend of the 2026 DTM season at the Lausitzring, held from 19 to 21 June, proved to be another gruelling test for TGI Team by GRT and the new Lamborghini Temerario GT3. Relentless summer heat and thunderstorms put the equipment, drivers and crew to the test. In Sunday’s race, Mirko Bortolotti demonstrated perfect race execution and secured fifth place – the team’s best result of the season to date. For Maximilian Paul, it was a home race with mixed feelings. The driver from Dresden showed impressive pace with sixth place in the first race, but was ultimately unable to celebrate the result following penalties imposed on several drivers.

As early as Friday’s practice session, the teams found themselves facing midsummer conditions at the Lausitzring, just an hour’s drive from Dresden. In the first practice session on the 3.478-kilometre circuit, Mirko Bortolotti made an immediate impression. He secured third place in the 21-car DTM GT3 field, just 0.037 seconds off the fastest time. Maximilian Paul also got off to a promising start into the weekend with eighth place.

In the first qualifying session on Saturday morning, the two Lamborghini Factory Drivers secured 14th and 17th on the grid. The outside temperature was still 33 degrees Celsius before the start of the race, but a thunderstorm completely drenched the circuit. GRT opted for split strategies, with Maximilian Paul on slicks and Mirko Bortolotti on wet tyres. The latter did not benefit from the strategy. Although he initially moved up to P9 at the start, an early safety car meant he was unable to capitalise further on the advantage his tyres offered on the wet track. On lap 15, he was forced to retire early. Maximilian Paul executed his tyre strategy perfectly on a drying track and finished in an excellent sixth place. After the race, however, four drivers were penalised for speeding under Full Course Yellow, including Paul. The penalty dropped him back to 14th place in the results.

On Sunday, Mirko Bortolotti and Maximilian Paul started the second race over a distance of 55 minutes plus one lap from ninth and nineteenth on the grid. Following his retirement in the first race, the 36-year-old Italian could rely on fresh slicks in the hot conditions. In the first stint, he put the overcut to good use, jumping from P8 to P5 after the pit stops. A fast pace in the second stint gave him a comfortable cushion over his pursuers. After the second pit stop window, he made up a further seven seconds on the driver in fourth place during the final ten minutes, but there was not enough time for a final attack. Nevertheless, with fifth place, he secured TGI Team by GRT’s best result of the season so far. Maximilian Paul had already worked his way into the points by the halfway point of the race, but was forced to retire after 29 laps due to a technical issue.

The next challenge with the Lamborghini Temerario GT3 is already on the horizon this coming weekend with the CrowdStrike 24 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps. The highlight of the season in the GT World Challenge Europe Powered by AWS Endurance Cup will mark the first 24-hour race for the team around Mirko Bortolotti, Franck Perera and Maximilian Paul and their new GT3 machine. Last year, the Grasser Racing Team celebrated a historic first victory for the Italian manufacturer at the endurance classic in Belgium with the Lamborghini Huracán GT3 EVO2. The DTM season also continues with its season highlight from 3 to 5 July. The fourth race weekend takes place at the Norisring on the streets of Nuremberg.

#63 Mirko Bortolotti (ITA)
Qualifying 1: P14 – Race 1: DNF
Qualifying 2: P9 – Race 2: P5

Mirko Bortolotti: “All in all, it’s a positive outcome. We are working towards our goals and we are getting there step by step. Saturday was simply a lottery which did not go our way, but we can be really proud of a hard-fought P5 on Sunday. This one was fully earned on track and through a great job from the entire team.”

#19 Maximilian Paul (GER)
Qualifying 1: P17 – Race 1: P14
Qualifying 2: P19 – Race 2: DNF

Maximilian Paul: “We’ve made further progress with the new car, which was once again the most important thing for me. Of course, I would have loved to have secured that result on Saturday at my home race. We had a mega race, finishing sixth, and that would have been some good points, but unfortunately the limiter didn’t work properly under FCY. That’s a real shame, but overall it was still another positive weekend.”

Gottfried Grasser, Team Principal: “The weekend has shown us once again that we’re on the right track. Sunday was very positive. We had brilliant race pace, Mirko worked his magic and fully exploited our package. Max managed something equally impressive in the first race, but unfortunately technical issues during the FCY denied us the result. Qualifying remains a real challenge for us in terms of performance. We’re not yet managing to make the most of the peak of these tyres. We need to get a better understanding of this, because a good starting position makes all the difference in the DTM. Ultimately, we can be satisfied for the moment. I’m proud of the team and our drivers, because just a few weeks ago we were still a long way off results like these. It’s great to be competitive again and to see this progress. Now we’re looking forward to our first big endurance race with the Temerario GT3. A win like last year’s is unlikely, but this season we’re primarily working for the future and therefore want to gain as much experience as possible at Spa.”