Rene Rast completed his mandatory pit stop during the first lap of the race and finished the course on one set of high-quality Hankook Ventus Race tires.
Hankook Tire, the exclusive tire provider for the 2018 DTM season, supported René Rast on his first win during the tenth race of the DTM season in Zandvoort, Netherlands – a 35 lap circuit.
Rast started the race in third on the grid and quickly established himself as a leader of the pack. Hankook’s Ventus Race tires provided Rast with the stability needed to overtake Gary Paffett (Mercedes-Benz). After Sunday’s performance, Paffett holds onto the lead as we enter the second half of the international touring car series.
“The Hankook race tires held up fantastically well.” said Audi’s René Rast. “I actually expected that they would start to wear at some point in my long second, 34-lap stint. But that never happened. I am incredibly happy that the Hankook slicks lasted so well and that I was fast enough to hold off Gary right through to the finish and take my first win of the season.”
Hankook Ventus Race tires assisted Rast in the race as he went up against strong opponents. He was able to complete the race with a lead over second-place finisher Gary Paffett (Mercedes-Benz), as well as Paul Di Resta (Mercedes-Benz) who finished in third place, followed by Philipp Eng (BMW), who finished the race in fourth place.
“We had a very good start to the race but dropped a few seconds at the end of the first stint. That is what cost us in the end,” said Mercedes-Benz driver Gary Paffett. “We were very happy with the way the car and the Hankook tires performed together over the entire race weekend.”
“It was a race with different strategies,” said Manfred Sandbichler, Hankook Tire Motorsport Director, Europe. “René Rast, who pitted early on in lap one, benefitted from the consistently high level of grip provided by the Hankook race tire. The Ventus Race once again impressed all race weekend at the difficult circuit in the Zandvoort dunes. It allowed for various different tactics and thus an exciting race with an unpredictable outcome.
