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Last week, I told you that Quebec's Bruno Spengler could become the first non-European driver to win the DTM championship. And he pulled it off, in brilliant fashion no less!
Second in the driver standings, Spengler was trailing Gary Paffett (Mercedes) by three points with only one race left. After overtaking his rival at the start of the race, he did not make a single mistake and kept the lead all the way to the finish line.
Spengler's track engineer, Valentino Conti, had devised a somewhat risky strategy -- one that would guarantee a victory provided that Spengler executed it to perfection. His second tire change, which took a record 2.9 seconds, was a turning point.
Surprisingly, and a bit sadly, there were just two members of the Canadian media on hand in Hockenheim: Louis Butcher from Journal de Montréal and myself. What a shame.
After all, Spengler is the first Canadian driver to win a world championship in auto racing since Jacques Villeneuve earned the F1 title back in 1997 and Robert Wickens in Formula Renault 3.5 last year. That must be the problem: DTM is not F1. Most sports directors don't think it can sell a lot of newspapers.
Consider this: Hockenheim played host to 128,000 spectators during the three-day weekend. Not bad, eh?
I've been closely following Bruno's career since his karting days in 1999. Truth be told, we are good friends. Heck, I had the privilege to spend Sunday night with him celebrating his championship.
Other friends from Quebec, as well as buddies and family members living in France, had made the trip as well.
All of them were moved by the sight of Bruno standing tall on the podium and closing his eyes while listening to our national anthem. His parents, Corinne and Alexis, were visibly proud. All of a sudden, they had forgotten about the long weekends working on his kart, his accident in Formula 3 that resulted in two fractured vertebrae, the non-stop, anguishing quest for sponsors, and the bitter disappointment of watching the title slip away in past years (often for obscure reasons). It's all distant memories now.
Following the official interviews, Spengler ran over to his teammate (and last year's champion), Martin Tomczyk, to remove the No. 1 plate from his car. Later, he spent time with some BMW guests, signing autographs and smiling in front of the cameras. As his parents came in and hugged him, he became very emotional -- and so did I.
The celebration continued inside the motorhome. His iPhone wouldn't stop ringing, but the loud music, constant mobbing and repeated drinks kept Spengler very busy and distracted.
Then, the group left to attend the BMW party, where the newly crowned champion made a triumphant entry and received a warm, sincere welcome. A fluent German speaker, Spengler thanked everyone including his mechanics from Schnitzer Motorsport, who all happened to wear traditional Bavarian attire!
The night culminated with the DTM banquet with drivers, organizers, officials, guests and team members. I left the scene shortly after midnight, looking for a place to cool off after these memorable times.
Congratulations, Bruno! Too bad so few of your fellow Quebecers know about you. You're now one of the biggest stars in international auto racing!
Second in the driver standings, Spengler was trailing Gary Paffett (Mercedes) by three points with only one race left. After overtaking his rival at the start of the race, he did not make a single mistake and kept the lead all the way to the finish line.
Spengler's track engineer, Valentino Conti, had devised a somewhat risky strategy -- one that would guarantee a victory provided that Spengler executed it to perfection. His second tire change, which took a record 2.9 seconds, was a turning point.
Surprisingly, and a bit sadly, there were just two members of the Canadian media on hand in Hockenheim: Louis Butcher from Journal de Montréal and myself. What a shame.
After all, Spengler is the first Canadian driver to win a world championship in auto racing since Jacques Villeneuve earned the F1 title back in 1997 and Robert Wickens in Formula Renault 3.5 last year. That must be the problem: DTM is not F1. Most sports directors don't think it can sell a lot of newspapers.
Consider this: Hockenheim played host to 128,000 spectators during the three-day weekend. Not bad, eh?
I've been closely following Bruno's career since his karting days in 1999. Truth be told, we are good friends. Heck, I had the privilege to spend Sunday night with him celebrating his championship.
Other friends from Quebec, as well as buddies and family members living in France, had made the trip as well.
All of them were moved by the sight of Bruno standing tall on the podium and closing his eyes while listening to our national anthem. His parents, Corinne and Alexis, were visibly proud. All of a sudden, they had forgotten about the long weekends working on his kart, his accident in Formula 3 that resulted in two fractured vertebrae, the non-stop, anguishing quest for sponsors, and the bitter disappointment of watching the title slip away in past years (often for obscure reasons). It's all distant memories now.
Following the official interviews, Spengler ran over to his teammate (and last year's champion), Martin Tomczyk, to remove the No. 1 plate from his car. Later, he spent time with some BMW guests, signing autographs and smiling in front of the cameras. As his parents came in and hugged him, he became very emotional -- and so did I.
The celebration continued inside the motorhome. His iPhone wouldn't stop ringing, but the loud music, constant mobbing and repeated drinks kept Spengler very busy and distracted.
Then, the group left to attend the BMW party, where the newly crowned champion made a triumphant entry and received a warm, sincere welcome. A fluent German speaker, Spengler thanked everyone including his mechanics from Schnitzer Motorsport, who all happened to wear traditional Bavarian attire!
The night culminated with the DTM banquet with drivers, organizers, officials, guests and team members. I left the scene shortly after midnight, looking for a place to cool off after these memorable times.
Congratulations, Bruno! Too bad so few of your fellow Quebecers know about you. You're now one of the biggest stars in international auto racing!
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| Bruno Spengler with his parents. (Photo: René Fagnan) |