• Manthey completes first test kilometres in the Motorsport Arena Oschersleben ahead of the 2025 DTM season opener 
• First outing on new Pirelli slick tyres for Ayhancan Güven, Thomas Preining and Morris Schuring in the Porsche 911 GT3 R with starting numbers 90, 91 and 92
• The team has already completed extensive preparations for the season in the run-up to the test

Oschersleben. As part of the official DTM test and media days from first to second April at the Motorsport Arena Oschersleben, Manthey started the 2025 season for the first time with three cars and a new driver line-up. After a day of media productions, Ayhancan Güven (Turkey), Thomas Preining (Austria) and Morris Schuring (Netherlands) collected valuable test data in the Porsche 911 GT3 R with starting numbers 90, 91 and 92 on the 3.696-kilometre circuit. Even before the test day, the team had made extensive preparations for the season at its headquarters in Meuspath.

At the first official pre-season test in Oschersleben, the twelve DTM teams had more than seven hours of driving time in two sessions in sunny weather conditions. Manthey used this time to collect valuable data for the first DTM race of the season, which will be held on 26 April as the first of 16 championship races, also at Oschersleben. The main focus of the test programme was the run of the new Pirelli slick tyres, which were used for the first time. "Our goal was to understand and adjust the cars down to the last detail with the new tyres. Based on the data, we want to take a few more steps forward by the race to get the most out of the tyres, especially in qualifying," explains Patrick Arkenau, Division Manager Racing at the Manthey Racing GmbH. The team's programme also included various qualifying simulations, long runs, pit stop practices, race start and penalty lap simulations. All of the procedures carried out had the overarching goal of getting the drivers and team used to the processes of the sprint race series again and perfecting details.

For 20-year-old Morris Schuring, it was the first official DTM outing with the team, while Ayhancan Güven and Thomas Preining are already in their second season together as teammates. "The official test was also the first dress rehearsal for us to work together as a team with three cars. Ultimately, the fact that we are starting with one more car makes little difference to the way we work. Our structure and philosophy remain the same: we always work as one team – we continue to rely on close exchange and cooperation in all areas of the team to achieve the best possible results. The fact that we are now entering three cars obviously provides more data, more input and the drivers can learn more from each other, which ultimately benefits the entire team. The test went very well for us. We focussed on delivering our best performance in order to prepare perfectly for the first race. We are really pleased with this and with the performance of all three drivers. Of course, only the qualifying in Oschersleben will show where we really stand. We hope to be just as competitive as we were during the test! Even though some of the processes still need to be ironed out with three cars, we feel very good and are looking forward to the upcoming season," summarised Arkenau.

In the weeks leading up to the official test, the team prepared intensively for the upcoming DTM season. During a three-day workshop in Meuspath, not only was the past season reflected on with all three drivers, but the regulations were also reviewed and changes discussed. In addition to simulator sessions, a vehicle dynamics seminar was also on the programme, where the drivers' technical understanding of how the Porsche 911 GT3 R works was deepened. In addition, Güven, Preining and Schuring supported the mechanics in the team's workshop in preparing the vehicles for the season. In addition to the technical and organisational preparation, the focus was also on team building.

The 41st season of the sprint series will kick off at the Motorsport Arena Oschersleben on 26th April. 24 drivers, twelve teams and seven manufacturers will compete against each other in 16 races over eight race weekends.

Quotes on the 2025 DTM Test & Media Days:

Ayhancan Güven, Porsche 911 GT3 R #90: "The official DTM test went very well overall. We found our rhythm after the winter with the DTM crew and it went really well for the first time with three cars at the track. We were able to complete many laps and test points, so we are well prepared as a team. Now we will analyse until the first race. It was also really cool to see how many manufacturers are competing in the DTM this year and I'm really looking forward to the first race at the end of April. It will certainly be an exciting weekend."

Thomas Preining, Porsche 911 GT3 R #91: "A very positive first impression after the winter! I'm really happy to be back in a DTM car with such a sharp front axle. I just feel comfortable like this. I'm also happy to be working with the team again. It was a lot of fun today – it was exhausting, but really productive. Our engineers have worked out a lot of test points over the winter, which we were able to work through with the three cars. Basically, we know, of course, that we won't know exactly where we stand until after the first qualifying session. I'm looking forward to that and to the first race weekend!"

Morris Schuring, Porsche 911 GT3 R #92: "The first DTM test went really well for me. We were able to do a lot of driving, I think we did almost 150 laps in total. I am very happy with everything we tried. The team gave me the time I needed to settle in well. It was also great to work with my race engineer from the WEC again, we are a really good team. All in all, we were able to learn a lot and I developed well. Oschersleben is a cool track. I already knew it from three years ago and it's great to be back. In general, it's great to have the first official appointments in the DTM paddock and I'm happy with my performance. Now it's time to analyse and come to the first race with new insights and I'm confident that we'll have a good start to the season."

DTM Race Calendar 2025:

25.04. – 27.04.2025 Motorsport Arena Oschersleben
23.05. – 25.05.2025 DEKRA Lausitzring
06.06. – 08.06.2025 Circuit Zandvoort / NL
04.07. – 08.07.2025 Norisring
08.08. – 10.08.2025 Nürburgring
22.08. – 24.08.2025 Sachsenring
12.09. – 14.09.2025 Red Bull Ring by VKB Bank / A
03.10. – 05.10.2025 Hockenheimring Baden-Württemberg