Stippler used! Harsh penalty for HRT due to violation of test regulations

– Harsh penalty against the Ford team HRT for a violation of the testing restrictions in the DTM: Both Arjun Maini and Finn Wiebelhaus must serve a drive-through penalty in the Saturday race at the home event at the Nürburgring (all info on TV times, stream, etc.). Due to the large time loss, their races are practically destroyed before the start.

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But what did the team, which recently made headlines due to engineer resignations, do wrong? After using the joker test day at the Nürburgring on August 2 with both DTM drivers, they also registered a test on the Eifel circuit for August 3 with the DTM.

However, without DTM drivers and without a driver who has Platinum status in the FIA classification system, which is usually reserved for factory drivers. Nevertheless, with Nordschleife ace Frank Stippler, a Platinum driver sat in the Ford Mustang GT3 Evo, which is not allowed under the test regulations.

“Operational error” with serious consequences

And that with Pirelli tires and on a DTM track. Apart from that, the notification deadline of at least three days before the activity was not met, according to the regulatory authority DMSB (German Motor Sport Federation). Although this is a bureaucratic error, the test with a Platinum driver on Pirelli tires on a DTM track is a “clear violation of the regulations.”

Therefore, a drive-through penalty was imposed instead of the usual fine for formalities. How does the Haupt Racing Team react? The team says an “operational error” occurred, “which we deeply regret and which gave us no advantage,” HRT explains in a statement.

“This is especially unfortunate for our two drivers, who played no role in this decision and did absolutely nothing wrong. But we will get through this together as a team and come back stronger,” they announce.

Pure function test? How the HRT faux pas happened

How did the faux pas happen? “It was a car from the ADAC GT Masters that had a problem,” explains HRT driver David Schumacher at ran.de. According to information from Motorsport-Total.com, it was a problem with the ABS.

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“This problem was not found in the company. That’s why they did two laps. It was really just two laps to find out if the problem was solved,” Schumacher speaks of a function test. The mistake was that the team assigned the Platinum driver Stippler to the test instead of ADAC GT Masters driver Niklas Kalus, who has Silver status.

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“That was overlooked,” Schumacher knows. That the test was done on the DHG tire from Pirelli and that the track layout known from the DTM was not used does not matter. Because according to the regulations, every Pirelli tire counts as a DTM tire. And for the definition of the track, “the actual course of the track is irrelevant.”

Another penalty for HRT due to testing violation

It will be interesting to see how HRT reacts to the penalty. Strategically, it would make sense to save tires on Saturday and focus fully on Sunday, especially since only three sets per driver can be used in total on both race days this weekend – and the Mustang has high tire wear.

Besides the penalty, the HRT team must also accept a fine for another violation of the testing regulations. Because the team also conducted a test on the Hockenheimring – and thus on a DTM track – on August 5 and 6, but did not register it as required three days in advance.

Since the team reported the test before the event and it was a formal error according to the DMSB, the team got away with a fine of 500 euros.

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