– Are the current difficulties of the Porsche Manthey team due to the new DTM special tires? “Grello” driver Thomas Preining also referred to the new Pirelli tire, which has been used exclusively in the DTM since 2026, in his sharp criticism of the Balance of Performance (BoP) at the Norisring.
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“All the weaknesses we ever had in Porsche are gone with the new tire. It can handle longitudinally, you have much more grip – and everyone has that grip, not just us,” said the Austrian Porsche factory driver. “Straight ahead, we are worse than ever.”
Therefore, currently they are not only poorly positioned in duels due to the lack of top speed, but also in the corners and in overall pace. But what does Preining mean by saying that the new tire can handle “longitudinally” – that is, lengthwise?
Has Porsche been robbed of its greatest strength?
Apparently, the new tire no longer loses grip as quickly during braking. While the DHG tire previously used in the DTM and other GT3 series by Pirelli was known for being “not multitasking capable” and unable to handle lateral and longitudinal forces simultaneously, this seems to have changed with the tire specially made for the DTM.
Porsche is generally considered an agile vehicle that performs well under braking and in traction. But this very strength might have been equalized by the new tire, as now other vehicles are also better on the brakes and get through corners more easily.
Manthey problems during tire tests: Was the change to be prevented?
Interesting: According to information from Motorsport-Total.com, Manthey already had major problems during the tire test in Vallelunga at the beginning of March, when Pirelli tried different tire types to determine the final specification for the DTM season. There were even damages to the rear tires, which forced Manthey to abort the prescribed runs.
The Manthey officials reportedly unsuccessfully advocated for keeping the DHG tire afterwards. But was that already an indication that the new DTM tire does not harmonize with the Porsche?
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Manthey setup apparently perfected for predecessor tire
Apparently, the problems in Vallelunga were also due to the fact that the setup Manthey used for the Pirelli test tire was extremely tailored to the DHG tire. The Porsche 911 GT3 Evo offers many possibilities to optimize the setup via kinematics. Manthey is said to have exploited and perfected this with the DHG tire.
Did the introduction of the new tire cause Manthey to lose this advantage and have to start over? And how was it then possible for Preining to win the premiere of the new tire at the DTM season opener in Spielberg?
Preining explains this by saying “that the others were still in hibernation, and we understood the tire faster. Otherwise, we only benefit from mistakes,” said the 2023 DTM champion, who is currently the best Porsche driver in eighth place with a 47-point deficit at mid-season, at the Norisring.
Will Manthey make a leap forward through the joker test day?
Why is it so difficult to make progress during the season? This is due to the testing restrictions, which offer DTM teams hardly any opportunities to work on the setup outside of race weekends. This especially affects teams like Manthey, which have the capacity and technical expertise to capitalize on it.
The Porsche top team used its only joker test day on July 14 at the Nürburgring with Preining and teammate Ricardo Feller – and thus the opportunity to test privately on a DTM track outside the ADAC-organized test days. (SPONSORED LINK: Secure tickets now for the 2026 DTM season!)
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The conditions were changeable: It was hot and dry at first, then there was a rain shower in the afternoon. Whether Manthey has made a step forward will be shown in the upcoming races. The track in Oschersleben, where the race will be held next weekend (all info on TV stream, stream, etc.), should suit the Porsche.
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