– The decision on the new exclusive DTM tire, whose development became a nail-biter due to delays, has finally been made: After Pirelli had already committed to “Option 4”, the most conservative of the four experimental tires, in mid-March, the DTM teams tested two more variants last week during the two-day tire test in Vallelunga.
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“Option 4.1” and “Option 4.2” only showed differences in the manufacturing process – and in the end, according to information from Motorsport-Total.com, “Option 4.2” prevailed. As heard, 80 percent of the teams were of the opinion that it was the more stable of the two tires, which is also said to have coincided with the result of the Pirelli analysis.
It is interesting that opinions on the new tire have been very different so far. “It has nothing more to do with those qualifying tires we tested at the beginning,” says one team member. “If you were to write the name of the previous Pirelli tire on it, we wouldn’t even notice the difference.”
From other teams, however, one hears that at least a bit more degradation and a slightly better warm-up process are noticeable compared to the previously used Pirelli P Zero DHG tire.
Superior Ford Mustang best time by Maini
The test on March 24 and 25 on the outskirts of Rome, where all teams of the 2026 season as well as the Audi squad Seyffarth, which is flirting with guest starts, got to enjoy the new tire for the first time, was as expected already marked by the poker for the Balance of Performance (BoP).
This is likely the explanation for why HRT driver Arjun Maini set a superior test best time of 1:29.983 in a qualifying simulation with “Option 4.2” in the Ford Mustang GT3 Evo on the first day, which was not even remotely reached on the second day.
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The Indian was 0,401 seconds faster than his closest pursuer Marco Wittmann in the Schubert BMW, who also set his time on the first day in a qualifying simulation with “Option 4.2”. And this despite the specified BoP, a fuel load of 25 kilograms, and eight laps of running for all vehicles.
Tire failures and problems for Lamborghini teams
On the second day, when “Option 4.1” was no longer used, there were also conspicuous findings: Landgraf Mercedes driver Lucas Auer drove an impressive long run with an average of around 1:31.7, while, for example, the Lamborghini teams Grasser and Abt hardly got below 1:32.5 during their long runs with the new Temerario.
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As heard, the Italian camp is still struggling with the new car, which could also explain the tire failures that only occurred on the Temerario in Vallelunga. This also applies to the pick-up problems, which were only reported by Lamborghini teams and are actually unusual at asphalt temperatures of over 30 degrees, as were partially measured during the test.
The difficulties were also noticeable in the overall standings: Mirko Bortolotti set the Temerario best mark of 1:31.372 in a qualifying simulation with “Option 4.2” on the first day, making him about 1,4 seconds slower than Maini.
Out for second Landgraf Mercedes due to crash
But those weren’t the only excitements: According to information from Motorsport-Total.com, there was also a crash by Landgraf youngster Tom Kalender, who hit backwards on the first test day and caused a red flag. The car was so heavily damaged that the test was over for the 18-year-old teammate of runner-up Auer.
The Landgraf team was lucky in misfortune, as they were the only team to make use of a special regulation for rookie drivers and deployed a second Mercedes-AMG GT3. While two drivers shared one car in the other teams, Kalender was allowed to rack up kilometers with the old DHG tire.
Although it was over after only 35 laps due to the crash, the Mercedes-AMG team was able to continue the test. What’s next for the teams? The official DTM test will take place in Spielberg on April 14, where it will likely be significantly colder, followed by the season opener one and a half weeks later.
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The new tires are now being produced, but private tests are not possible for the time being. Only one set can be borrowed for simulation purposes for a vehicle dynamics test bench.
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