Dear Readers,
Who slept worst after the DTM season opener in Spielberg was clear this time. Or maybe not. Because nobody knows exactly who is currently responsible at Lamborghini. And that is probably one of the main reasons for the chaos at the Italian Audi subsidiary after the catastrophic debut of the brand new Lamborghini Temerario GT3.
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A car that is apparently so bad that it already bears the nickname “Lamaghini Dromedario” in the paddock. While Lamborghini was in the DTM title race with the old Huracan GT3 until the final last year, the Grasser and Abt teams drove their own race at the back of the field in a kind of “brand cup” at the premiere of the new car.
Even top driver Mirko Bortolotti, who finished 16th as the best Lamborghini driver on Sunday, was 36.082 seconds behind after 37 laps – that’s one second per lap he loses despite the Balance of Performance (BoP), which is supposed to artificially bring the cars to a level! And even Comtoyou-Aston-Martin driver Nicolas Baert – a mediocre GT3 driver – was 0.6 seconds per lap faster. “The gap is gigantic,” says Bortolotti.
Would it have been even worse in Oschersleben?
But it could have been even worse: Reportedly, Spielberg, with its long straights, is even a track that tends to mask the glaring weaknesses of the Temerario. In addition, the high asphalt temperatures of almost 40 degrees and the new DTM tire, which gets up to temperature a little faster, helped.
Had the season started as in previous years on the winding Oschersleben circuit with its 14 corners, the premiere would probably have been even more embarrassing. Because the car has enormous problems with braking and resists in corners because it simply generates too little mechanical grip via the chassis.
Systems like ABS and traction control are not fully developed; the car was delivered late to the teams after development delays and without a functional basic set-up.
Why Lamborghini should withdraw the Temerario GT3
The bad thing is that an endless horror now threatens: A solution to the problems during the season is hardly possible, as there are massive testing restrictions in the series where the car is competing. The car is homologated by the FIA, which means development is frozen.
Lamborghini would be well advised to withdraw the Temerario retrospectively and use the Huracan again at least in 2026 to get the car up to scratch in the background. While this would be a short-term loss of face, they would at least have taken the stubborn bull off the ice prematurely instead of becoming a permanent laughing stock.
Photos: DTM 2026: Spielberg Race Weekend
Because Lamborghini experts familiar with the matter clearly state that, given the necessary changes, only an Evo version could save the project. However, a short-term introduction is not possible, as an update due to FIA regulations can only be implemented after two years – i.e., 2028 – as long as it does not concern safety-relevant issues.
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A rescue via BoP is not possible, as the DTM classification of the car is already at the lower weight limit, and the ground clearance has also been almost maximally reduced. More boost pressure would be technically possible, but more top speed would again mean that the drivers would have to brake even earlier and would hardly gain any time. This is also shown by the BoP change from Saturday to Sunday, which had more of a signaling effect: We’re doing something for you!
Why has nothing happened since November?
Apart from that, one gets the impression that those responsible at Lamborghini themselves don’t know what to do. “They don’t even have the people and the expertise for it,” says a Lamborghini insider.
Which also explains why apparently nothing has happened even after the first alarm signals half a year ago. “The car is nowhere near where I’d like it to be, but that was clear to us in November,” Bortolotti told me on Saturday. All factory drivers tested the Temerario GT3 for the first time in mid-October 2025 in Le Castellet and then – as one hears – raised the alarm.
Even during the DTM tests in Vallelunga in March, where the same problems became evident again, Lamborghini could have pulled the emergency brake, but did not.
Do Lamborghini problems threaten a widespread crisis?
But how is all this explainable? The small Lamborghini motorsport department in Sant’Agata Bolognese was shaken by numerous changes and departures during the development of the Temerario, after the almighty motorsport boss Giorgio Sanna had to leave two years ago following an internal investigation.
And Rouven Mohr, Head of Technology, who had tried to steer the motorsport department through troubled waters, is now challenged on other levels after his promotion to Audi’s Head of Technology. As a result, no one is in charge – and the new Head of Motorsport, Andrea Reggiani, who has only been in office since the beginning of April and was also at the DTM in Spielberg, first has to get a clear picture of the difficult situation.
More is at stake than Lamborghini’s image – and the fact that the Italians actually want to sell their GT3 car to gentleman drivers and customer teams. It’s also about the future of the DTM teams Grasser and Abt, who depend on sponsors who want to see success.
And about the entire DTM: Because Lamborghini, alongside Mercedes-AMG, is the only manufacturer to field two teams and four cars. If they lose them, the field will consist of only 17 cars. That would be too few for a top GT3 series like the DTM.
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