Lower leg fracture confirmed for DTM star Maximilian Paul

The first DTM race at the Norisring was marred by a horrific crash. Maximilian Paul lost control of his Lamborghini Temerario GT3 on an oil spill whilst braking for the Grundig hairpin, crashed violently into the barrier and subsequently struck Kelvin van der Linde at high speed on the driver’s side.

Paul was admitted to hospital on Saturday with a suspected lower leg fracture. This suspicion was confirmed, as Gottfried Grasser announced on Sunday morning ahead of the second qualifying session at the Norisring. “He is doing well under the circumstances. He underwent surgery during the night, which he came through well,” said Gottfried Grasser. Grasser also stated that the injury will take a long time to heal and that it is very unlikely he will race again this year.

Upon inspecting the car, the Grasser team discovered that there were no technical issues whatsoever with the vehicle, meaning the accident was caused by the oil spill from Timo Glock’s McLaren.

The crash was also so severe that the chassis of the Lamborghini Temerario GT3 was broken in several places. Given the shortage of spare parts for the new car, it is therefore unclear when the Grasser team’s second car will be able to return to racing,

Schubert Motorsport team principal Torsten Schubert confirmed in an interview with Jan Schmitz on Sunday morning that Kelvin van der Linde had sustained bruises in the violent crash, but no fractures or bone splinters. Due to severe pain, the South African will not be starting on Sunday.