A host of stars attending DTM season opener at Hockenheim
Hockenheim. This weekend, the DTM did not just attract 101,000 spectators to the Hockenheimring. Many prominent guests also came out to watch the 20 DTM drivers including Mika H?kkinen, Bernd Schneider (both Mercedes-Benz), Mattias Ekstr?m and Tom Kristensen (both Audi) in their first race this season. Invited by Mercedes-Benz, actress Veronica Ferres, football players Timo Hildebrand and Thomas Hitzlsperger (both members of the German national team) and motor sport legend Niki Lauda enjoyed the flair of the most popular international touring car series. Especially ex-swim star Franziska van Almsick caught a lot of attention among fans upon one of her first public appearances after having given birth to her son Hugo. Audi fans also got to see many prominent guests. Next to actress and TV commercial star Bettina Zimmermann, colleagie Fritz Wepper and VfB Stuttgart football players Markus Babbel and Horst Heldt enjoyed the DTM live experience.
An extensive programme of activities with exclusive guided pit tours informed the guests about all the details of the DTM. After a visit to the paddock, some of the guests were treated to the absolute highlight of their visit to the DTM: in a converted DTM car, they enjoyed a passenger ride in a race taxi at the Hockenheimring. ?That was the outright adrenalin kick. I told the driver right away that he didn?t have to back off, I can handle that?, said Bettina Zimmermann after her ride with the Audi A4 DTM.
The following guests were visiting the DTM:
Markus Babbel (VfB Stuttgart), Markus Beyer (boxing world champion in super middle weight), Veronica Ferres (actress), Ricco Gross (biathlon world champion and Olympic gold medallists), Sven Hannawald (ski jumping legend), Thomas Heinze (actor), Horst Heldt (team manager VfB Stuttgart), Thomas Hellriegel (triathlete), Timo Hildebrand (member of the German national football team), Thomas Hitzlsperger (member of the German national football team), Wolfgang Hoppe (world bobsleigh champion and Olympic gold medallist), Luan Krasniqi (heavyweight boxing professional), Christoph Langen (Bobsleigh world champion and Olympic gold medalist), Niki Lauda (motor sport legend), Fritz Wepper (actor), Bettina Zimmermann (actress).
