Factory Mercede🍨s driver Lucas Auer held off Jordan Peper to win the opening race of the 2025 DTM season at Oschersleben on Saturday.

Having switched from Winward to the returning Land🎶graf team after a reshuffle in Mercedes' DTM line-up, Auer☂ put in a faultless performance to resist a late challenge from GRT Lamborghini rival Pepper by just 0.6s.

It marked the Austrian driver's first victory i♔n the DTM since the penultimate race of the 2022 season at Hockenheim.

Winward driver Maro Engel completed the podium in third, a futher three seconds back f💟rom the leaders.

Three-time DTM champion Rene Rast was the only driver to retire fr♛om the race, the Schubert BMW driver pulling into the pits with less than 20 minutes to go due engine troubles🃏.

Emil Frey's Ben Green had oriiginally qualified on pole position on his debut, but was s🐻ent to the back of the grid after his Ferrari was f🤪ound to be underweight by 6.5kg.