Arjun Maini ends 2021 DTM season on strong note

The Indian driver claimed his first podium finish during the campaign.

Mercedes-AMG star Arjun Maini ended his 2021 DTM season in the best way possible with the Indian claiming his first podium in the series along with a sixth-place to mark his best ever weekend in the series. 

The Omega Seiki and J.K.Tyre backed driver made history on Saturday when he claimed second place after defending a late charge from championship protagonist Liam Lawson. Maini who claimed P7 and P2 during the weekend’s two practice sessions claimed fourth during the Qualifying 1 before converting his strong pace into a podium finish. 

The Indian who endured minor damage from an incident with Lawson at the start drove an impeccable race to finish second and become the first-ever Indian to stand on a DTM podium. 

Race 2 was just as eventful with Arjun Maini starting from P7. The Indian jostled for position at the start before ultimately settling into sixth. The race itself was chaotic as a first corner incident between Kelvin Van Der Linde, Nick Cassidy and Lawson caused pandemonium. With both Lawson and Cassidy being relegated to the back of the field and Van Der Linde handed a five-second penalty, Maini looked a good bet to claim back-to-back podiums. Unfortunately, he was hit from the back by  Nico Muller which saw the Indian spin off the circuit dropping him out of the top 10. 

Despite this, Maini kept his head down and was able to battle back to sixth, claiming a solid haul of points and end his rookie season in Germany’s premier racing series strongly.

Arjun Maini stated, “It’s been an intense weekend of racing. Obviously, the podium was great but we had a job to do today and I think given the circumstances sixth was a good result. I’m a little disappointed given that a second podium looked likely but then again these things happen in motorsport and there’s no point lamenting on it."

“The GetSpeed racing team have been fantastic to work with all season and I’d like to sincerely thank them for all the effort they’ve put in over the course of the season. Coming into a new series, with a new team was never going to be easy and I couldn’t have asked for a better environment to learn in. I’m looking forward to what 2022 will bring, given how the second half of the season went, I definitely would like to return to the series."

He added, “I would like to thank my Sponsors JK tyres and Omega Seiki Mobility who have stood by me in these difficult times and have helped me to compete at such a high level. Finally, I’d like to congratulate my Mercedes stablemate Maxi Gotz, he drove brilliantly this year and thoroughly deserves the championship.”

Arjun Maini ended the season 12th in the championship and despite enduring a tough start to the series, the Indian showed grit to come back strongly during the second half of the season. 

With a year of experience under his belt, the Indian driver should be well placed to make further inroads come 2022 as he looks to become the first Indian to win a race in the DTM championship.

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