Red Bull announces Cassidy's replacement for Norisring DTM
Red Bull has announced that Turkish racer Ayhancan Guven will substitute for team regular Nick Cassidy in the fourth round of the 2022 DTM season at the Norisring next month.
Guven, 24, will drive the AlphaTauri-liveried #37 Ferrari 488 GT3 Evo run by the AF Corse team on his DTM debut on July 2-3, with Felipe Fraga remaining in Red Bull’s primary car for the only street circuit on the series’ calendar.
A Red Bull athlete, Guven has spent most of his fledgling career racing Porsche machinery, winning the Carrera Cup France title twice in successive seasons in 2018-19. Last year, he moved up to the Porsche Supercup series that raced on the Formula 1 support bill, finishing third in the standings behind Larry ten Voorde and Dylan Pereira.
Guven’s other accolades include helping Team Turkey win the inaugural FIA GT Nations Cup title in 2018, where he teamed up with former FIA World Endurance Championship regular Salih Yoluc.
The 24-year-old has been drafted in for the Norisring round as a replacement for Kiwi driver Cassidy, who has a clashing commitment in Formula E with the Envision team.
#91 Team Joos Sportwagentechnik Porsche 911 GT3 R: Ayhancan Güven
Photo by: Alexander Trienitz
This will be the second time in 2022 that Cassidy is missing a race due to other duties, with nine-time World Rally champion Sebastian Loeb having previously taken his place in the Portimao season opener in April.
The Kiwi could potentially miss a third round at Spa in September when he is due to drive for AF Corse in the WEC’s GTE Am division at Fuji Speedway.
However, while his Envision contract clearly states that he must prioritise Formula E in the event of a clash with another championship, it remains unclear which of his two deals with AF Corse will take precedence when WEC and DTM rounds fall on the same weekend.
Prior the next month’s Norisring event, Cassidy will take part in this weekend’s third round of the championship at Imola, the home race for both Ferrari and the AF Corse team behind Red Bull’s DTM operation.
The outfit has made a low-key start to its second season in the category after winning last year’s teams' title, with Cassidy himself only scoring two points at the Lausitzring last month.
Teammate Fraga finished on the podium in Portugal but his Lausitzring weekend was cut short by a fire in qualifying, forcing him to miss the second race of the double header. AF Corse has since rebuilt his car around a new chassis for Imola.
Related video
2022 Imola DTM: Start time, how to watch and more
Glock: DTM return at Imola will be a “new experience”
How Audi DTM heavyweights Rast and Muller compare
The GT3-based DTM is a different proposition to the Class 1 era that ended in 2020, but Audi’s top protagonists remain the same. Rivals Rene Rast and Nico Muller have now swapped teams, making their Team Rosberg and Abt engineers uniquely qualified to reveal what makes the pair tick.
David Schumacher surprised by friendlier DTM environment
David Schumacher says the convivial atmosphere in the DTM has come as a shock this year, having felt he had “no friends” during his time in single-seaters.
How Bernhard's Porsche “underdogs” made DTM history
Porsche didn’t take long to make its mark on the DTM, with its first victory arriving at the Norisring earlier this month. But few expected that to come courtesy underrated Austrian Thomas Preining and his single-car Bernhard team. Here’s how they did it.
DTM rejects drivers' demand for repeater lights in rolling starts
The DTM has turned down calls from drivers to install a set of repeater lights to improve visibility and cut down the chances of startline accidents.
The longest-serving Red Bull driver revealing F1’s true brutality
His day of days in Formula 1 came at Indianapolis in 2005, a day grand prix racing strives to forget. But Patrick Friesacher, the long-serving Red Bull lieutenant, remains active today driving a two-seater that provides ordinary people with a glimpse of an F1 car’s savage potential, including this writer...
How the DTM has come back stronger from its Norisring nadir
OPINION: Questionable driving standards and farcical team orders meant the DTM's first season under GT3 regulations ended under a cloud. But the organisation has responded firmly by banning team orders and welcomed new manufacturers, making for an intriguing season ahead as new and returning names prepare for battle.
The remarkable career of 'classy' champion Martin Tomczyk
Over two decades as a factory driver with Audi and BMW, Martin Tomczyk earned the respect of teammates and rivals as a hard but fair racer. After calling time on his racing career, the 2011 DTM champion sat down with Motorsport.com to look back.
Jamie Green: The other Hamilton conqueror seeking career revival
On his rise through the ranks before reaching Formula 1, Lewis Hamilton was usually a cut above the rest. But he never truly asserted himself over a Mercedes-backed fellow Briton who traded single-seaters for touring cars and is now seeking new opportunities after a year largely spent on the sidelines.
How the DTM's shambolic finale poses awkward future questions
OPINION: The scenes at the Norisring as Mercedes used blatant team orders to secure the first DTM title of the new GT3 era totally undermined the credibility of the championship. But as well as overshadowing the season, it also presents uncomfortable questions to series bosses about the direction it is headed in.
How Audi's new DTM flagbearer is closing on his "childhood dream"
Having learned the ropes in GT3 alongside Rene Rast, Kelvin van der Linde is in line to take up the three-time champion's baton as Audi's new DTM king. From humble origins in South Africa, it's been a remarkable journey so far for the current series leader, but he knows that the 2021 title is a long way from settled just yet.
The number-crunching behind the new-look DTM's equalisation drive
Switching to GT3 regulations marked a fresh start for the DTM in 2021, but it has also drawn a line in the sand against other series using similar cars by engaging AVL Racing to develop a bespoke Balance of Performance system. Here’s how it works.
The initial verdict on DTM's move to GT3 cars
OPINION: Facing collapse last year, the DTM has shifted its philosophy from a championship for silhouette-based touring cars to GT machines not too dissimilar to those racing across multiple series worldwide. But despite some initial BoP-based teething troubles, there were some pleasant findings as the 'new DTM' got underway at Monza