A rapid pitstop and a bold lunge on a veteran rival saw Liam Lawson finish second in the third round of this year’s DTM championship at the Lausitzring.
The result is the rookie’s second podium in three races after his sublime win in the season opener last month.
Lawson crossed the finish stripe 1.6s behind Mercedes driver Philip Ellis, who clinched his first DTM race win since 2018.
Ellis had started a lowly ninth but was running fifth by the end of lap one.
A heavy crash for Esmee Hawkey at the high-speed, banked turn one brought out the safety car, and when the race restarted, Ellis made up another two spots to sit third.
Meanwhile, Lawson sank through the pack as he dropped from fifth to ninth amid a challenging few laps.
The race then settled into a holding pattern before the mandatory pitstop phase rolled around.
Lawson was one of the earlier stoppers, and a lightning change of tyres from the Red Bull crew meant he jumped ahead of several cars to snatch a net third.
After the pitstops had played out, poleman Sheldon van der Linde led from Ellis and Lawson.
Ellis made his move for the lead at the final corner on lap 20, while Lawson dared a lunge on van der Linde a few laps later to claim second.
The Kiwi stayed with Ellis and kept the Brit honest.
However, he couldn’t get past and settled for second at the chequered flag.
Van der Linde was third at the line but demoted to fourth after incurring a five-second penalty.
That elevated Mike Rockenfeller to the podium, while Alex Albon rounded out the top five.
There is one more qualifying and race tonight, with the race beginning at 11.30 pm NZT.
