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A new documentary showcasing the performances of 2016 Mercedes-AMG DTM Team has premiered in Stuttgart, Germany before a global audience. The documentary was made possible as Mercedes-AMG DTM Team was accompanied by a camera crew throughout the 2016 DTM season – the first time that this has happened in the history of the series.
However, the focus of the documentary is less on the racing action and more on the people behind the sport. Visits to the homes of the drivers, interviews with relatives and friends – all this and much more kept the audience entertained at penultimate Thursday’s premiere screening in Stuttgart. The documentary will be shown on free-to-air German TV before the end of this year.
It must be noted that 2016 was the first campaign for the new Mercedes-AMG GT3 – and it was a great season with 50 podium finishes, including 18 race wins. That was on top of the 13 victories secured by the SLS AMG GT3. No fewer than 51 teams and 201 drivers contested the various GT3 championships with a Mercedes AMG vehicle in 2016.
The highlight of the year was the historic quadruple victory in the 24-hour race at the Nürburgring. And here’s a fascinating statistic: between them, the eight Mercedes-AMG GT3s competing in the 24-hour race at Spa covered a grand total of 29,319 kilometres, equivalent to slightly more than one circumnavigation of the globe at the latitude of Frankfurt (= 25,770km approx).
Expressing his impression of the documentary, Mercedes-AMG DTM driver, Robert Wickens,
said: “The film was really good. I’m obviously biased, because it’s about my team, my team-mates and my family. The film was amazing. It succeeded in capturing the emotional ups and downs of the DTM and our season very well. It showed what we’ve been through, and how we responded. It was a beautiful story.”
On his personal highlight with the team in the 2016 motorsport year, Wickens said: “ There were quite a few, but for me it was the way we showed the world the friendship that exists within the team. There are certainly very few people who know how closely we drivers work together in our team. I’ve never experienced it to this extent before.
Also, it was also pretty cool to see myself as a kid. I didn’t know that these clips were going to be part of the movie. It made me quite emotional, especially hearing what my father had to say about me. All in all, it was a surreal experience. I would never have thought that I could one day feature in such a film.”
Wickens also revealed his plans for the Christmas break.
“ I’ll fly back to Canada and relax with friends and family. I’ll be spending the Christmas period itself in Canada before Karli and I go to Barbados for the New Year. One of our friends is getting married there, which will certainly be nice,” he said.
