Mercedes has finalised its driver line-up for this year’s DTM championship, after confirming that Daniel Juncadella will return after a year’s absence.
Mercedes announced on Wednesday that Gary Paffett, Paul di Resta, Edoardo Mortara and Lucas Auer will all continue, before revealing that 2015 champion Pascal Wehrlein will return after two seasons in Formula 1.
One-time Force India test driver Juncadella competed in DTM for Mercedes between 2013 and 2016, taking a best race result of fourth, before stepping down to a reserve role for 2017.
With Robert Wickens having switched to IndyCar, and Maro Engel opting to prioritise his Formula E and GT3 duties, Juncadella has been drafted in to complete Mercedes’ roster for its final DTM season.
“It feels great to be back racing in the DTM this year,” said the Spaniard. “I’m really keen to get back in the car after a one-year break from competition in the DTM.
“I gained further racing practice last year thanks to race outings in a number of GT series and my role as test and reserve driver.
“I’ve remained very close to the team throughout the season and so, am familiar with the new generation of cars and the DTM rule changes.
“I’m pleased that at last, I can now contest DTM races again. I never really brought things to a satisfactory conclusion in the DTM and always had the feeling that my results never reflected my true ability. I now intend to put that right.”
