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GT racing star Daniel Juncadella has mentioned the DTM was so political prior to now that it “destroyed his profession in a approach”.
Juncadella was a part of Mercedes’ manufacturing facility programme within the DTM for 5 seasons between 2013 and 2018, initially racing for Mucke Motorsport earlier than touchdown a drive at HWA.
This was an period the place producers exercised absolute management over their groups and drivers, with Mercedes, BMW and Audi placing their total weight behind who they thought could be their finest guess for the championship.
This normally pressured different drivers of their line-ups to play a supporting function, leaving them with a bitter style of their mouth about their time within the collection.
The strategies utilized by producers to control the outcomes have been additionally controversial, however many additionally thought of it as half and parcel of Germany’s greatest championship.
Juncadella has now established himself as one of many prime GT drivers of his era, with an general victory in Spa 24 Hours, in addition to class wins in Daytona 24 Hours and Petit Le Mans.
#79 WeatherTech Racing Mercedes AMG GT3: Cooper MacNeil, Daniel Juncadella, Jules Gounon, Maro Engel and Frank Kelleher
Picture by: Richard Dole / Motorsport Photos
However the 33-year-old revealed that the beginning of his profession as knowledgeable driver was extremely robust, prompting him to hunt a sports activities psychologist to work on his confidence points.
“Since 2018, which is kind of late in my profession, I began working with a sports activities psychologist and focussed on this stuff,” he mentioned in a podcast hosted by fellow racers Laurens and Dries Vanthoor.
“That was an enormous turning level in my profession as a result of my profession has been a bit up and down in lots of, a few years. After these profitable years in F3, I made a decision to go the way in which of DTM and DTM additionally destroyed my profession in a approach with politics.
“I by no means actually understood why some choices have been made in someway and for 5 years I had no outcomes. You might be excellent, you are able to do good in lots of elements, but when the outcomes are usually not coming, it simply breaks you.
“After I began working with a sports activities psychologist, it modified my notion loads on the best way to take care of the insecurity.”
Juncadella gained the 2012 Euro Method 3 title as a Mercedes junior and was initially set to step as much as GP2 with Rapax the next yr.
Nonetheless, delays in fee from his sponsor Astana pressured him to desert these plans and settle for a suggestion from the Stuttgart-based producer to race within the DTM.
However throughout his time as a manufacturing facility Mercedes driver within the collection, which yielded only one victory and a finest end of fifteenth within the standings, Juncadella felt he was by no means going to be given a good likelihood to show his value.
Daniel Juncadella, Mercedes-AMG Staff HWA, Mercedes-AMG C63 DTM
The psychological toll of DTM was additionally such that he crashed a Method 1 automobile throughout an FP1 look on the 2014 Brazilian Grand Prix, forcing Power India’s common driver Sergio Perez to overlook a whole day’s working.
“For me, it destroyed my profession in a approach,” he reiterated. “I am actually completely happy the place I’m proper now however [in] these five-six years I actually, actually struggled.
“These have been additionally the times the place I used to be a reserve driver for Power India in Method 1 and I ended up crashing in a free follow as a result of mentally I used to be simply destroyed. I couldn’t take care of it.
“Now after I hear the phrase DTM, I am already panicking. I do not even need to hear it. I am unable to actually inform [from] BMW, Audi, Mercedes again within the day, what’s worse and what’s extra political.
“However with Mercedes it was exhausting. It was very exhausting as a result of I felt like I used to be by no means going to be given the prospect – and it is not likely true. For certain, you’ll get the prospect, I believed that myself after I was there. [But] when you’ve got a thought that’s simply detrimental, it is by no means going to go away.”
After grand prix winner Ralf Schumacher made a late resolution to step down from the DTM, Mercedes promoted Juncadella’s former F3 rival Pascal Wehrlein – one other one in every of its junior drivers – to the vacant seat at Mucke Motorsport.
This created a group of two promising younger abilities, however Juncadella revealed that Mercedes had already determined their destiny earlier than the beginning of the season.
“We had a group constructing day collectively someplace in Germany on a ship in a lake, along with the group proprietor, group supervisor and the engineers,” the Spaniard recalled.
Daniel Juncadella, Power India VJM07 Mercedes, climbs out of his automobile after hitting the barrier.
Picture by: Steven Tee / Motorsport Photos
“We get alongside slightly bit and that is simply earlier than the primary race weekend. Wehrlein simply did one take a look at however he was flying, he was tremendous fast. However they mentioned to us, ‘The goal for us this yr might be round P15, P14’.
“And we [Wehrlein and I] are taking a look at one another like, ‘what? What do you imply? I’ve simply gained F3, the child is in his second yr main F3. Why do we have to goal P14, P15?’. And it is out of 20 automobiles.”
Juncadella revealed an occasion the place Mercedes allegedly faked a low-fuel state of affairs to stop Wehrlein from finishing his quickest lap in qualifying, simply because it seemed just like the German would knock Gary Paffett out of This autumn.
“There was one race in Norisring which was unbelievable,” he mentioned. “Again within the day, DTM had this qualifying format, which was Q1, Q2, Q3, Q3, This autumn. Q3. There have been the highest 4 going ahead to This autumn.
“We made Q1, we made Q2. After which it is Q3 and it is 10 automobiles. Gary Paffett was within the hunt for the championship. It was nonetheless early days, just like the fourth race of the yr.
“I feel Paffett was P4 and Wehrlein was on a purple sector 2. They [Mercedes] opened the radio and mentioned ‘field, field, field, now we have no gas, you should field, we’re going to be disqualified’.
“He did not end the lap as a result of he was in all probability going to enter This autumn and drop Paffett to P5. In order that they boxed him and I feel he completed P5 and I used to be P8.”
Throughout the identical weekend, Juncadella was not directly instructed to remain behind race chief Paffett regardless of having a tyre benefit over the Briton.
This probably value Mercedes a victory within the DTM’s blue riband spherical, as each Paffett and Juncadella misplaced time and have been overtaken by different drivers later within the race.
Gary Paffett, Mercedes-AMG Staff ART, Mercedes-AMG C63 DTM
Picture by: Alexander Trienitz
Audi’s Mattias Ekstrom finally claimed victory however was later disqualified for the notorious watergate incident.
“[Paffett] was on the exhausting tyres as a result of they tousled the technique and I used to be catching him three tenths per lap,” Juncadella defined.
“Sooner or later I used to be on his ass. I opened the radio and I requested what can we do now? They mentioned to me to defend your team-mate. They could not actually say ‘keep behind’ as a result of there have been guidelines [against it]. In order that they mentioned, ‘shield your team-mate’. I seemed within the mirror and there was no person behind.
“I used to be simply driving behind pondering I might simply take away the radio, overtake the man, win my first DTM race ever, be a hero for in the present day, however within the long-term, it is not gonna repay.
“I might see the Audis, the BMWs beginning to come. Then [Edoardo] Mortara arrives, overtakes me they usually begin preventing like loopy. They hit a bit and Mortara performs it a bit soiled with Paffett and the following nook Paffett simply fully drills him – large shunt and [both] out of the race.
“I am simply sitting pondering, this man [Paffett], I’ve simply stayed behind for 20 laps and throwing away my win, and he simply shunted with the man [Mortara] as a result of he was pissed off at one thing.”
After Mercedes’ exit from the DTM after 2018, Juncadella spent one other season within the collection as a part of the brand new R-Motorsport Aston Martin enterprise. He returned to the collection with Mercedes in 2021 upon the adoption of GT3 guidelines, scoring a podium on the Nurburgring.
Now 33 years of age, Juncadella competes for TF Sport Corvette within the World Endurance Championship’s LGT3 class.
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Rachit Thukral
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Daniel Juncadella
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Author : Motorsports
Publish date : 2025-01-25 10:55:25
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