Mitch Evans to test in DTM

Future bright for Mitch Evans, with second high-profile test

New Zealand GP2 driver Mitch Evans has been confirmed as one of a selection of young and talented drivers to sit a test in one of Audi’s Deutschland Tourenwagen Masters (DTM) RS 5 racers later this week at Jerez, in Spain.

The fomer GP3 champion and current GP2 front-runner is one of six drivers who will take part in the test hosted by Audi Sport — Matthew Brabham, Arthur Pic, Antonio Giovinazzi, Alex Palou, and Ben Hanley the other five hopefuls selected.

Based in Germany and travelling all over Europe, the DTM series is, along with the V8 Supercars championship, one of the world’s premier touring-car categories — housing a number of established international drivers, as well as factory support from BMW, Mercedes-Benz, and Audi.

Evans wouldn’t be the first Kiwi to break into the class, with Tom Blomqvist making his DTM debut in 2015 — claiming his first race win earlier this year.

As Formula 1 becomes a less-achievable goal for aspiring racers, interest in touring cars and sports cars has risen. Photo / GP2 Media

While Evans has had Formula 1 in his periphery for most of his career, the 21-year-old’s next career step looks set to be towards either touring cars or sports cars, following his test of Porsche’s Le Mans and WEC–winning 919 Hypbrid LMP1 car recently.

Audi and Porsche, both owned by Volkswagen Group, announced that they would be scaling back their LMP1 Le Mans campaigns for 2016 — from three cars each to two. This is likely to be a product of the recent scandals involving Volkswagen.

The news comes as the 2015 GP2 season wrapped itself up at Abu Dhabi, Evans ending the season fifth in the standings, despite a luckless opening half of the championship.

The final race of the GP2 season was cancelled after a large crash prompted lengthy repairs to two of Abu Dhabi’s barriers. You can view the crash below: