• DTM championship

Paul di Resta bows out with DTM title

Paul Di Resta celebrates after winning the DTM championship © Sutton Images

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Paul di Resta secured the DTM championship after finishing second behind Mercedes team-mate Gary Paffett in the final race of the season in Shanghai. If, as expected, di Resta leaves DTM to take a seat on the Force India team, he will have signed off in style.

Although he went into the race three points behind championship leader Bruno Spengler, di Resta had a huge advantage in that Spengler had to start at the back of the field after crashing in qualifying, while di Resta was at the front. While Spengler mounted a gutsy challenge, he struggled with understeer and was never able to carve his way through the field and eventually finished back down the field.

Paffett was in with an outside chance of the title, but di Resta drove a calculated race, slotting in behind his team-mate and avoiding trouble. The end came early after Mike Rockenfeller and Susie Stoddart were involved in a first-corner incident that blocked the track and brought out the red flags.

"This smile won't be off my face for a long time," di Resta said. "I would have liked for more family members to be here to celebrate with me. But now, I will celebrate with the team. Today, it was more about the title rather than victory in the race. That has worked out."

"I look back to a good season," Spengler said. "However, I made a mistake in qualifying which almost decided the championship already before the race. I suffered from understeer today which was probably a consequence of my accidents on Friday and Saturday."

© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.