Abt Sportsline

When Abt Sportsline entered the newly founded DTM in May 2000 with the self-developed Abt-Audi TT-R, few took the small private team from Kempten seriously. That changed abruptly in 2002: against the works teams of Mercedes-Benz and Opel, Laurent Aiello sensationally claimed the first title for the yellow car from the Allgäu region.

The nickname “die Äbte” (the abbots) was born in this early phase and has stuck with the team ever since. Behind the success stands a genuine family business: Hans-Jürgen Abt, whose own passion for motorsport traces back to his father Johann Abt, has led the outfit as team boss since its founding. Within a few years, the once-underestimated garage operation became Audi’s flagship team in the DTM.

From 2004, Abt Sportsline operated as an Audi works team and immediately delivered the next title with Mattias Ekström. In 2007, 2008 and 2009, the team claimed the only title hat-trick in DTM history to date, with Ekström and Timo Scheider winning three consecutive drivers’ championships. Even after the switch to the GT3 era from 2021, Abt Sportsline remained a front-runner with the Audi R8 LMS, coming close to further titles with René Rast (2022) and Kelvin van der Linde without quite sealing them.

The long partnership with Audi ended in late 2024 after 25 years and 78 joint race wins. Since 2025, Abt Sportsline has competed as a private team with the Lamborghini Huracán, bringing back Red Bull as a partner, which had already supported the team from 2002 to 2018. The brand switch marks the biggest chapter for the team since the end of the Class 1 era.

For the 2026 season, Abt Sportsline fields the driver pairing of Marco Mapelli and Luca Engstler. As the only team to have competed without interruption since the DTM’s relaunch in 2000, Abt Sportsline remains by far the most successful active team in the series and aims for further titles under its new flag.