Mattias Ekström's bid for a second race win in DTM this season will begin from fifth place on the grid after qualifying in Zandvoort ahead of Sunday's touring cars competition.
Ekström, fifth in the drivers' championship, will have to overcome the defending champion Timo Scheider, with the Swede's Audi team-mate once again setting the fastest lap time of 1:31.590 minutes to confirm pole position in Holland.
"The car felt good," said Ekström. "In Q3 I went closer to the limit than in Q2 and I made two small mistakes in the process. That was enough not to drive a really perfect lap.”
British driver Gary Paffett, currently third in the drivers’ standings, will start the race from second place, with compatriot Oliver Jarvis, currently second in the overall standings, starting one place behind Ekström in sixth.
German Martin Tomczyk, meanwhile, had to settle for 10th place on the grid.
"The car was okay, but I didn’t get my act together. That’s a real shame," he said. "Maybe the beginning of the season is still taking its toll on me. A lot went wrong in the first few races. We’ve got to concentrate and work on this and start from scratch again.”
Ex-Formula One driver David Coulthard's Mercedes had a setback in qualifying which meant he had to settle for 17th place.
Coulthard said: “I’m not surprised about my result because this is a difficult track. I’m here for the first time with a touring car and I lack experience, so I made a few mistakes.”
The sixth DTM race of the season begins on Sunday at 14.00 (CEST).
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