One win and one podium finish was all factory Aston Martin driver Nicki Thiim could achieve in 36 DTM races with Lamborghini.
Aston Martin had released Thiim to race for another brand in 2022, 2024 and 2025, but he struggled to get to grips with the Lamborghini Huracan GT3.
As he prepares to finally represent his employer in a Vantage GT3 this year, Thiim looks back at what was an incredibly tough stint in the DTM in Lamborghini machinery.
"My head is still exploding about that because obviously, as a racing driver, you want to be competitive all the time and you can't imagine how many sleepless nights I had because of that car," he said.
It didn't help that Lamborghini ace Mirko Bortolotti was Thiim's team-mate at SSR in 2024 and again at Abt last year.
"I probably competed with the best guy in that car, with Mirko, learned a lot from him and obviously tried to take as much as I could," he said.
"I knew already from [the] beginning that I would already be on the back foot. Obviously, politically, you will do like that, especially the first year, but that's a different story.
"It was just a very specific car to drive. It's hard to give you something."
Thiim’s first DTM attempt with Lamborghini did not last long, because after just two disappointing weekends in 2022 he split from the T3 Motorsport team, which later filed for insolvency. At the time there were rumours that the Huracan supplied by Lamborghini was in poor condition — and it was also said that the team was unhappy with the engine performance, according to what could be heard in the paddock back then.
But things did not run smoothly for Thiim with the Huracan afterwards either: in 2024, he finished 13th in the overall standings in the SSR Lamborghini and scored his only DTM victory at the Norisring, while Bortolotti became champion. In 2025, he managed only 18th place, although his third-place finish in Zandvoort at least marked Abt’s best result of the season.
"You really have to spend every weekend in the car, like all the other guys, to really be able to pull out those one, two, three tenths that you really [need to] go from here to up here, especially in the DTM," he said.
Thiim on adapting: “If you have to think, you’re already too slow”
Thiim had to deal with the mid-engined Lamborghini in the DTM, while he was driving the Aston Martin Vantage GT3 — which uses a front-mid-engine concept — in all his other races. On top of that, the Huracan’s 5.2-litre naturally-aspirated V10 lacks torque, which doesn’t make things any easier.
"If it doesn't come with instinct, if you have to think in a race car, you're already too slow," he said. "That was definitely my problem with the Lambo."
'I've driven front-wheel-driven cars, four-wheel-driven cars, everything from Cup to Class 1s. Normally, I don't have the biggest problem to change, but again, DTM is so detailed," he said, referring to the DTM's one-driver-per-car format.
Thiim disappointed after 2025: “A horror season for all of us”
Nevertheless, Thiim is grateful to SSR boss Stefan Schlund and the Abt team for giving him the opportunity to race in the DTM, especially as both teams could also have opted for factory drivers.
In particular with Abt, it was clear to Thiim “that I would take such a chance if it presented itself', even though the team endured the weakest season in its DTM history in 2025.
"It was a horrible season for all of us," he admitted. "But again, still a lot of love and respect for what we tried to do last year, even though it was tough."
Finally equal weapons in 2026? “The car fits like a glove”
Thiim's homecoming, however, should change everything for him.
"With the Aston, it is really home" described Thiim, who has been driving for the British brand for 10 years. “We've proven the car in endurance races. You just sit in and it fits like a glove. That's where I feel comfortable, like all the other drivers on the grid."
For that reason, Thiim believes "this year is the first time where really everyone has the same playground to go into."
However, the Dane would not want to miss the difficult experience of the past few years.
"At the end of the day, it really only made me stronger. Now, I'm just looking forward to really go out there.
There's absolutely zero excuses now to do anything wrong. Not so much more to say," he concluded.
