The opening race at the north-east German venue on 25 May falls on the same day as the two semi-finals for the Ice Hockey World Championship, which are also being broadcast by DTM’s German broadcast partner ProSieben.
As such, a decision has been made to deviate from the DTM’s standard 1:30pm kick-off time, with the start of the race pushed back until 5pm.
This means that the first Lausitzring race can now be shown in full in the DTM’s home market in Germany, bookended by the two semi-final ice hockey matches taking place just across the border in the Czech Republic.
"We were looking for a solution because there is a clash with the Ice Hockey World Championship at the Lausitzring on Saturday," explained Alexander Wolffing, Head of Service at ProSieben’s online service Ran.
"That would have easily clashed with the DTM race if we had kept the classic times. That's why we will start the DTM race on Saturday at 5pm, directly after the [first] ice hockey semi-final.
"Of course, we hope that the German team will be in the semi-final, just like last year, and that we can boost the DTM with the corresponding coverage.
"We will broadcast qualifying live on ProSieben in the usual slot [of the DTM race] at 13:30."
Source: Autosport