Christian Vietoris chooses DTM instead of F1 test

Christian Vietoris was actually due to link up with the Lotus Renault GP team for this week's Young Driver Test in Abu Dhabi, but he has now pulled out. Instead, he will be spending Tuesday to Thursday taking the new DTM AMG Mercedes C Coupé out for the first time at the Monte Blanco circuit in Spain.

On the final race weekend of the DTM season at Hockenheim, Vietoris accepted the invitation by Renault team boss Eric Boullier to take an F1 test. "He offered me the chance, so of course I said yes," Vietoris revealed to Motorsport-Magazin.com at the time. "There were no promises about next year; it was simply a reward for the solid season that I've had."

However, Vietoris is more than happy to miss out on the F1 trial to be involved in the DTM testing with Mercedes and to secure a long-term future with the manufacturer. "For me, the DTM has priority," Vietoris told Motorsport-Magazin.com. The indications are that Vietoris will now be lining up for Mercedes once again in next year's DTM.