Edoardo Mortara slams Audi departure rumours
Edoardo Mortara has slammed rumours he will leave Audi for DTM rivals Mercedes in the off-season after a difficult 2013.
Mortara went into this season hoping to fight for the title with the Rosberg Audi squad, after ending 2012 as Audi’s most successful driver with two wins at Spielberg and Zandvoort.
However, 2013 did not go to plan for the Italian, and he ended the season 21st in the standings after having scored just three points all season.
Despite his trying season, Mortara, who has been backed by the Volkswagen Group since he ran with VW power from 2008 to 2010 in European Formula 3, insisted at the Hockenheim DTM finale he will not be leaving Audi in 2014.
He then went on to dismiss the Mercedes rumours as “stupid.”
“There were some stupid rumours in the summer that I was going to leave here,” Mortara told TouringCarTimes. “Yes, it’s been a tough season but what people really need to understand, is that I’ve been working with the Volkswagen group since 2008, since my Euro F3 times.
“We’ve had some great successes and in general, the years together have been positive.
“This is the first season that we’ve struggled, so one bad year will not make you forget five or six years of good years.
“I see no reason why I should leave because I’ve never said I wanted to go away.
“I can understand some rumours when they go on the internet, but I saw this in a newspaper. Then it became too much because it was based on nothing.
“As long as it stays rumours, like someone throwing something out there online, it’s fine, but I think to see it in print was a step too far.”