Di Resta starts sixth in Italyposted in DTM30 | 10 | 2010

BATHGATE'S PAUL di Resta, who leads the DTM Championship by three points, will start tomorrow's penultimate race at Adria in Italy from the third row of the grid. The 24-year-old Scot narrowly missed out on the top four shoot-out and will line his Mercedes-Benz up in sixth place alongside the Audi of Mike Rockenfeller.

Frustratingly for Di Resta his only rival for the championship, team-mate Bruno Spengler, starts second on the grid alongside another Mercedes driven by England's Gary Paffett.

"Obviously it's not ideal," Di Resta admitted today after clocking a best time of 1min 10.309secs in the third qualifying session on the 1.6-mile track near Venice. "Being so far back makes the start crucial and it's imperative I stay out of trouble on the first lap. There's a concern Gary and Bruno will drive away from the rest of the pack, so I have to make sure I have my best start of the season.

"I know though that I've got faster and faster with each session so the longer the race goes on tomorrow, the quicker I'm going to get. Ultimately I want to win the race, but my main priority is to finish ahead of Bruno."

Di Resta, who heads to Sao Paulo on Tuesday for the Formula One Brazilian Grand Prix in his role as Force India test and reserve driver, has won the last three DTM races.

The Scot has been imperious since the mid-season break amassing 46 points out of 50 with back-to-back wins at Brands Hatch, Oscherslaben and Hockenheim. Fellow Scot David Coulthard, the 13-time grand prix winner, starts tomorrow's race 16th and last.

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Jim McGill