Essentially, DTM was growing at quite a rapid rate performance-wise, so the FIA spotted the chance to take the Class 1 formula international. At the end of the second season, when costs had got absolutely ridiculous, and development was getting out of hand, Alfa Romeo realised that half the markets the series was trying to tap into were completely useless for the brand. When they pulled the plug, Opel did too (realising exactly the same thing), which left a lonely Mercedes. The series was duly canned, and then DTM took 4 years to actually recover again, since so much faith had been lost from the previous sham.
Super GT and DTM are incompatible by nature. One markets itself as a prototype-GT series, the other one a touring car series. It doesn't matter how much you unify the cars, you're essentially limiting the potential of one and turning the other into something it completely isn't. Both series will lose their essence. Aside from being a marketing disaster and completely devoid of common sense, you're going to get new DTM teams turning up in GT500 and pulling the plug after a few races because they're lashing money at a racing formula they're about 20 years behind the other teams on, and they have absolutely no tyre data for the cars and are going to be way off the pace. Those teams are going to be few and far between, even if we presume the main BMW/Audi/Mercedes GT300 teams field a car each as programme extensions. Conversely, nobody's going to take a Honda NSX, Nissan GT-R or the like to Germany, since supercars aren't fit for purpose in a touring car marketing scenario. If one team dives in for some reason, it's going to be for a shed-load of money (the only reason you'd do it is just to be 'different'), and with zero manufacturer support because it's an empty marketing opportunity. Let's not forget the Class 1 is completely the opposite of the "money saving" formula that gave DTM a new lease of life.
Essentially, it's going to be a one-way system, an expensive one at that, which will bear little fruit even in a good scenario. It's all basically a big show for nothing, and one that poses a detrimental threat to several aspects of both series. In the worst case scenario, both series will try and take the new brand appeal concept and take both series to places they don't have a market in, and both series could end up on their deathbeds.
Class 1 - prove me wrong. I would love to see a nice manufacturer mix in GT500, but this is the worst way possible to go about it. If major complications don't make themselves apparent in the long run, then the formula has beaten every odd stacked against it.
. That opening battle in GT300 had me on the edge of my seat, trying to will that BMW past those big Mercs.
