When DTM stars including Christian Vietoris, Maximilian Götz, Timo Glock, Marco Wittmann or Martin Tomczyk compete for points and trophies in the Motorsport Festival at the Lausitzring (3rd - 5th June), they will also be taking a trip down the memory lane. That's because the Lausitzring will simultaneously be hosting the third race weekend of the 2016 ADAC Formula 4, and many of the big names in today's DTM started out on their racing career in one or other of the junior formula series organised by the ADAC. This year, the highly successful youth programme run by the ADAC celebrates its 25th anniversary. Over the past quarter century, many talented youngsters have graduated from the ADAC formula series to the highest echelons of international motorsport. Indeed, all four of the current crop of German contestants in Formula 1 - Sebastian Vettel, Nico Rosberg, Nico Hülkenberg and Pascal Wehrlein - earned their spurs in the predecessor series to the modern ADAC Formula 4. Three DTM championship winners in the past five years started out in the ADAC Formula series: Pascal Wehrlein, Marco Wittmann and Martin Tomczyk.

"The support of the ADAC at youth level and especially in the single-seater racing format is extremely comprehensive and important," says Christian Vietoris (DEU, Mercedes). "I really benefited from the backing I received when I was competing in Formula BMW ADAC." Now 27 years of age, Vietoris made his DTM debut in May 2011 and has become one of the longer-established contestants. He took the first steps on his motorsport career in karting competitions and later in the formula racing series of the ADAC. "I'm of the opinion that German motor racing could not operate at this level without the ADAC," he adds.

Maximilian Götz (30, DEU, Mercedes) concurs. After a successful introduction to the sport in karting, he won the Formula BMW ADAC title in 2003, beating no less an opponent in the process than Sebastian Vettel, who has since gone on to become a four-time Formula 1 world champion and is patron to ADAC Formula 4. "That was a real highlight for me," says Götz, who clearly rates ADAC Formula 4 very highly. "I think, before you tackle a series such as Formula 3, you need to compete in a junior series like this. You learn a lot along the way, such as working together with a team and what it's like to race on major tracks. You also find out how expensive it is when things get broken on your car. The starting field is large and pretty much on a comparable level, which of course is a great recommendation for the platform. Every driver should start off here - you could say that it's a 'must'."

Timo Glock (34, DEU, BMW), Martin Tomczyk (34, DEU, BMW) and Marco Wittmann (26, DEU, BMW) all competed in forerunner series to ADAC Formula 4. The same goes for current Formula 1 driver Pascal Wehrlein (21, DEU) who, after two years spent in Formel ADAC and claiming the title in 2011, proceeded via the FIA Formula 3 European Championship to the DTM. He became DTM champion in 2015 and was subsequently recruited by the Manor Formula 1 outfit.

Wittmann won the DTM championship in 2014, while Glock is an ex-Formula 1 contestant. He drove for Jordan in the 2004 season, then returned for a longer stint in the premier class between 2008 and 2012. Since 2013, Glock has been a regular in the DTM, recently recording his third career victory in the touring car series at Spielberg in the fourth race of the current campaign. The person in the DTM paddock showing the keenest interest in ADAC Formula 4 during the Motorsport Festival at the Lausitzring will almost certainly be Timo Scheider. The two time DTM champion now manages his own outfit, Team Timo Scheider, and has been involved in the series since 2015. This year, he has three young drivers aiming to qualify for the grid. During the Formula 4 races, Scheider will be sharing the pit wall at the Lausitzring with another well-known former professional driver: ex-Formula 1 and DTM star Ralf Schumacher is joint manager with Gerhard Ungar, the former designer of the successful Mercedes-Benz DTM racing cars, of Team US Racing.

The ADAC High Speed Academy is staging six race weekends during the 2016 season in association with the ADAC GT Masters, plus one as a support series to the combined ADAC GT Masters and the DTM at the Lausitzring and one in the context of the TCR International Series at Oschersleben. Broadcasting partner SPORT1 is showing the races live on its free-to-air TV channel as well as online and on mobile devices.

ADAC Formula 4 has extended deals with other established partners into the 2016 season. The turbocharged engine for the Formula 4 racing car is supplied by Abarth, while the chassis comes from Italian manufacturer Tatuus. The Italian premium tyre manufacturer Pirelli - well known from Formula 1 - and wheel rim manufacturer Motec also contribute to the build of the ADAC Formula 4 cars. Two other series partners are suspension specialist Eibach and DEKRA, one of the world's leading vehicle inspection companies. Auto Zeitung continues to be the official media partner.