Whether in the DTM, the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar
Championship, or countless other championships: Week after week BMW
teams and drivers around the world do battle for points, victories
and titles. Away from the track too, members of the large BMW
Motorsport family around the world are also creating headlines. The
“BMW Motorsport News” allows us to regularly summarise all the
action for you in a compact and informative manner. This way, you
are always up to speed
.
ADAC GT Masters: MRS GT-Racing best-placed BMW team in Most.
Following the spectacular start to the season at Oschersleben (GER) a
fortnight ago, it was the turn of Autodrom Most (CZE) to host races
three and four of this season’s ADAC GT Maters on Saturday and Sunday.
The best-placed BMW drivers in the two races were Jens Klingmann (GER)
and Christopher Zöchling (AUT). They finished fifth and tenth in the
#14 BMW M6 GT3, run by the MRS GT-Racing team. “We are happy with the
weekend, as it is a considerable improvement on the opening round at
Oschersleben,” said Klingmann. “We started very strongly with third
place in qualifying on Saturday. Unfortunately, we are lacking a
little pace in the race compared to the opposition. Despite this, the
basic set-up at Most was better for us than at Oschersleben, as the
track suits our car better, thanks to the intermediate and quick
corners. The way things are working with the team and with my fellow
driver Christopher Zöchling is good. I am confident ahead of the next race.”
The outing at Most was to prove a difficult one for BMW Team
Schnitzer. BMW works driver Timo Scheider (GER) and BMW Motorsport
Junior Mikkel Jensen (DEN) finished sixth in Saturday’s opening race
which also meant third place and a spot on the podium in the Junior
competition. The #42 BMW M6 GT3 duo then had to settle for
21st place in race two. “It is frustrating not to have got
more out of this weekend,” said Jensen. “I could have done better in
qualifying on Saturday. With a better grid position, we could
definitely have been looking at a podium finish. However, I am
learning something every weekend. I like my team and my team-mates. We
have a lot of fun and work very well together. I am confident that the
results will come.”
Dennis Marschall (GER) and Victor Bouveng (SWE) had a miserable
weekend. They had an issue in qualifying which prevented them starting
Saturday’s race. Marschall and Bouveng then had to retire early in
Sunday’s race. The ADAC GT Masters now takes a short break in May,
before being back in action at the Red Bull Ring (AUT) on
9th and 10th June.
ABB FIA Formula E Championship: Difficult weekend in Paris for
MSAD Andretti Formula E.
The race weekend in Paris, and round eight of the FIA Formula E
Championship, could have gone better for MSAD Andretti Formula E.
Neither António Félix da Costa (POR) nor Tom Blomqvist (GBR) finished
the race in the French capital. “Unfortunately, I had a technical
problem which hindered me when braking. As such, I had to call it a
day,” said Félix da Costa. “It is a shame, as the race day actually
began very promisingly for me and my team.” Félix da Costa had
produced his best qualifying of the season and started the race from
fifth on the grid in the #28 Andretti ATEC-003. “To start form the
top-five was a very positive qualifying result. It shows that we have
done a good job as a team,” said Félix da Costa. The #27 car, with
Blomqvist at the wheel, was damaged in an incident on lap one. That
put paid to any chances of a good result and the Brit was also forced
to retire. Next stop for the Formula E circus is Berlin (GER) for the
Berlin E-Prix on 19th May.
Pirelli World Challenge: BMW teams win in Virginia.
The Pirelli World Challenge race weekend at the Virginia
International Raceway (USA) began with a host of successes for BMW
teams. Three BMW M4 GT4s made it onto the podium in the GTS class for
amateurs in Saturday’s race. Toby Grahovec and Chris Ohmacht (both
USA) of the Classic BMW team finished ahead of Henry Schmitt and Greg
Liefooghe (both USA) of the Stephen Cameron Racing team, as well as
Randy Mueller and Michael Camus (both USA) of Epic Motorsports.
Grahovec and Ohmacht came home fourth overall. In the TC race, it was
Johan Schwartz (USA) of Rooster Hall Racing who triumphed in the BMW
M235i Racing. Karl Wittmer (CAN) also made it onto the podium in third
place. Sunday’s races for both classes took place late on Sunday
evening in Central European Time.
Italian GT: BMW M6 GT3 on the podium at season-opener.
This season’s Italian GT Championship began with a podium finish for
the BMW Padova team at Imola (ITA). Stefano Comandini and Alberto
Cerqui (both ITA) came home third in the #15 BMW M6 GT3 in Saturday’s
race. The duo failed to finish Sunday’s second race.
ESET V4 Cup: Season-opener at the Hungaroring.
This season’s ESET V4 Cup kicked off with action aplenty at the
Hungaroring (HUN) this weekend. The BMW M6 GT3 twice finished fourth,
narrowly missing out on a spot on the podium. Jakub Kubas (SVK) of the
Racing Trevor team came home fourth in the endurance race. In the
second sprint race on Sunday, Jakub Knoll (CZE) also finished fourth
for the Šenkýř Motorsport team.
Alessandro Zanardi: New BMW M5 for the BMW Brand Ambassador.
BMW Brand Ambassador Alessandro Zanardi (ITA) is now the proud owner
of a new BMW M5 (combined consumption: 10.5 l/100 km; combined CO2
emissions: 241 g/km*). Sergio Solero, President and CEO BMW Italia,
presented him with the car at the start of the BMW Driving Experience
season at Vallelunga (ITA). Zanardi’s BMW M5 in Frozen Dark Silver not
only features a lot of special BMW M equipment, but has also been
modified to meet his particular needs. Zanardi is able to brake using
a brake lever on the steering wheel. Acceleration is also done by
hand, using an innovative wireless Bluetooth solution, developed by
Fiadel Italiana. This system allows the driver to apply the perfect
amount of acceleration by hand, whilst maintaining perfect control of
the steering wheel. The lever, which is operated using the thumb,
accurately reproduces the pressure on the accelerator pedal. Zanardi
could not resist taking his new BMW M5 out for a spin on the track at
Vallelunga. “Driving the BMW M5 is extraordinary. Not only because of
its speed, but also because you feel at one with the track,” said
Zanardi. “Every time I get the chance to try out a BMW M car, I think
that they have reached the pinnacle of perfection. However, it is
clear to me that BMW always manages to raise the bar in the
development of perfect cars.” Zanardi now heads to Belgium, where the
four-time Paralympic champion and ten-time paracycling world champion
will take part in the Paracycling World Cup in Ostend.
*The consumption and CO2 emission figures are provisional and were
calculated based on the EU test cycle, depending on the tyre format.