Whether in the DTM, the FIA World Endurance Championship, the
IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, the ABB FIA Formula E
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: The BMW M6 GT3 wins at the Red Bull Ring.
Victory for the BMW M6 GT3 at the Red Bull Ring: Jens Klingmann (GER)
and Nicolai Sylvest (DAN) won the Saturday race in the ADAC GT
Masters. The duo in the #14 car, run by the MRS GT-Racing team,
crossed the finish line first after 40 laps of racing. This was the
first success of the season for the BMW M6 GT3 in the ADAC GT Masters.
In qualifying, Sylvest had secured pole position for the BMW M6 GT3
with a time of 1:28.539 minutes. The lead changed hands several times
during the event but, with roughly ten minutes remaining, the Danish
driver set a lap time that was simply too good for the opposition.
Klingmann and Sylvest were also unbeatable in the race itself, leading
from start to finish. On Sunday, Klingmann/Sylvest qualified fifth for
the second race of the weekend. They then gained one position to
finish the race in fourth place. The next two races in the ADAC GT
Masters will take place on 10thand 11thAugust at
Zandvoort (NED).
ADAC GT4 Germany: Victory for the BMW M4 GT4.
The Red Bull Ring (AUT) also proved to be a happy hunting ground for
the BMW M4 GT4. Michael Schrey (GER) and Thomas Jäger (AUT) won
Saturday’s race at the Austrian circuit. After 37 laps, they took the
chequered flag in the #2 BMW M4 GT4, run by the Hofor Racing by Bonk
Motorsport team. In total, four BMW M4 GT4s finished in the top five.
Stephan Grotstollen and Georg Braun (both GER, MRS Besagroup Racing
Team) finished third to claim a spot on the podium. Fourth and fifth
places also went the way of the BMW M4 GT4. Claudia Hürtgen (GER) and
Michael Fischer (AUT, Hofor Racing by Bonk Motorsport) came home ahead
of Marius Zug (GER) and Gabriele Piana (ITA, RN Vision STS Racing
Team). Both pairs of drivers had to start from the back of the field.
The BMW M4 GT4 had taken full advantage of its strengths in
qualifying. Three of the first four places on the grid were occupied
by BMW race cars. The duo of Thomas Tekaat (GER) and Franjo Kovac
(CRO) were very unlucky; they started from pole position in the MRS
Besagroup Racing BMW M4 GT4, but dropped back during the race and
eventually had to settle for 13thplace.
The BMW M4 GT4 finished on the podium again in race two at Spielberg
(AUT). The best-placed BMW drivers were Hürtgen and Fischer in second.
They were followed in fourth place by Piana and Zug. Sixth place went
to Grotstollen and Braun. The next ADAC GT4 Germany event takes place
from 9thto 11thAugust at Circuit Zandvoort (NED).
Blancpain GT World Challenge America: BMW Power at Sonoma.
Fans at Sonoma (USA) were treated to a feast of racing action this
weekend. The GT4 America Sprint, GT4 American SprintX, GT4 West, and
TC America series each held two races on the support programme for the
Blancpain GT World Challenge America. BMW Customer Racing teams
enjoyed great success. Eleven BMW cars took the start in TC America
and pulled off a sensational top-ten lock-out. Steve Streimer (USA,
Rooster Hall Racing) in the #81 BMW M240i Racing was joined on the
podium by Toby Grahovec (USA, Classic BMW) in the #26 car and Robert
Nimkoff (USA, Auto Technic Racing) in the #20 BMW M240i Racing.
The opening race in the GT4 SprintX series saw Sean Quinlan and
Gregory Liefooghe (both USA) take victory in both the Pro-Am class and
the overall classification in the #19 BMW M4 GT4 run by the Stephen
Cameron Racing team. In the Am class, Kris Wilson and John Allen (both
USA, Auto Technic Racing) finished runner-up in the #16 car. The
fastest laps in both classes also went to the two BMW duos. Jon Miller
and Harry Gottsacker (both USA) also celebrated a second place. They
finished runner-up in the Pro-Am category in GT4 West at the wheel of
the #28 BMW M4 GT4, run by ST Racing. In the GT4 Sprint series, a
total of four top-ten finishes went to BMW. In the Pro class, Toby
Grahovec (USA) finished eighth in race one in the #26 BMW M4 GT4. In
the Am class, Henry Schmitt (USA, Stephen Cameron Racing), Dmitri
Novikov (RUS, Rearden Racing) and Marko Radisic (USA, Precision
Driving Tech) came home seventh, ninth and tenth.
In the Pro-Am category of the Blancpain GT World Challenge America,
Schmitt and his team-mate Liefooghe again finished seventh. The duo
alternated at the wheel of the #87 Stephen Cameron Racing BMW M6 GT3.
The Sunday races in all five series had not been completed by the
editorial deadline.
W Series: Visser on the podium as runner-up at Misano.
Beitske Visser (NED) put on another impressive display in the third
race of this season’s W Series, which was held on the same bill as the
DTM at Misano (ITA). After her victory at Zolder (BEL) three weeks
ago, the BMW Motorsport Junior finished runner-up after a hard-fought
battle with eventual winner Jamie Chadwick (GBR). In doing so, she
strengthened her grip on second place in the overall standings. Visser
now has 55 points to her name, 20 more than the third-placed driver
and 13 points behind championship leader Chadwick. The fourth race of
the season will take place at the Norisring (GER) on 6thJuly.
British GT Championship: Tough weekend in Silverstone.
The Century Motorsport team endured a difficult race weekend in the
British GT Championship at the ‘Home of British Motor Racing’ – the
iconic Silverstone (GBR) circuit. In the GT4S class, Angus Fender and
Andrew Gordon-Colebrooke (both GBR) finished fourth in the #43 BMW M4
GT4, narrowly missing out on a place on the podium. The #42 car came
home tenth. The two BMW M6 GT3s, also run by Century Motorsport,
failed to finish the race on Sunday.