DTM: Double podium for BMW Team RBM.
BMW Motorsport had a profitable DTM weekend at the Norisring (DE). In
the one-hour race on Sunday, Tom Blomqvist (GB) and Maxime Martin (BE)
celebrated a double podium for their BMW Team RBM with second and
third places respectively. BMW Team RMG driver Marco Wittmann (DE)
also regained the overall lead in the drivers’ championship at his
home event. The local hero finished in fourth place on Saturday and in
sixth place on Sunday. This saw him move up to the top of the
classification, with 75 points and a two-point lead over Edoardo
Mortara (IT). BMW defended their lead in the manufacturers’
championship, and now have 310 points to their name. Races seven and
eight of the 2016 DTM season were held on the street circuit in
Nürnberg. The next event is in three weeks (15th to 17th July) at the
dune circuit in Zandvoort (NL).
DTM: Bruno Spengler visits the BMW International Open.
The DTM weekend at the Norisring (DE) was not the only sporting event
at which BMW DTM driver Bruno Spengler (CA) could be seen in action
this week: the Canadian teed off in Wednesday’s Pro-Am tournament
ahead of the BMW International Open, the most prestigious professional
golf tournament in Germany. And Spengler proved to be an all-round
sportsman, impressing with his golf skills and forming part of the
winning team, alongside professional golfer Nicolas Colsaerts (BE),
presenter Annica Hansen (DE) and ex-footballer Karl-Heinz Pflipsen
(DE). For Spengler, this was a perfect way to prepare for the fourth
DTM race weekend of the season: “It was great fun to play at the BMW
International Open. You can obviously learn a lot from a top pro like
Nicolas Colsaerts. That atmosphere was great and the result was good
too. I find golf the perfect foil to motor racing.”
DTM: Celebrities take a spin in the BMW M4 DTM Race Taxi.
The Norisring (DE) is known as the ‘Franconian Monaco’ and, as at the
Grand Prix in the Mediterranean principality, many celebrities flocked
to Nuremberg to watch races seven and eight of the 2016 DTM season.
The celebrities, including comedian Oliver Pocher, met the eight BMW
DTM drivers in a relaxed atmosphere at a VIP event organised by ITR on
Saturday afternoon. Many of the celebrities also took the opportunity
to experience a few flying laps of the narrow street circuit in the
passenger seat of the BMW M4 DTM Race Taxi. They included actress
Mariella Ahrens, model Alena Gerber, Olympic luge champion Natalie
Geisenberger, the leader in the Red Bull Air Race World Championship,
Matthias Dolderer, and BMX rider Nadja Prieß, who will take part in
this year’s Olympic Games.
DTM: Musical guests visit BMW Motorsport.
There was an unusually musical feel at BMW Motorsport at the
Norisring (DE) on Thursday. Two appearances caught the attention of
visitors in the pit lane. Darko Popovtschak, violinist in the Munich
Symphony Orchestra, visited BMW Team Schnitzer. Complete with tails
and violin, Popovtschak posed alongside BMW DTM driver Martin Tomczyk
(DE) in front of the BMW M Performance Parts M4 DTM for a new PR
campaign for the Munich Symphony Orchestra. Popovtschak is a
knowledgeable motorsport enthusiast, and Tomczyk gave him an exclusive
glimpse behind the scenes of the DTM. In the next garage, the focus
was on pit stop training for BMW Team RMG; the tyre change on Marco
Wittmann’s (DE) Red Bull BMW M4 DTM was accompanied by hip-hop beats
and perfectly choreographed dancing from the ‘mechanics’. Not all of
them were members of the BMW Team RMG crew. Dancers from ‘Red Bull
Flying Steps’, multiple world breakdancing champions, had joined the
pit crew to film a spectacular video clip together with premium
partner Red Bull.
BMW Brand Ambassador: Alessandro Zanardi at the Goodwood
Festival of Speed.
BMW Brand Ambassador Alessandro Zanardi (IT) returned to the cockpit
of the BMW Z4 GT3 at the iconic Goodwood Festival of Speed in
Chichester (GB). The Italian thrilled fans in the BMW Z4 GT3 with the
Michel-Vaillant livery, with which he contested the 24 Hours of
Spa-Francorchamps (BE) alongside Timo Glock (DE) and Bruno Spengler
(CA) last year. “I really enjoyed being here in Goodwood. It was
fantastic to be involved in such a famous event, and to meet a lot of
good old friends from various different motorsports. And it goes
without saying that I also really enjoyed being back at the wheel of
our wonderful BMW Z4 GT3,” said Zanardi. He also sent a video message
from Goodwood to the Norisring, in which he wished all the BMW DTM
drivers all the best for the DTM races in Nuremberg. The BMW Group was
represented at this year’s festival in Goodwood with many BMW, MINI
and Rolls-Royce racing cars, as well as BMW Motorrad. BMW was also the
festival’s “Honoured Marque” this year – a fitting honour, as the
company celebrates its centenary.
VLN: Müller, Krohn and Bouveng share the cockpit of the BMW M6 GT3.
The first VLN race since the Nürburgring 24 Hours (DE) was a
rain-dominated affair. A wet track and poor visibility made the
four-hour race a major challenge for all involved – even for BMW works
driver Jörg Müller (DE), who lined up alongside BMW Motorsport Junior
Jesse Krohn (FI) and Victor Bouveng (SE) in the #36 Walkenhorst
Motorsport BMW M6 GT3. Müller is acting as mentor at all of the
outings of the BMW Motorsport Juniors in the BMW M6 GT3. The trio
finished fifth on Saturday, with victory going to Audi. Alexander Mies
(DE) and Michael Schrey (DE) remain the men to beat in the BMW M235i
Racing Cup. They won the fourth round of the VLN and remain unbeaten
in their class this season. Second place went to Michael Funke (DE) of
the Schirmer team. In third place, following a magnificent fightback
from the back of the field, were Rudi Adams (DE) and Thomas Jäger (AT)
in the ‘Eifelblitz’ car. In total, BMW teams claimed four class victories.
Blancpain GT Series: Four BMW M6 GT3s in action in Paul Ricard.
ROWE Racing, Boutsen Ginion Racing and the BMW Team Italia fielded a
total of four BMW M6 GT3 in Saturday’s 1000-kilometre race in Paul
Ricard (FR). The Boutsen Ginion Racing car ended the Blancpain
Endurance Cup race, which served as preparation for the 24 Hours of
Spa-Francorchamps (BE), in 20th place overall and eighth in the Pro-Am
Cup. BMW Team Italia came home 12th in the Pro-Am Cup. The two ROWE
Racing cars both failed to finish. Victory went to McLaren.