Formula BMW: BMW opens Performance Center in Bahrain.

BMW opens Perfomance Center in Bahrain.

Manama/Munich. The Middle East is about to add another chapter to its fledgling
motor sport history on 9th January 2005, when the BMW Performance Center
Bahrain throws open its gates for the first time at the Bahrain International
Circuit. More than 20 junior racing drivers from all over Asia will take part
in the three-day inaugural event at the Gulf region's most modern circuit - the
licence course and Scholarship Qualifying for Formula BMW Asia 2005.

The aspiring drivers, some as young as 15, will first be introduced to the
theoretical foundations of the art of motor racing at the Formula BMW Racing
Center Bahrain. They will then have an opportunity to put their freshly
acquired insights into practice in ten brand-new FB02 BMW Formula cars packing
140 bhp and a top speed of almost 230 km/h. Acting as instructors are former
racing drivers Paul Spooner and Mike Strotmann, director of the Formula BMW
Racing Center Valencia.

The BMW Performance Center in Bahrain is a new home not only for Formula BMW
but also for BMW Driver Training. Starting in spring of 2005, a variety of
training courses will be on offer to all-comers. The range of cars involved
extends from the BMW 1 Series to the BMW M3, and the safety training courses at
varying levels of difficulty will be held within the Performance Center as well
as on the race track.

The circuit to the south of the capital Manama was designed by German architect
Hermann Tilke. It took a mere 16 months from the official start of construction
in December 2002 to the inaugural race on 3rd April 2004 - the season's opener
of last year's Formula BMW Asia, which was held as part of the Formula One
Grand Prix support programme. Today the complex offers six circuit variants.
The Grand Prix Course, which this year again hosts Formula One and Formula BMW
on the first weekend in April, is 5.417 kilometres long.

"We are delighted to have won the Bahrain International Circuit as a partner of
the BMW Performance Center," says BMW Motorsport Director Mario Theissen. "The
race track is brand-new and boasts first-rate safety standards. The Gulf
region, moreover, offers good climatic conditions in winter as well."

Background:
Formula BMW is the world's leading entry-level class in Formula racing. In 2005
the series will be held in Germany, Britain, Asia and the USA. Up-and-coming
drivers as young as 15 years of age are given the opportunity of entering motor
racing with the high-tech, standard FB02 race car.

This racer has been seen on the grid since 2002 and has set standards
particularly on the safety technology front. A single-seater propelled by a 140
bhp BMW motorcycle engine up to 230 km/h, it exceeds by far the safety
requirements for its class. BMW Motorsport has developed the FORS Formula
Rescue Seat especially for Formula BMW, and the HANS safety system is also
mandatory.

In 2005, Formula BMW will be staged five times as part of the Formula One
support programme. All the series offer a multifaceted Education and Coaching
Programme as well as sponsorship for promising racing talents. The best-known
alumni of this talent hothouse are Formula One drivers Ralf Schumacher,
Christian Klien and Timo Glock.

BMW Motorsport Director Mario Theissen: "Formula BMW offers talented young
drivers more than just a car. In the Education and Coaching Programme we have
designed specially for them, they learn everything they need to know to hold
their own in the big wide world of motor racing. Formula BMW has shot out of
the blocks to become the top entry-level class for Formula racing worldwide."

Press Contact:
BMW Corporate Communications, Dr Claus Hecking,
Tel: +49 89 382 22998, Claus.Hecking@bmw.de.