BMW Motorsport News – Issue 27/14.

Whether in the DTM, the United 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.

DTM: BMW celebrates best result since 1992.
Four BMW drivers in the top four places – the last time that happened in the DTM was in Hockenheim in 1992. History repeated itself at the sixth round of the 2014 season: Marco Wittmann (DE) claimed his third win of the year for BMW Team RMG, followed by fellow BMW drivers Augusto Farfus (BR), Timo Glock (DE) and Martin Tomczyk (DE). BMW now leads the Drivers’, Team and Manufacturers’ Championships with four races remaining.

Three questions for… Marco Wittmann.

Marco, sixth race, third win. What did you make of this historic triumph for BMW?

Marco Wittmann: “The race was not as easy for me as it may have looked. I got away very badly at the start and lost a lot of places. That was definitely my mistake. After that, it was important for me to keep calm, hold my nerve and try to stay clear from any dangerous battles. Once the opening lap was over, the race basically started from scratch again for me.”

And you fought back brilliantly …

Wittmann: “Yes, I noticed very quickly that the leading group was not really able to pull away. Our lap times were very similar. Therefore, I knew that anything was still possible. We then had a very, very good pace with the prime tyres in the second stint, and the balance of the car was considerably better than on the options. The drive-through penalty for some of our rivals also allowed me to move up through the field. It was a great success for all of us. Four BMWs in the first four places is the best result since our comeback. I think we can all celebrate together tonight.”

Is it possible, in the cockpit, to enjoy the last few laps as race leader?

Wittmann: “You really have to remain focussed right through to the finish. I actually set the fastest lap time on primes on my penultimate lap. I tried to stay on the ball and would rather drive a little bit quicker than let my thoughts drift and lose concentration. Also, the clouds were starting to build over the circuit. We really didn’t need rain at the end of the race. But it stayed dry – and we achieved a fantastic success.”

Blancpain Sprint Series: Zanardi tests in Adria.
BMW works driver Alessandro Zanardi (IT) was in Adria (IT) last week for a day’s testing. The preparations for the coming race in the Blancpain Sprint Series focussed on cooling the cockpit of the BMW Z4 GT3. High temperatures represent an additional challenge for Zanardi when driving with his artificial legs. “Among other things, we put dry ice in the cooler I use to keep the cockpit cool,” Zanardi reported. “That was a vast improvement compared to normal ice. The test also presented me with a good opportunity to get behind the wheel of the car again during the break before the next race, and to complete a few laps in the BMW Z4 GT3.” The next round of the Blancpain Sprint Series will take place on 24th August at the Slovakia Ring near Bratislava (SK).

VLN: Klingmann makes history with record lap.
Jens Klingmann (DE) earned his place in the history books at the sixth round of the VLN Endurance Championship. The BMW works driver set a record lap time of 7:59.045 minutes at the wheel of the BMW Z4 GT3 fielded by BMW Sports Trophy Team Schubert. This made him the first driver ever to break the eight-minute mark on the VLN version of the Nürburgring-Nordschleife (DE) in a GT3 car. “What a lap. I am proud to be the first to break this magical barrier,” said a delighted Klingmann after his record-breaking achievement. Together with team-mates Dominik Baumann (AT), Thomas Jäger (AT) and Max Sandritter (DE), Klingmann finished runner-up at the 37th RCM DMV Grenzlandrennen. Fourth place went to Henry Walkenhorst (DE), Ralf Oeverhaus (DE) and Peter Posavac (DE) in the Walkenhorst Motorsport team’s BMW Z4 GT3. Rolf Derscheid (DE) and Michael Flehmer (DE) won the sixth race of the season in the V4 class at the wheel of their BMW 325i, and defended their overall lead in the VLN in doing so. In total, BMW drivers claimed six class victories.

BMW M235i Racing Cup: “Eifelblitz” wins to make up ground.
Max Partl (DE) and Jörg Weidinger (DE) of the Scheid-Partl Motorsport team dominated proceedings on their way to victory at the sixth round of the BMW M235i Racing Cup, which was held within the framework of the VLN Endurance Championship. After four hours of racing, the “Eifelblitz” (Eifel Lightning) came home 1:40.389 minutes ahead of Friedhelm Mihm (DE) and Heiko Eichenberg (DE) of the Sorg Rennsport team. Third place went to Guido Wirtz (DE), Christopher Rink (DE) and Oleg Kvitka (RU) of Adrenalin Motorsport. Overall leaders Daniel Zils (DE), Norbert Fischer (DE) and Uwe Ebertz (DE) crashed out early on in the race and left empty-handed. This allowed Partl and Weidinger to close the gap in the Drivers’ Championship. In total, 13 BMW M235i Racings competed in the 37th RCM DMV Grenzlandrennen.

VLN: Musical meets racing.
“Steam-powered through the Green Hell” – this was the motto behind a special campaign from Bonk Motorsport this weekend at the Nürburgring-Nordschleife (DE). The team is cooperating with the Neunkirchen musical project and did a bit of advertising for the fantasy musical “Steam” at the sixth round of the VLN Endurance Championship. The cooperation was made possible by regular Bonk Motorsport driver Axel Burghardt (DE), who is a patron of the musical project. A number of members of the cast were at the circuit in the Eifel for the race, where they presented their latest production. The Bonk Motorsport BMW 325i also raced in the “Steam” colours. Burghardt and his team-mates ended the race in fourth place in the V4 class.