IWSC season enters the crucial phase: BMW Team RLL competes at Virginia International Raceway.

Munich (DE), 24th August 2016. The ninth race of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship (IWSC) season will be held this weekend: At the "Virginia International Raceway" (US) on the east coast of the US, team principal Bobby Rahal’s (US) BMW Team RLL will do battle for championship points once again. The race at VIR is a special event as it is the only IWSC race of the season to feature only GT class cars.

With a third place finish by the number 100 BMW M6 GTLM of John Edwards (US) and Lucas Luhr (DE) at the last round at Road America (US) and a recent one-day test at the 3.27-mile, 18-turn permanent road course, located in Alton (US), Virginia, the team feels it is in a strong position for the weekend’s two-hour and forty-minute race.

With eight rounds completed and three remaining in the season, Bill Auberlen (US) and Dirk Werner (DE), with two podium finishes to their credit driving the number 25 BMW M6 GTLM, stand fifth in the GTLM driver points. Luhr and Edwards stand eighth. BMW stands fourth in Manufacturer the points.

The ninth race of this year’s IWSC season at VIR takes the green flag at 13:35 p.m. ET Sunday, 28th August.

Bobby Rahal (Team Principal, BMW Team RLL):

“To be honest we haven’t had the kind of success we have wanted over the years at VIR. Clearly we have been fast on occasion. We’ve qualified reasonably well there, but, if I remember correctly, I feel like we have been mugged there a few times in traffic by some of our competitors. The circuit should fit the BMW M6 GTLM a bit better than the BMW Z4 GTLM. Our car likes fast corners and there are plenty of those at VIR. There is also a long straightaway and I think we should be reasonably competitive on that as well.  We had a test there not too long ago so I think we are prepared. It's just a matter of having a trouble free event.”

Bill Auberlen (Number 25 BMW M6 GTLM):

“We recently completed a test at VIR and I’m glad we did, as we were able to get time on the new pavement and learn quite a few things. The circuit had lost a ton of grip and we had to make some wholesale changes. We are on the way to having a very good package for the race.”

Dirk Werner (Number 25 BMW M6 GTLM):

“VIR is a track that I enjoy driving. My first win in American road racing happened there in 2007. I am looking forward to this event and, of course, to seeing the BMW Team RLL boys again. And, after a couple of difficult weekends, I am highly motivated and want to push from the first practice to get a good start into the weekend.”

John Edwards (Number 100 BMW M6 GTLM):

“VIR is a very cool circuit and the new pavement could make things tricky, but the information gained at our test may give us a bit of an edge. Our podium at Road America certainly has put a bit of wind back in our sails, so hopefully Lucas and I can finish the season strongly.”

Lucas Luhr (Number 100 BMW M6 GTLM):

“VIR is another superfast old school track that I really like a lot. I still look for the Oak tree every now and then! We have a GT only race, so for a change the battle for honours in the GTLM class is also for an overall race position. The podium we scored at Road America showed that when everything comes together we have the pace to fight for victory, and you can be certain that our plan as usual is to fight as hard as we can.”