BMW Motorsport News - Issue 12/2018.

Whether in the DTM, the FIA World Endurance Championship, the IMSA WeatherTech 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. 

Australian GT Championship: BMW Team SRM celebrates podium.

Made-to-measure season opener for the BMW M6 GT3 and BMW Team SRM: At the first race in the Australian Endurance Championship at Bend Motorsport Park (AUS), team principal Steve Richards (NZL) and Michael Almond (AUS) finished in a superb third place. The duo battled their way through the field from sixth on the grid over the 78 laps, finishing only about ten seconds behind the winners.

Blancpain GT Series Asia: BMW Team Studie on the podium.

BMW Team Studie enjoyed a successful race debut with the new BMW M4 GT4. At the Sepang (MAS) Blancpain GT Series Asia season opener, Takayuki Kinoshita and Sunako Jukuchou (both JPN) finished second in race two of the weekend, which put them on the GT4 class podium. In the first race, the duo in the #81 BMW M4 GT4 finished in fourth. The sister car crossed the finish line in sixth and fifth places in the GT4 category.

International GT Open: Season start for BMW Team Teo Martín.
BMW Team Teo Martín is contesting the International GT Open with two BMW M6 GT3s once again for the 2018 season. At the opening weekend in Estoril (POR), Fran Rueda (ESP) and Andrés Saravia (GUA) narrowly missed out on the podium in the first race on Saturday when they finished in fourth place. The sister car, with Lourenço Beirão da Veiga (POR) and Juan Cruz Álvarez (ARG) at the wheel, crossed the finish line in ninth place. In the second race on Sunday, Beirão da Veiga and Álvarez finished in eighth place in the best-placed BMW M6 GT3.

FIA WEC: Tomczyk presents BMW Awards in Berlin.

On Wednesday, BMW WEC driver Martin Tomczyk (GER) was given a special honour: He was at Kraftwerk Berlin Mitte (GER) to present the prize in the “BMW i and i Performance” category at the BMW Awards presentation, which honours exceptional performances by BMW dealers in Germany in 2017. In his tribute to the winning company, AHAG Bochum, he underlined the parallels between commerce and motor racing. “We racing drivers always want to be quick and to come out on top. It goes without saying that that not only applies to the heroes in the cockpit, but also to the commercial heroes,” said Tomczyk, who drives the new BMW M8 GTE in the FIA World Endurance Championship in 2018. The event was presented by TV star Thomas Gottschalk and hosted by Peter van Binsbergen, Head of Sales and Marketing BMW Germany. Singer Max Giesinger thrilled the 300 guests with a surprise appearance.