Munich. The upcoming Indianapolis 8 Hour (USA) on
5th October (Race start: 18:15 CEST) serves as the season
finale for both the Intercontinental GT Challenge and the Fanatec GT
World Challenge America powered by AWS. BMW M Motorsport is in
contention for titles in both race series. Team WRT is competing
with two BMW M4 GT3s and six BMW M works drivers to secure the
driver and manufacturer titles in the Intercontinental GT Challenge.
One of the two cars features the design of Premium Technology
Partner Shell. Additionally, the simulation software provider Ansys
is participating for the first time as an Official Partner. In GT
World Challenge America, ST Racing and Turner Motorsport are still
in contention for the title in the Pro-Am class. Five BMW M4 GT3s
will be taking to the start for this event.
Team WRT enters the Indianapolis 8 Hour as the winner from the
previous year. In the #31 BMW M4 GT3 with the Shell design, Sheldon
van der Linde (RSA), Dries Vanthoor, and Charles Weerts (both BEL)
will take turns as they did at Bathurst (AUS) and Spa-Francorchamps
(BEL). Weerts, currently second in the Intercontinental GT Challenge
driver standings, is in the best position. He finished third on the
podium at both the 24h Nürburgring (GER) and the 24h
Spa-Francorchamps. Augusto Farfus (BRA), Dan Harper (GBR), and Max
Hesse (GER) will race in car #33. This trio, well-matched from the GT
World Challenge Europe, also have good chances in the driver
standings. BMW is in second place in the manufacturer standings ahead
of the season finale.
In GT World Challenge America, which finishes its season with the
8-hour race, five BMW M4 GT3s entered by customer teams will compete:
two from ST Racing and one each from Turner Motorsport, Random Vandals
Racing, and Flying Lizard Motorsports. Regular participants and BMW M
works drivers Neil Verhagen and Robby Foley (both USA) will be
present, competing against each other for the Pro-Am class title in
the cars of ST Racing and Turner Motorsport, along with Samantha Tan
(CAN) and Justin Rothberg (USA). Bill Auberlen (USA) will be at the
wheel of ST Racing’s Pro class car. At Indianapolis, BMW M works
drivers Philipp Eng (AUT), Connor De Phillippi (USA), and Nick Yelloly
(GBR) will join. Eng will reinforce ST Racing, De Phillippi will join
Random Vandals Racing, and Yelloly will be with Flying Lizard Motorsports.
Andreas Roos, Head of BMW M Motorsport: “We have the
best memories of the Indianapolis 8 Hours. Last year, and also in
2020, BMW M Motorsport was able to celebrate victory at the legendary
Motorsport Speedway. As the defending champions, Team WRT is once
again at the start with a very strong line-up of BMW M works drivers.
We have selected the driver pairings in such a way that we have the
best possible chance of influencing the title decision for the
driver's standings in the Intercontinental GT Challenge, in addition
to the manufacturer's standings. Furthermore, I am pleased to see an
impressive line-up of cars from our North American customer teams.
Five BMW M4 GT3s in the starting field of the GT World Challenge
America shows how popular our GT3 flagship is worldwide. It is an
honour for us to support these teams with BMW M works drivers at their
season highlight.”
Ansys becomes a new Official Partner of BMW M Motorsport.
For the first time at Indianapolis, Ansys joins the BMW M Motorsport
family as a new Official Partner. The collaboration with the leading
provider of simulation software extends far beyond a mere branding
partnership, as BMW M Motorsport relies on the technological expertise
of Ansys. Franciscus van Meel, CEO of BMW M GmbH, stated: “We are
delighted to welcome Ansys as a new Official Partner of BMW M
Motorsport. The collaboration with Ansys is crucial for our success in
motorsport and in the various racing series. As a leading provider of
simulation software, Ansys helps us to continuously optimise our cars
and stay at the forefront of competition. At BMW M Motorsport, we
already work closely with Ansys, especially in the area of drivetrain
design and construction. The flexibility and performance of Ansys
solutions enable us to quickly implement innovations and accelerate
our product development – from design to final validation.”
Walt Hearn, Senior Vice President of Worldwide Sales and Customer
Excellence at Ansys, said: “Each time BMW M Motorsport takes the track
is an opportunity for them to display their engineering prowess.
Before drivers push cars to the limits on the course, we help BMW M
Motorsport engineers test the boundaries of performance through
simulation, boosting the team's confidence in their race strategy.
Ansys is proud to sponsor BMW M Motorsport in their quest for victory
and technological innovation.”
