PressClub Global · Article.
BMW M6 GTLM and BMW M6 GT3 master the challenge of Daytona at their debut race.
Sun Jan 31 23:40:36 CET 2016 Press Release
Aged
Both the new BMW M6 GTLM and the BMW M6 GT3 proved their promising potentials in the very first round of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship: At the classic 24 Hours of Daytona (US), the number 25 BMW M6 GTLM crossed the line in fifth in the GTLM category. Bill Auberlen (US), Dirk Werner (DE), Augusto Farfus (BR) and Bruno Spengler (CA) shared the car over the course of their 721 racing laps.
Press Contact.
Ingo Lehbrink
BMW Group
Tel: +49-89-382-76003
Fax: +49-89-382-28567
send an e-mail
Author.
Ingo Lehbrink
BMW Group
This article in other PressClubs
Daytona (US), 31st January 2016. Both the new BMW M6 GTLM and
the BMW M6 GT3 proved their promising potentials in the very first
round of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship: At the classic
24 Hours of Daytona (US), the number 25 BMW M6 GTLM crossed the line
in fifth in the GTLM category. Bill Auberlen (US), Dirk Werner (DE),
Augusto Farfus (BR) and Bruno Spengler (CA) shared the car over the
course of their 721 racing laps.
In the GTD class, the number 97 Turner Motorsport BMW M6 GT3,
driven by Michael Marsal (US), Markus Palttala (FI), Maxime
Martin, (BE) and Jesse Krohn (FI), finished the debut race of BMW
Motorsport’s new GT3 challenger in sixth. The number 96 sister car
had dropped back early in the race due to technical problems,
ultimately finishing 17th in the GTD category.
The sunrise at 07:13hrs over the Daytona International
Speedway showed only one BMW M6 GTLM still in the Daytona 24
Hours. About four hours earlier, on lap 360, the number 100 BMW M6
GTLM, with Lucas Luhr (DE) behind the wheel, had a brake problem
in turn one. Luhr was unhurt, but the damage from the impact
forced the team to retire the car from the race. Luhr had shared
driving duties with John Edwards (US), Graham Rahal (US) and Kuno
Wittmer (CA).
The IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship is set to continue
on 19th March 2016 with another classic race, the 12 Hours of
Sebring (US).
Jens Marquardt (BMW Motorsport Director):
“After all these months of intensive development work,
countless kilometres of testing and all the passion brought in by
everyone at BMW Motorsport and in our teams to get our new GT race
cars ready, our goal was to finish the race in Daytona – and, if
possible, bring home some good results. Overall I’m happy with the
race debuts of the BMW M6 GTLM and the BMW M6 GT3. We knew that
the 24 Hours of Daytona would be a tough test right at the
beginning of the season. And this is exactly what we experienced
this weekend. Walking away from Daytona with P5 in the GTLM class
and P6 in the GTD category is a good result and a nice reward for
the whole squad. The start into our anniversary season on the
occasion of the 100th birthday of BMW definitely was a positive
one. With car number 100 we had to endure quite a scary moment.
Fortunately Lucas Luhr escaped from this accident without a
scratch. For the fans it was an extremely exciting and
entertaining race. Many different cars fought for the lead,
several manufacturers performed on a similar level. The IMSA
WeatherTech SportsCar Championship promises to be a real thriller
in 2016. We saw that the basis of our all-new car is very
promising. And I’m confident we will score some really good
results over the course of the season.”
Bobby Rahal (Team Principal, BMW Team RLL):
“You never know how you truly add up until you get to the
first race. The 100 car was having a really good race, so it was a
shame that we had a problem that you don’t see very often.
Unfortunately it took us out of the race. I think the performance
of the BMW M6 GTLM was quite good and the guys were doing a great
job. The same goes for the 25. It is a new car and I think just
finishing the race was kind of a victory in its own right. It is
naturally disappointing not to have won, but that was asking a lot
of this car on its maiden voyage. The Corvette is a well-proven
car, the Porsche is the same thing and I think we saw that today.
Given that the BMW M6 GTLM is a brand new car, with brand new
systems - everything – the fact that the 25 car made all 24 hours
without a lot of problems says a lot.”
Bill Auberlen (Number 25 BMW M6 GTLM, 5th place):
“The number 25 BMW M6 GTLM ran almost perfectly for 24 hours.
We missed a few kilometres per hour on straight-line speed to our
competitors, but that will be addressed. After a day like today we
can certainly hold our heads high.”
Dirk Werner (Number 25 BMW M6 GTLM, 5th place):
“In general I think everybody can be quite happy with our car.
We had little problems here and there, but not necessarily with
the car. The race was tough and sometimes we had to land back on
our feet after struggling a little bit. But now it is the end of
the race and all the engineers and mechanics kept the car in good
shape and we are good enough to fight for a podium. For the first
race for the BMW M6 GTLM I think we can be quite happy because we
had no major problems. I think all the testing paid off and I am
quite happy. Obviously this is a completely different track to the
other ten ones we race on in this series, so since the BMW M6 GTLM
is a new car we have to go to each race and start with a clean
sheet of paper, get our set up right and maybe the drivers will
have to adapt a little bit to the car on different tracks. But we
have a good group of people and I am confident everyone is pushing.”
Augusto Farfus (Number 25 BMW M6 GTLM, 5th place):
“I was very excited coming to this race as I had seen at the
Roar what the new BMW M6 GTLM could do. I felt it would be a
fantastic race car for Daytona and that proved to be the case. I
was also very happy to be the driver to bring the car across the
finish line. To finish a 24-hour race in a brand new car with no
major technical problems is a great achievement in itself. Okay,
we may lack top speed and this we need to pass other cars, but I
know BMW will work on that as this is just the start of the
project. I had some very intense stints and the one early in the
morning was like a double qualifying when I was trying to hang in
there with the Porsches and Corvettes.”
Bruno Spengler (Number 25 BMW M6 GTLM, 5th place):
“For the first 24 hours for the BMW M6 GTLM it was a good
experience and it was important to cover some kilometres and stay
on track. Unfortunately we miss a little bit of performance
compared to the opposition. But it is a young car and there are
still things to learn and things to do on it. The positive is that
we didn’t have any large technical issues and the car was running
well. That is positive for the future and we have to keep on
working and try to make the car even faster.”
Maxime Martin (Number 97 BMW M6 GT3, 6th place):
“We had quite a good race. There were no big issues or even
little mistakes. Unfortunately, we did not have the top speed of
our competitors. The BMW M6 GT3 definitely has potential. To
finish sixth in its very first race – a 24 hour race – is
excellent. In time I know the BMW M6 GT3 will be able to show all
of that potential.”
Jesse Krohn (Number 97 BMW M6 GT3, 6th place):
“Racing in Daytona has always been one of my dreams. It is one
of the biggest races in the world and I have grown up watching
these races. I have always wanted to be here and now I have had
the opportunity to come. The BMW M6 GT3 is quite good. It has a
lot of potential. It is the first outing for the car in race
conditions, so it has been impressive the way we have been able to
run with it. I am happy with the whole Turner Motorsport team and
the way they worked, how everything is organised and it is a real
pleasure to work with them.”
Lucas Luhr (Number 100 BMW M6 GTLM, DNF):
“There was a technical failure at the front right, my best guess is the brake disc. This made the bonnet go up, so I couldn’t see where I was going and hit the barriers. It’s a shame because we were running well and we were right there in the hunt. It is also a shame for all the guys with a new car that had such a good performance for the first time running and they don’t get rewarded.”