BMW Motorsport News – Issue 05/2020.

BMW teams and drivers are gradually returning to the racetrack after the break in action during the coronavirus pandemic. The schedules for race series all over the world have been amended, allowing members of the large BMW Motorsport family to get back to doing what they do best: challenging for points, victories and titles. We have summarised the action concisely and informatively for you in ‘BMW Motorsport News’, ensuring you are always kept up to speed.

IMSA Series: BMW Team RLL finishes in fourth and sixth place at the “season restart” in Daytona.

After the break of around five months, BMW Team RLL finished in fourth and sixth place in the GTLM class in the second race of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCars Championship (IMSA Series) season at the “Daytona International Speedway” (USA). Connor De Phillippi (USA) and Bruno Spengler (CAN) finished in fourth place in the #25 MOTUL BMW M8 GTE in the race lasting two hours and forty minutes. Closing driver De Phillippi crossed the finish line just 1.869 seconds off the podium and 30 seconds off the winning Corvette. John Edwards (USA) and Jesse Krohn (FIN) finished sixth in the sister car with number 24.

In the GTD class, Bill Auberlen and Robby Foley (both USA) in the #96 BMW M6 GT3 of Turner Motorsport finished in eighth place. Tyre damage prevented them getting a better result.

Round three of the 2020 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship will be held on Saturday, 18^th July at “Sebring International Raceway” (USA).

Quotes after the race at Daytona.

Connor De Phillippi (#25 MOTUL BMW M8 GTE, 4^th place): “The team maximized our performance, but we did not have the capability to go as long as the others on fuel. That forced us to make an extra pit stop and cost us a better finish.”

Bruno Spengler (#25 MOTUL BMW M8 GTE, 4^th place): “I enjoyed the opening stint of the race where I started with slick tires on a damp track. That was a lot of fun, but our promising start was limited by issues that kept Connor and me off the podium.”

John Edwards (#24 MOTUL BMW M8 GTE, 6^th place): “It was a disappointing day, especially after our success at the Rolex 24 in January. However, it was great to be back in the car and begin our return to racing. We’ll be back at Sebring in just two weeks ready to stand on the podium again.”

Jesse Krohn (#24 MOTUL BMW M8 GTE, 6^th place): “At first the race was looking good, but some unexpected issues came up that we need to address. We certainly have work to do, but overall we have a good package and we’ll be back up front.”

BMW SIM 120 Cup: Williams triumphs in Spa-Francorchamps .

Fourth race, fourth winner: In the BMW SIM 120 Cup race in Spa-Francorchamps on the iRacing platform, the Williams Esports team secured victory on Sunday. Agustin Canapino (ARG) and Sami-Matti Trogen (FIN) finished in first place in the virtual BMW M8 GTE with car number 86. Canapino seized the top spot with a late overtaking manoeuvre against his team-mate Martin Christensen (DEN), who finished in second place with Lasse Bak (DEN). The podium was completed by the VRS Coanda Simsport team: Mack Bakkum (NED) and Jeremy Bouteloup (FRA) finished in third place.

In addition to making both Canapino and Trogen 1,200 US dollars richer, their win also gives them tickets for the BMW SIM LIVE Event in Munich (GER), which is planned for the start of December. The race at the “Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps” was full of eSports drama. Pole-sitter Scott Andrews (USA) from Team G-Drive Racing Exima spun on the warm-up lap, but was able to work his way back up into fourth place in the final rankings alongside Maarten van Loozenoord (NED). There were also several thrilling overtaking manoeuvres and incidents during the course of the race. The next round of the BMW SIM 120 Cup will be held at Road Atlanta on 20^th September.