FORMULA BMW AMERICAS ANNOUNCES 2009 SCHEDULE

Formula BMW Americas announced today five race weekends as part of the
Championship's 2009 schedule. Confirmed are four events in North America with
the American Le Mans Series to support the return of the BMW M3 to ALMS
competition. For a second consecutive year, the season will end at the Brazilian
Grand Prix.

Formula BMW Americas will join the ALMS at Miller Motorsports Park, in Tooele,
Utah, on May 15 - 17; Lime Rock Park, in Lakeville, Conn., on July 17-18; Road
America, in Elkhart Lake, Wis., on Aug. 14-16; and Mosport International
Raceway, in Bowmanville, Ontario, Canada, on Aug. 28-30. The season will end
at the Brazilian Grand Prix, on Oct. 16-18.

Broadening the scope of series and on the heels of the first North American
Formula BMW World Final in Mexico City, two venues south of the border are
being negotiated to get the sixth season of Formula BMW Americas competition
started.

A comprehensive testing schedule is being arranged with dates already scheduled
prior to Rounds at Miller Motorsports Park, Road America and Mosport
International Raceway.

"Formula BMW Americas, as part of the international Formula BMW program, has
become solidly established in its first five seasons," said Dr. Mario Theissen,
BMW Motorsport Director. "The alignment with the Formula One World Championship
is the foundation to the program and is unique among entry-level racing series.
No other series offers the level of preparation that Formula BMW does with
offerings such as our Education and Coaching program. Our Formula BMW Junior
scholarship program gives drivers with talent, but limited funds, the ability
to start their careers. Finally, Formula BMW has the commitment of one of the
world's strongest brands. BMW is firmly behind the program and is pleased to
see the level of interest in both new drivers and teams for the 2009 season."

With the conclusion of the 2008 season, Formula BMW Americas has given more
than one hundred young drivers their start in open wheel racing. Alexander
Rossi, of Nevada City, Calif., and Gianmarco Raimondo, of St. Catherine's,
Ontario, won the Overall and Rookie titles respectively this year and will no
doubt join the long list of successful Formula BMW alumni. Formula BMW Americas
alumni include Graham Rahal, Tommy Milner, Brian Frisselle, Jonathan Summerton,
James Hinchcliffe, Robert Wickens, David Garza and Daniel Morad.

In addition to the first international coverage of Formula BMW Americas race
recaps during Formula 1 broadcasts in over 80 countries, a review of the 2008
Formula BMW Americas season is scheduled to be broadcast on SPEED channel on
Sunday, December 28 at 6:00 p.m. ET.

2009 Formula BMW Americas schedule:

TBA

TBA

May 15-17 Miller Motorsports Park

July 17-18 Lime Rock Park

Aug. 14-16 Road America

Aug. 28-30 Mosport International Raceway

Oct. 16-18 Brazilian Grand Prix

Background:

Formula BMW is the world's leading entry-level series in formula racing. In
2008 the three Formula BMW series - Formula BMW Europe, Formula BMW Pacific and
Formula BMW Americas - will be held in the key motor sport markets of Europe,
pan-Asia and North and South America. The end of the year will see the Formula
BMW World Final staged for the fourth time, this time at Mexico City's
"Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez" from the 5th to the 7th December. The winner
will be granted the opportunity of a test drive with the BMW Sauber F1 Team.
Formula BMW will be held on the undercard of Formula One on 12 occasions. The
series gives young racing talents the chance to enter professional motor sport
in a safe racing car - the Formula BMW FB02.

The FB02 has been in use since season 2002. It is powered by a 140 hp BMW
engine that takes it to a top speed of up to 230 km/h. It ranks among the
safest vehicles in its category and exceeds the FIA safety regulations that
govern this class of car. Innovations such as the FORS (Formula Rescue Seat)
were developed by BMW Motorsport specifically for Formula BMW. Following
Formula One, Formula BMW was the first single-seater series outside the US in
which the HANS system was made mandatory.

Formula BMW drivers have the opportunity to take part in an Education and
Coaching Program that runs parallel with the racing season. The program
includes driver coaching at the races by professional race drivers, attending a
Formula One test, fitness courses, tuition in driving technique and strategy,
as well as seminars on sponsoring and sport management.

Among the 20 team drivers in this season's Formula One, there are now four
Formula BMW graduates: Nico Rosberg, Adrian Sutil, Sebastian Vettel and Timo
Glock. The test and reserve drivers add three more to the tally, namely
Christian Klien, Sebastien Buemi and Nicolas Hülkenberg.

In the words of BMW Motorsport Director Mario Theissen: "With our worldwide
Formula BMW concept, we offer drivers and teams a platform which, in this
format, is unprecedented in a junior series and which allows them to benefit
from our Formula One involvement. Through Formula BMW the drivers are equipped
with the tools they need to assert themselves successfully in the world of
professional motor racing."

Note to editors:

Information and copyright free Formula BMW images for press purposes will be
available at the BMW Motorsport Press Club, www.press.bmw-motorsport.com (no
registration is required).

Press Contact: Press Officer Bill Cobb, Tel. +1215.295.3115, +215.431.7223
mobile, E-Mail: bill.cobb@partner.formulabmw.com.