BMW Team RLL Posts Strong Qualifying Effort at CTMP; Bill Auberlen - P2, Martin Tomczyk - P4.

Woodcliff Lake, N.J. – July 8, 2017…  For a third consecutive race weekend BMW Team RLL qualified both BMW M6 GTLM racing cars in the first two rows of the uber-competitive IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship GTLM class. Bill Auberlen, qualified the No. 25 M6 outside of the front row for tomorrow’s Mobil 1 SportsCar Grand Prix at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park, in Bowmanville, Ontario, Canada. His 1:14.103 minute lap was only .018 seconds behind the pole winning No. 911 Porsche. Auberlen and co-driver Alexander Sims will be racing for a second consecutive victory tomorrow. Martin Tomczyk qualified the No. 24 M6 in the fourth spot with a 1:14.294 minute lap. He will co-drive with John Edwards tomorrow as the duo looks to improve on a season’s-best third place finish. The entire GTLM field was separated by only .819 seconds.

“We expected to be in contention here,” said Neil Fife, BMW Team RLL Race Engineer. “The M6 is quick, well-balanced and solid over a long run. Of course we’d like to be on pole, but we are happy with P2 and P4 - only missing P1 and P3 by the blink of an eye.

Bill Auberlen, driver No. 25 BMW M6 GTLM (P2): “The team has made the M6 better and better. This session was the best so far. I am pleased with the tire selection and the set-up. We won from P2 at Watkins Glen so we just have to do it again.”

Martin Tomczyk, driver No. 24 BMW M6 GTLM (P4): “I am quite happy because I struggled a bit yesterday with my first laps at Mosport. We made the decision that I would run this morning’s practice and qualifying to get more time and I am quite pleased by my recovery and the development we’ve made with the car.”

The Mobil 1 SportsCar Grand Prix starts at 12:10 p.m. ET Sunday, July 9 with live coverage on FOX Sports 1 beginning at 12:00 p.m. ET. Follow BMW Team RLL on Twitter at @BMWUSARacing for “from-the-pit-box” updates all weekend.

BMW Group In America

BMW of North America, LLC has been present in the United States since 1975. Rolls-Royce Motor Cars NA, LLC began distributing vehicles in 2003.  The BMW Group in the United States has grown to include marketing, sales, and financial service organizations for the BMW brand of motor vehicles, including motorcycles, the MINI brand, and the Rolls-Royce brand of Motor Cars; DesignworksUSA, a strategic design consultancy in California; a technology office in Silicon Valley and various other operations throughout the country.  BMW Manufacturing Co., LLC in South Carolina is part of BMW Group’s global manufacturing network and is the exclusive manufacturing plant for all X5 and X3 Sports Activity Vehicles and X6 and X4 Sports Activity Coupes.  The BMW Group sales organization is represented in the U.S. through networks of 341 BMW passenger car and BMW Sports Activity Vehicle centers, 152 BMW motorcycle retailers, 127 MINI passenger car dealers, and 36 Rolls-Royce Motor Car dealers.  BMW (US) Holding Corp., the BMW Group’s sales headquarters for North America, is located in Woodcliff Lake, New Jersey.

The BMW Group

With its three brands BMW, MINI and Rolls-Royce, the BMW Group is the world’s leading premium manufacturer of automobiles and motorcycles and also provides premium financial and mobility services. As a global company, the BMW Group operates 31 production and assembly facilities in 14 countries and has a global sales network in more than 140 countries.

In 2016, the BMW Group sold approximately 2.367 million cars and 145,000 motorcycles worldwide. The profit before tax was approximately € 9.67 billion on revenues amounting to € 94.16 billion. As of 31 December 2016, the BMW Group had a workforce of 124,729 employees.

The success of the BMW Group has always been based on long-term thinking and responsible action. The company has therefore established ecological and social sustainability throughout the value chain, comprehensive product responsibility and a clear commitment to conserving resources as an integral part of its strategy.

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Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing

BMW’s partner, Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, based in Hilliard, Ohio and co-owned by three-time IndyCar Champion and 1986 Indianapolis 500 winner Bobby Rahal, former CBS Late Show host David Letterman and Mi-Jack co-owner Mike Lanigan, has been competing for over two decades. Prior to the start of their 26th season of competition in 2017, the team had compiled 38 victories, 51poles,151 podium finishes, three series championships (1992, 2010, 2011) and claimed an Indianapolis 500 victory (Buddy Rice in 2004). In 2009 the team joined BMW of North America to campaign the new BMW M3 in the American Le Mans Series. The following year the team won both the Manufacturer and Team Championships in the GT category and swept all three GT titles - Manufacturer, Team and Driver – in 2011. In 2012 the team finished second in the Team Championship and third in the Manufacturer Championship and in 2013, the team finished second in the Driver, Team and Manufacturer Championship. The 2014 season brought a new challenge with the creation of the IMSA United SportsCar Championship and the team finished on the podium six times including four second-place finishes. In 2015, the team earned three wins, two poles and a total of eight podium finishes to finish second in the Manufacturer, Team and Driver championships and added two poles and three podiums in 2016. Prior to the start of the 2017 season, BMW Team RLL had won 13 races, 22 poles and 60 podium finishes.

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Journalist note: Information about BMW Group and its products in the USA is available to journalists on-line at www.bmwgroupusanews.com and www.press.bmwna.com. 

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