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BMW Team RLL – Lone Star Le Mans Preview

Woodcliff Lake, N.J. – Sept. 19, 2014 . . . BMW Team RLL will visit the Circuit of the Americas, in Austin, Texas, on September 20th for the Lone Star Le Mans race, the penultimate round of the 2014 TUDOR United SportsCar Championship.

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Woodcliff Lake, N.J. – Sept. 19, 2014 . . .  BMW Team RLL will visit the Circuit of the Americas, in Austin, Texas, on September 20th for the Lone Star Le Mans race, the penultimate round of the 2014 TUDOR United SportsCar Championship.

 

BMW Team RLL finished third and fourth in last year’s inaugural American Le Mans Series race at the 3.4-mile, 20-turn circuit that is host to the Formula One United States Grand Prix. In 2013, John Edwards and Dirk Müller finished third after starting from the rear of the 33-car field following a miscue with the qualifying tires that lost Edwards his fourth-place qualifying position. Bill Auberlen and Joey Hand (substituting for Maxime Martin) started from the class pole and finished fourth.

 

On Sept. 10th, 2014, the team completed a one-day test at COTA. Drivers Dirk Müller and Andy Priaulx completed more than 100 laps of the circuit in preparation for tomorrow’s 2.75-hour race. IMSA made a number of Balance of Performance adjustments to the class on the same day with two changes applied to the BMW Z4 GTLM. The car’s weight was increased by 25 kilograms (55 pounds) to 1,255 kg (2,767 lb), and the cars received larger air restrictors – 30.2mm diameter versus 29.8mm raced previously.

 

With two consecutive podium finishes, at Road America (2nd) and Virginia International Raceway (3rd), John Edwards and Dirk Müller have climbed into three-way tie for third place in driver points that includes teammates Bill Auberlen and Andy Priaulx. BMW Team RLL stands third (No. 56) and fourth (No. 55) in the Team standings. BMW is still fourth in Manufacturer points – with only four points separating the top four places.

 

BMW Team RLL will also be racing for the program’s 50th podium finish at COTA, after this year’s result at VIR raised the number of podium finishes to a total of 49 since the program began with the BMW M3 GT at Sebring in March 2009.

 

 

"Last year we finished third and fourth, which was symptomatic of the challenge we continue to face where our straight line speed is not equal to that of our competition,” said Bobby Rahal, Team Principal. “The series recently made BoP changes including a bigger restrictor, which is certainly going to help a little. COTA is a great circuit with a premium on handling although there is a very, very long straightaway and that is always a factor for us. It will be a tough race for us as every race has been. Our guys literally drive 100 percent every lap to maintain pace with the others, but I look forward to the race and hope it will bring success.”

 

Bill Auberlen, driver, No. 55 Z4 GTLM – “Performance-wise, we remain a significant underdog to the rest of the GTLM class, so the BMW Z4 will have to continue its role as an overachiever. We're sitting third in the championship, and it will continue to be a battle to finish on the podium.”

Andy Priaulx, driver, No. 55 Z4 GTLM – “We are now entering the final two races of the year and thanks to BMW, COTA will not be a new track for me. I had a very good test on Wednesday and feel completely at home on this wonderful circuit. I really can’t wait for the race weekend. I suspect it will be an extremely tough fight now for the final races. Corvette and Viper are really strong and a race win still eludes us at BMW this year. As always, we will fight hard.”

John Edwards, driver, No. 56 Z4 GTLM – “Austin is a great town and COTA is a fantastic track to drive, especially in our Z4. Our car really excels through the esses, easily handling the multiple changes of direction, and gives us a lot of confidence as drivers. Dirk and I finished P3 there last year after starting from the rear, and we were in the battle for the lead at the end of the race. This season, we are tied for P3 in the championship so we need two more good results in the last two races to solidify a top-3 championship spot in the first year of the Tudor Series. I think we're in a good spot to carry our momentum from the last two races into COTA.”

 

Dirk Müller, driver, No. 56 Z4 GTLM – “John and I bring good momentum to COTA with podiums in our last two races. We finished third there last year after a great race and I believe we are well-prepared for this year’s event, based on Wednesday’s test. The championship battle continues!”

 

The 2.75-hour Lone Star Le Mans will take the green flag at 11:35 a.m. CT Saturday, Sept. 20th. The race will be broadcast live on FOX Sports 2 beginning at 12:30 p.m. ET. Follow BMW Team RLL on Twitter at @BMWUSARacing for “from-the-pit-box” updates all weekend. More information on the program can be found at www.bmwusa.com and www.imsa.com.

 

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 339 BMW passenger car and BMW Sports Activity Vehicle centers, 139 BMW motorcycle retailers, 120 MINI passenger car dealers, and 35 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.

 

Information about BMW Group products is available to consumers via the Internet at:  www.bmwgroupna.com.

 

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, Mi-Jack co-owner Mike Lanigan and CBS LATE SHOW host David Letterman, has been competing for over two decades, compiling 30 victories, 42 poles and three series championships (1992, 2010, 2011) as well as claiming 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. In 2010 the team won both the Manufacturer and Team Championships in the GT category. In 2011 the team swept all three GT titles - Manufacturer, Team and Driver.

 

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Journalist note: Photography for editorial purposes as well asinformation 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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