BMW M3s TO RACE STREETS OF LONG BEACH FOR VERY FIRST TIME
Woodcliff Lake, N.J. - April 14, 2009... The BMW Rahal Letterman Racing Team is
coming off of a strong second place finish in St. Petersburg, FL, and aspires
to continue the momentum for the second consecutive street circuit race in Long
Beach, California.
The Long Beach Grand Prix will mark the first-ever appearance of a BMWNA M3 at
one of motorsport's premiere events and the team will look to take advantage of
the lessons learned at St. Pete and continue to improve. While similar in
nature, the Long Beach circuit features many faster corners that play to the M3'
s strengths. A key point of the track will be the 180 degree hairpin leading
onto the long Shore Line Drive start finish straight; the M3s will be required
to use every bit of their outstanding traction to be able to fend off
competitive attacks going into turn one.
"Southern California's car enthusiasts love BMW and especially the M3, and our
team is prepared to give them a great show," said Martin Birkmann, BMW of North
America Motorsports Manager. "We picked up our pace at St. Pete and a podium
finish is an excellent result. We continue ironing out the reliability issues
with the new M3 and are hopeful to finish with both cars in the points."
Tommy Milner and Dirk Müller drove the No. 92 M3 to the team's first podium
finish at St. Pete in a strong performance that saw Müller race towards the
front of the GT2 field in the final minutes of the race.
Müller said "I am very much looking forward to Long Beach. I have liked the
track since my very first race there two years ago. Long Beach is a very
technical circuit and I believe well-suited to the BMW M3."
Echoing Müller's sentiments, Milner added, "I'm really looking forward to Long
Beach. Based on our pace at St. Petersburg, I think we'll be equally
competitive at this street circuit."
Californians Bill Auberlen and Joey Hand hope to use their home court advantage
to give the No. 90 M3 a strong start to the season, albeit a late one. Both are
looking to Long Beach to turn their luck around.
"I was very comfortable in the M3 at St. Pete and know the agility of the car
will translate well to the slightly wider Long Beach circuit where the
cornering speeds are higher," said Hand. "One of the keys is to be the best off
the hairpin so we can hang down the long straight. Long Beach is the race I'd
like to win more than anything."
Auberlen added, "It has been a dream of mine to race a M3 at Long Beach and I'm
looking forward to the opportunity. In only two races the program has shown
signs that we can run at the front end of the grid. This M3 is the most
advanced ever and once we come to terms with all of the technology we'll be
right there."
This will be the first trip to the 1.968-mile, 11-turn Long Beach street
circuit for the team, but like in St. Pete, not the first time for the
experienced Rahal Letterman Racing crew members or team principal Bobby Rahal,
a four-time runner-up at Long Beach in Indy Car competition.
"Long Beach is a special race for a number of reasons and one that has been a
focal point for me and our team for many years," said Rahal. "We are excited to
bring the M3s here and are expecting to continue the improvements that we saw
in St. Petersburg. Our drivers and our team know the circuit well and we are
looking forward to a great weekend!"
Two test sessions begin the weekend on Thursday, with official practice
scheduled for 9:00 to 9:40 a.m. Friday. A single 25-minute qualifying session
is scheduled to begin at 4:00 p.m. that afternoon. The one-hour-and-forty
minute race is scheduled to start at 4:15 p.m. Saturday and will be televised
from 12:30 to 2:30 p.m. ET on Sunday, April 19 on ABC.
About Rahal Letterman Racing:
Rahal Letterman Racing, based in Hilliard, Ohio and co-owned by three-time
IndyCar Champion and 1986 Indianapolis 500 winner Bobby Rahal and CBS LATE SHOW
host David Letterman, has been competing for more than a decade compiling 20
victories, 30 poles and one series championship (Bobby Rahal in 1992 in CART)
and an Indianapolis 500 championship (Buddy Rice in 2004). In 2008 Rahal
Letterman Racing again won Rookie-of-the-Year honors at the Indianapolis 500
and partnered with Andersen Racing to run two entries in the Indy Pro Series.
In 2009 the team has joined BMW of North America to campaign the new BMW M3 as
BMW Rahal Letterman Racing Team in the American Le Mans Series and will also
serve as the organizers of the Formula BMW Americas championship.
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
Sports Activity Vehicles and X6 Sports Activity Coupes. The BMW Group sales
organization is represented in the U.S. through networks of 338 BMW passenger
car centers, 335 BMW Sports Activity Vehicle centers, 142 BMW motorcycle
retailers, 83 MINI passenger car dealers, and 30 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
www.bmwusa.com
www.bmwmotorcycles.com
www.miniusa.com
www.rolls-roycemotorcars.com
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Journalist note: Information about the BMW Group and its products is available
to journalists on-line at the BMW Group PressClub at the following address:
https://newsroom.bmwgroup.com/global/en
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