BMW Motorsport News – Issue 08/14.

Whether in the DTM, the United SportsCar Championship , or countless other championships: week after week BMW teams and drivers around the world do battle for points, victories and titles. Away from the track too, members of the large BMW Motorsport family around the world are also creating headlines. The “BMW Motorsport News” allows us to regularly summarise all the action for you in a compact and informative manner. This way, you are always up to speed.

Nürburgring 24 Hours: Four cars, 16 drivers, one goal.
A good 100 days before the start of the 24-hour race at the Nürburgring (DE), the exact allocation of the 16 drivers to the four BMW Z4 GT3s run by BMW Sports Trophy Team Schubert and BMW Sports Trophy Team Marc VDS has now been announced. With a combination of experience and quick youngsters, each of the four quartets should be in a position to do well at the legendary classic in the Eifel Mountains.

The driver line-ups at a glance:
BMW Sports Trophy Team Schubert #19: Lucas Luhr (DE), Dirk Müller (DE), Alexander Sims (GB), Dirk Werner (DE).

BMW Sports Trophy Team Schubert #20: Dominik Baumann (AT), Claudia Hürtgen (DE), Jens Klingmann (DE), Martin Tomczyk (DE).

BMW Sports Trophy Team Marc VDS #25: Uwe Alzen (DE), Maxime Martin (BE), Jörg Müller (DE), Marco Wittmann (DE).

BMW Sports Trophy Team Marc VDS #26: Dirk Adorf (DE), Nicky Catsburg (NL), Bas Leinders (BE), Markus Palttala (FI).

DTM: Tough training the key to success.
This week, the BMW DTM drivers took part in a number of special training exercises. However, this time the focus was not on preparing the BMW M4 DTM for its first race in Hockenheim (DE) on 4th May. Instead the fitness of the drivers themselves was the centre of attention. In two groups, the DTM drivers were placed in the trusty hands of Dr Riccardo Ceccarelli (IT) and his Formula Medicine team. In Viareggio (IT), they underwent extensive medical examinations and training exercises specially tailored to the needs of racing drivers. And the DTM stars also had plenty of fun with the outdoor activities, such as tennis, football and climbing. “As always, we had a great time with Doc Ceccarelli,” said Bruno Spengler (CA). “I think it is fantastic that we are given a really thorough check-up before the start of the season. This way, you know exactly where you can still make detailed improvements, and it is obviously also great fun spending time with the other guys. The atmosphere among the drivers is superb, and we are all really looking forward to the first race.”

DTM: Martin Tomczyk witnesses start of BMW M4 Coupé production.
Production of the new BMW M4 Coupé got underway at BMW Plant Munich (DE) on Thursday. Hermann Bohrer, head of the plant, was joined by BMW works driver Martin Tomczyk (DE) to give the official starting signal. “I am proud to be at BMW Plant Munich for the start of production of the BMW M4 Coupé, and to have driven the first car to roll off the assembly line,” said the BMW Team Schnitzer driver. “I have already ordered my BMW M4 Coupé in Austin Yellow.” More than 40,000 of the car’s predecessor, the fourth generation BMW M3 Coupé, were produced at BMW Plant Regensburg (DE). The BMW M4 Coupé is now set to continue that success story at the plant in Munich. The “M4” refers to the range of models which served as the starting point for the new M car: the BMW 4 Series Coupé. This car has been manufactured exclusively at BMW Plant Munich since summer 2013.