BMW Motorsport News – Issue 09/14.
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.
12h Sebring: BMW claims second USCC podium of the
year.
BMW Motorsport and BMW Team RLL continued in
Sebring (US) where they left off after the first race of the United
SportsCar Championship (USCC) in Daytona (US), with a podium finish
for the BMW Z4 GTLM. Despite a difficult race that started well but
saw both cars suffer mishaps, at the end of 286 laps the black number
55 car driven by Bill Auberlen (US), Joey Hand (US) and Andy Priaulx
(GB) came third in the GTLM class and now are leading the driver
points standings. Unfortunately the best the white number 56 car of
John Edwards (US), Dirk Müller (DE) and Dirk Werner (DE) was able to
manage was tenth in class after completing a total of 277 laps. The
race was a turbulent affair with many full course cautions and both
cars suffered bodywork damage after incidents with other cars.
However, Hand was not daunted by the fact with 20 minutes to go he was
out of podium contention. In the dark and with a car that was even
missing a front light he made a late charge after the final caution
and managed to overtake a Ferrari for the third spot. The class was
won by the Porsche of Patrick Long (US), Michael Christensen (DK) and
Jörg Bergmeister (DE).
Three questions for … Joey Hand.
Joey, what were your expectations ahead of this
race?
Joey Hand: “The result was not as I expected,
because I expected to win this race. I had a really good feeling about
this race, but it just wasn’t going to happen with situations we got
during the race. But I think when you can come out of 36 hours of
endurance racing at the start of the season with a second and third
and leading the championship it is not too bad. You always want to win
races, but if you want to win a championship you need consistency. If
we are second or third in every race this season then the boys are
going to win the title.
Your final stint included yet another battle at the finish.
What was it like?
Hand: “That final 20 minutes I was
thinking this had turned into another dog fight. I just keep landing
in some dog fights, but I love it. It woke me up and I was ready to
go. I thought I might be able to make something of this. The Porsche
was too far gone, but I thought we could get second. On the re-start I
just went for it. I got the Ferrari quickly, got right up to the
Viper, but he just had too much for me. I drove the wheels off the car
and I set my best lap times then. We had a lot of damage to the right
front and were missing most of our headlights on the right side, it
was really dark and, unfortunately, Sebring is mostly right hand
corners. It wasn’t really ours to win today after what we went through.”
What was your aim, especially as this is your last USCC race
until the final round at Petit Le Mans?
Hand: “I
wanted to get the car home and make sure Andy and Bill had a good
start to the season. I don’t get to be here all year, but if they were
to win this championship I would think I truly had a part in it. I am
now off for nine DTM races until you see me again racing in the USCC.
It is a bit sad because I love this programme. I have had a good time
here and it is a place where I have learnt a lot and has just become
my home. When I come back here, even though I am a third wheel as I
call it, it is all the same guys so I don’t feel I am not supposed to
be here and really enjoy my time. I am going to miss it but I am going
to have my programme in the DTM and I am excited about it.
--
CTSCC: BMW continues to lead championship
standings.
The second round of the Continental Tire
Sports Car Challenge in Sebring (US) wasn't the unqualified success of
the first race in Daytona (US), which saw BMW finish 1-4 in Grand
Sport and 1-2 in Street Tuner. However, the Fall-Line Motorsports BMW
M3 No. 46 finished second driven by Trent Hindman (US) and BMW Team
RLL’s John Edwards (US), who have now taken the lead in the driver
standings. The BMW had a great start to the race, after 18-year-old
Hindman from New Jersey qualified it on pole, and led for all but four
of the opening 42 laps. Unfortunately an incident that caused the race
to finish under a caution meant Edwards could not race for the win in
the closing laps. After the two and a half hour race the victory went
to the No. 6 Camaro of Robin Liddell (US) and Andrew Davis (US).
Edwards' BMW Team RLL team-mate, Bill Auberlen, was unable to drive
the No. 96 Turner Motorsport BMW M3 he shared with Boris Said (US).
Said was involved in an incident with another car on the track and was
forced to retire. In the Street Turner category the best the winners
from Daytona, Jeff Mosing (US) and Eric Foss (US) in their Murillo
Racing number 56 BMW 328i, could manage was third. BMW continues to
lead the championship standings.
Blancpain GT Series: BMW Sports Trophy teams attend official
tests.
A strong contingent of BMW Sports Trophy teams
headed out onto the track in Le Castellet (FR), southern France, this
week. The “Circuit Paul Ricard” was the venue for the official test
days in the Blancpain GT Series. Among the teams testing were BMW
Sports Trophy Team Marc VDS, ROAL Motorsport, TDS Racing, BMW Sports
Trophy Team Brazil, Chab Evolution and DKR Engineering. The Blancpain
GT Series consists of two championships: the Blancpain Endurance
Series, the highlight of which is the 24-hour race in
Spa-Francorchamps (BE), and the Blancpain Sprint Series, which is the
successor to the former FIA GT Series.
