BMW Motorsport News – Issue 22/14.

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.

DTM: Wittmann and Hand collect points in the rain.
At the season highlight at Norising (DE), only two of the eight BMW DTM drivers were able to collect further points for the drivers’ standings of the championship. Local hero Marco Wittmann (DE) secured sixth place for BMW Team RMG. With this result, he added eight points to his tally and defended the lead in the drivers’ championship with his Ice-Watch BMW M4 DTM. Joey Hand (US) also convinced with a strong performance. He improved from 14th on the grid to seventh with his Crowne Plaza Hotels BMW M4 DTM and was rewarded with four championship points. All other BMW drivers finished the exciting rain race at the Dutzendteich outside the top ten.

DTM: Zanardi takes to the Norisring in the BMW Z4 GT3.
BMW works driver Alessandro Zanardi (IT) also attended the DTM race at the Norisring (DE). Together with his BMW Z4 GT3, which he is using in the Blancpain Sprint Series this year, he was the focus of a very special fan event: The BMW Motorsport “Pit Stop Chain”. Together with the numerous BMW employees in Nürnberg (DE), the fans formed a human chain from the ITR stage to Zanardi's vehicle. One by one they passed the tyres for the race car's pit stop to the pit crew, who then changed the tyres. Then Zanardi took to the track in his BMW Z4 GT3 and completed a demo lap. “It's always fun to take part in an event with fans, particularly in Germany, which has become something of a second home to me,” said Zanardi. “Partially because I belong to the BMW family, but also because I get a lot of positive feedback from the fans here. When I drove off after the 'pit stop' and spun the wheels a bit, they were all delighted. It was also great to drive a lap on this unique track with fans cheering me on from the stands. I really enjoyed it.” Zanardi was on the podium after the DTM race: He presented the trophy to second-placed Jamie Green (GB).

DTM: “LaBrassBanda” visit BMW Team MTEK.
Before their ARD Chartshow appearance on the DTM stage at the Norisring, the musicians from the band “LaBrassBanda” stopped by the BMW Team MTEK garage. The six artists, who enthuse their fans with a unique mix of folk music, ska, rock and pop, met António Félix da Costa. The man from Portugal showed the band his Red Bull BMW M4 DTM and answered their questions.

BTCC: Turkington wins at Croft, Collard steps onto the podium, too.
Colin Turkington (GB) from Team eBay Motors successfully defended the lead in the British Touring Car Championship (BTCC) in today’s races at Croft (GB): The 2009 champion celebrated two victories with his number 5 BMW 125i M Sport. In race three, he had to retire. His team-mate Robert Collard (GB) also added a good haul of points to his tally: He claimed two fourth places and finished second on the podium in race three. The third BMW driver, Nick Foster (GB), took the flag in race two and three in 14th and seventh respectively.

Blancpain Endurance Series: TDS Racing wins Pro-Am class in Paul Ricard.
The fourth race of the Blancpain Endurance Series in Paul Ricard (FR) was a great success for the TDS Racing team. Nick Catsburg (NL) and Henry Hassid (FR) crossed the finish line in sixth place after 88 laps of the two-hour race. This saw them take victory in the Pro-Am class. The second-placed BMW Z4 GT3 was the Ecurie Ecosse vehicle in fifth place in the Pro-Am class. ROAL Motorsport finished tenth.

CTSCC: BMW teams miss out on the podium in Watkins Glen.
The 150-minute race in the Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge (CTSCC) in Watkins Glen (US) ended in disappointment for the BMW teams. While Chevrolet celebrated victory, Trent Hindman (US), who leads the drivers' standings, only finished 19th in his BMW M3 of Fall-Line Motorsports after his team-mate John Edwards (US) was involved in an accident, even though starting from third place they both stayed within reach of the top in the first half of the race. The best-placed BMW was the BMW M3 of Turner Motorsport with Michael Marsal (US) and Tom Kimber-Smith (US) in 11th.

Junior programme: First test in BMW M235i Racing at Spa-Francorchamps.
In Spa-Francorchamps (BE) on Tuesday and Wednesday last week, BMW Motorsport juniors Jake Hughes (GB), Jesse Krohn (FI), Alexander Mies (DE) and Moisés Soriano (ES) completed their first test in the BMW M235i Racing. The juniors spent the first day getting used to the car and the track, after all it was the first time that Hughes and Soriano had driven this car. On the second day, the quartet were given the task of developing a common set-up for the BMW M235i Racing and then simulating a three-hour race, including pit stops and driver changes. All this was to prepare them for their appearance at the upcoming VLN race on the Nürburgring Nordschleife (DE) on 5th July. “It was a great two days,” said instructor Dirk Adorf (DE). “The juniors were able to spend a lot of time on the track and, as well as completing consistent laps without errors, they also demonstrated that they are capable of tuning the car.” Alongside the BMW Motorsport Junior programme, tyre partner Dunlop also held its junior programme in Spa. Four junior engineers learned the process for preparing tyres for a race event. “It was fantastic that Dunlop got involved with its junior programme,” said Adorf. “It worked out perfectly that the tyre engineers worked with our drivers.”