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BMW

IMSA Laguna Seca: Podium for Turner Motorsport at milestone race – BMW M Team RLL faces points.

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Laguna Seca. Turner Motorsport celebrated second place within the GTD class on the fourth race of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship at Laguna Seca (USA), concluding its milestone weekend on the rostrum. The crew, led by Will Turner, accomplished its 557th race in a BMW automobile – greater than another BMW M Motorsport buyer crew. BMW M Team RLL confirmed good tempo in qualifying with the 2 BMW M Hybrid V8s however fell again within the race after incidents and missed the rostrum .

 

Philipp Eng (AUT) began the race within the #24 BMW M Hybrid V8 from third place after a powerful qualifying session on Saturday. He held that place till the motive force change to Jesse Krohn (FIN). However, a slip within the ultimate hour of the race resulted in a broken rear that needed to be modified within the pits. Krohn completed the race in ninth place within the GTP class. Connor De Phillippi (USA) and Nick Yelloly (GBR) began within the sister automobile from fifth place and completed in seventh after shedding time throughout a pit cease and in addition slipping off the monitor.

Robby Foley and Patrick Gallagher (each USA) took the lead within the GTD class of their #557 BMW M4 GT3 after the primary yellow part of the race from the second begin place and had victory in sight. However, a couple of laps earlier than the top, there was an unlucky contact with a lapping GTP automobile which precipitated Foley to fall from first to second place. In the GTD PRO class, Madison Snow and Bryan Sellers (each USA) within the #1 BMW M4 GT3 from Paul Miller Racing completed in seventh place.

Comments after the race:

Connor De Phillippi (#25 BMW M Hybrid V8, seventh place): “It was a tough race. We had a good car this weekend, but we lost too much time and positions, especially in direct duels and when lapping the GTD cars. We still need to work on the drivability of the car and we generally need to do a better job with the race procedures. In this tight field, it’s about tenths of a second, so we can’t afford any mistakes. We will make another attempt at the podium in Detroit.”

Philipp Eng (#24 BMW M Hybrid V8, ninth place): “The positive is that we showed good pace throughout the weekend. We were in the top-three in every session. The car also felt very good in my first stint. It’s very disappointing that we then fell so far back. We need to analyse exactly how this could have happened. At one point, we were ahead of the winning car. We will attack again in the next race.”

Robby Foley (#557 BMW M4 GT3, 2nd place GTD class): “It was a fantastic day – until just before the end of the race. Unfortunately, there was obviously a misunderstanding when lapping with a prototype. From my point of view, he pushed me off the track as I wanted to turn into the corner but I need to take a closer look at the footage. Second place is still a great result, and we take a lot of important points with us. However, when you’re so close to victory, it still leaves a bitter taste.”

BMW

FIA WEC at Spa-Francorchamps, IMSA at Laguna Seca: Second consecutive double-header weekend.

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Spa-Francorchamps/Laguna Seca. For the second consecutive time, BMW M Motorsport is dealing with a double-header race weekend within the FIA World Endurance Championship (FIA WEC) and the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship (IMSA Series). At Spa-Francorchamps (BEL), Belgian BMW M Team WRT will compete with two BMW M Hybrid V8s and two BMW M4 GT3s in its residence race within the FIA WEC. At Laguna Seca (USA), the fourth IMSA race of the 12 months is on the schedule. BMW M Team RLL will enter two BMW M Hybrid V8s within the race. Paul Miller Racing and Turner Motorsport will begin with the BMW M4 GT3 within the GTD lessons.

 

FIA WEC: Home race for BMW M Team WRT in Belgium.

After the house race comes one other residence race. After BMW M works driver Valentino Rossi (ITA) lately thrilled Italian followers at Imola (ITA), it’s now his group’s flip. At Spa-Francorchamps, BMW M Team WRT tries to proceed the clear upward development within the FIA WEC in entrance of the Belgian residence crowd. After sixth place for Robin Frijns (NED), René Rast (GER), and Sheldon van der Linde (RSA) with the #20 BMW M Hybrid V8 at Imola, the purpose is to additional set up themselves within the main group among the many hypercars within the third race for the reason that comeback. Raffaele Marciello (SUI), Dries Vanthoor (BEL), and Marco Wittmann (GER) will compete within the sister #15 automobile.

In the LMGT3 class, there was a incredible one-two end result for the 2 BMW M4 GT3s to have fun at Imola. Augusto Farfus (BRA), Sean Gelael (INA), and Darren Leung (GBR) achieved the primary victory for a BMW M Motorsport automobile within the historical past of the FIA WEC within the #31 BMW M4 GT3. Second place at his residence race went to Rossi, who shared the cockpit of the #46 BMW M4 GT3 with Maxime Martin (BEL) and Ahmad Al Harthy (OMA). Both crews now compete at Spa-Francorchamps to assault for the rostrum locations once more and gather extra factors on the earth championship. Victory on the 24-hour race in 2023 proved that the course is sweet for the BMW M4 GT3.

The race at Spa-Francorchamps begins on Saturday at 13:00 CEST.

 

IMSA Series: BMW M Team RLL goals for the primary podium of the season.

The fourth race weekend of the IMSA season takes place on the spectacular observe at California’s Laguna Seca. BMW M Team RLL has proven robust tempo with the 2 BMW M Hybrid V8s thus far this season however remains to be ready for the primary podium end. That is the purpose for Philipp Eng (AUT) and Jesse Krohn (FIN) within the #24 BMW M Hybrid V8 in addition to Connor De Phillippi (USA) and Nick Yelloly (GBR) in automobile #25.

A particular weekend awaits Turner Motorsport. Team Principal Will Turner’s squad is competing in its 557th race for BMW and is thus the BMW M Motorsport buyer group with essentially the most race entries. In honour of this milestone, the BMW M4 GT3 will carry begin quantity 557 as an alternative of the standard 96. Since 1998, Turner Motorsport has solely competed with BMW racing vehicles and has achieved quite a few prestigious victories and titles. In the GTD-Pro class, Paul Miller Racing will subject the #1 BMW M4 GT3 with BMW M works driver Madison Snow and Bryan Sellers (each USA) at Laguna Seca.

The race on the WeatherTech Raceway begins on Sunday at 21:10 CEST (12:10 native time) and lasts 2:40 hours.

 

Comments earlier than the races at Spa-Francorchamps and Laguna Seca:

 

Andreas Roos (Head of BMW M Motorsport): “We go into the third race of the FIA WEC season positively after the steps we made at Imola. In Italy, we not only celebrated the fantastic one-two result in the LMGT3 class but also saw a clear upward trend with our hypercars. We have tested at Spa-Francorchamps and want to continue the positive trend at BMW M Team WRT’s home race. In the IMSA Series, the goal is clear. We want to convert the consistently good performance of the BMW M Hybrid V8 this season into corresponding results. In the GTD class, it will be a very special weekend for Turner Motorsport. Congratulations on the 557th start in a BMW racing car and at the same time a big thank you for the decades-long loyalty to our brand. It is always a pleasure and a lot of fun to work with Will Turner and his very professional crew. The long list of victories and titles speaks for itself. Turner Motorsport is an indispensable part of BMW M Motorsport’s racing programme in North America. I hope it will stay that way for many more years!”

 

Vincent Vosse (Team Principal BMW M Team WRT): “After a good weekend at Imola, where we made a clear step forward with our hypercars and celebrated a fantastic one-two result in the LMGT3 class, we are now looking forward to our home race in the FIA WEC. The course traditionally suits the BMW M4 GT3 well, so we should be well positioned again in the LMGT3 category. For the hypercars, it’s about taking one step at a time. Hopefully, we can make the next step in front of our home fans.”

 

Dries Vanthoor (BMW M Team WRT, #15 BMW M Hybrid V8): “I am really looking forward to the home race for the team and also for me personally. There will be many fans, but also friends and family on site. We have tested again with the BMW M Hybrid V8 at Spa-Francorchamps and hopefully made further progress that we can show on the race weekend.”

 

Augusto Farfus (Team WRT, #31 BMW M4 GT3): “We want to take the momentum from our victory at Imola to Spa-Francorchamps and finish the first third of the season on a high before the 24 Hours of Le Mans. The goal is to continue on the good path we have taken and score many points for the world championship.”

 

Connor De Phillippi (BMW M Team RLL, #25 BMW M Hybrid V8): “I can’t wait to race at the WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca. It’s the track where I had my very first racing experiences, and I have many fond memories of this place. We had a good test on the freshly paved track a few weeks ago. I think the race will be very exciting, especially in terms of strategy.”

News

Wild Porsche Taycan Turbo GT boosted to 1093bhp

At California’s Laguna Seca raceway, the Turbo GT managed a lap time of 1min 27.87sec, solely simply trailing the 1min 26.75sec set by Tesla tuner Unplugged Performance’s radically overhauled Model S Plaid, which ran on non-road-legal Yokohama tyres. 

Kevin Giek, who heads growth of all Taycan fashions, informed Autocar that the Turbo GT was one thing of a private ardour venture, carried out individually from the precise GT division, run by Andreas Preuninger.

“It was me and my team. I have a Preuninger for myself,” he stated, referring to the a whole lot of engineers concerned within the new Taycan’s creation. “We managed this together. It was my idea to have GT for electric, but it’s our baby.”

This is as excessive because the Taycan can feasibly get, he added: “You could go a bit further if you used race tyres and throw out more weight, but then it’s not street-legal any more.”

Porsche Taycan Turbo GT Weissach Pack rear seats removed

While the Turbo GT’s acceleration figures and lap instances shade practically each different automotive that wears a numberplate, Giek is adamant that it stays a real dual-purpose proposition: “You can drive it anywhere you want, but you can also take it on the track.”

Work started in April 2021, solely round 18 months after the Taycan was launched and nicely earlier than the arrival of the facelifted 2024 automotive, however Giek defined that the Turbo GT couldn’t have been developed utilizing the unique Taycan as the premise as a result of its enormous energy reserves are contingent on the very newest expertise.