In 2015, BMW will be competing again at the “Green Hell” in 2015: The racing season at the Nürburgring Nordschleife will be opened on 28th March with the first round of the VLN endurance racing championship. As in the previous years, the BMW Sports Trophy Team Schubert and the BMW Sports Trophy Team Marc VDS will compete at the presumably most difficult race track of the world with two works-supported BMW Z4 GT3 respectively.
“We are convinced that with the BMW Sports Trophy Team Schubert and the BMW Sports Trophy Team Marc VDS, as well as with our outstanding driver team, we are perfectly positioned for the endurance season at the Nürburgring Nordschleife”, says BMS Motorsport Director Jens Marquardt. “Our team is made up of old-hands and young talents who all have experience at the Nordschleife, who all are perfectly familiar with GT racing and who all are very competitive even in difficult conditions. With this combination, we are ready to face the special challenges at the Nordschleife once again in 2015.”
At the start of the VLN season, the two BMW teams can rely upon some of the most experienced drivers that can be found to compete at the Nordschleife. For Lucas Luhr, Jörg Müller, Dirk Müller, Dirk Werner, Dirk Adorf and Claudia Hürtgen, this track is something like their second home. They all have already celebrated countless successful results there.
The other drivers – Jens Klingmann, Markus Palttala, the winner of the 2014 BMW Sports Trophy, Alexander Sims, Dominik Baumann and Nick Catsburg – also have a great experience in GT racing and in racing at the Nordschleife. Richard Westbrook, a well-established driver in international GT sports since many years, will make his debut in the BMW Z4 GT3.
Furthermore, four BMW DTM drivers, first of all the current Champion Marco Wittmann, will be competing in the VLN and in the qualification race. In 2010, Augusto Farfus celebrated the overall victory with BMW Motorsport in the 24 Hour Race and Maxime Martin won the hearts of the fans in the past with strong performances in the Eifel region. Martin Tomczyk and Wittmann, too, have already achieved many successful races at the Nürburgring Nordschleife and wish to add more triumphs to their track record.
The BMW Sports Trophy Team Schubert and the BMW Sports Trophy Team Marc VDS will use the two first VLN races (28th March/ 25th April) as well as the qualification race for the Nürburgring 24 Hours (12 April) as preparation for the classical long distance race on 16th/17th May. Those drivers who will be sitting behind the steering wheel of the BMW Z4 GT3 at the 24 Hour Race will also join the team in these preparatory races.
The first VLN race will also mark the start of the new season for the participants in the BMW M235i Racing Cup class that will again run as part of the VLN endurance racing championship. After the successful introduction of the series last year when up to 15 cars were fighting for points and victories, the number of entries for the ten rounds in 2015 is expected to be even higher.
