And yes, we are talking, of course, about the new M6 GTLM which replaces starting this year the Z4 GTLM in IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship. The classic 24 Hours of Daytona was the perfect venue for the new comer BMW M6 GTLM. Bill Auberlen (US), Dirk Werner (DE), Augusto Farfus (BR) and Bruno Spengler (CA) shared the car over the course of their 721 racing laps crossing the finish line in fifth in the GTLM category.
Bobby Rahal (Team Principal, BMW Team RLL): “You never know how you truly add up until you get to the first race. I think the performance of the BMW M6 GTLM was quite good and the guys were doing a great job. It is a new car and I think just finishing the race was kind of a victory in its own right. The Corvette is a well-proven car, the Porsche is the same thing and I think we saw that today. Given that the BMW M6 GTLM is a brand new car, with brand new systems – everything – the fact that the 25 car made all 24 hours without a lot of problems says a lot.”
Bill Auberlen (Number 25 BMW M6 GTLM, 5th place): “The number 25 BMW M6 GTLM ran almost perfectly for 24 hours. We missed a few kilometres per hour on straight-line speed to our competitors, but that will be addressed. After a day like today we can certainly hold our heads high.”
On lap 360, the number 100 BMW M6 GTLM, with Lucas Luhr (DE) behind the wheel, had a brake problem in turn one. Luhr was unhurt, but the damage from the impact forced the team to retire the car from the race. Luhr had shared driving duties with John Edwards (US), Graham Rahal (US) and Kuno Wittmer (CA).
The IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship is set to continue on 19th March 2016 with another classic race, the 12 Hours of Sebring (US).
Photos © BMW AG
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