PressClub New Zealand · Article.
BMW M Motorsport congratulates the DTM on its 500th race.
Thu Aug 22 10:20:00 CEST 2019 Press Release
BMW M Motorsport congratulates the DTM on reaching a special milestone at the Lausitzring (GER). The most popular touring car series in Europe will contest its 500th race this weekend.
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Author.
Leanne Blanckenberg
BMW Group
Munich. BMW M Motorsport congratulates the DTM on reaching a special milestone at the Lausitzring (GER). The most popular touring car series in Europe will contest its 500th race this weekend. BMW has so far been involved in 315 races, winning 87 of them. The first race in the history of the DTM, on 11th March 1984 at Zolder (BEL), was won by Harald Grohs (GER) in a BMW 635 CSi.
“On behalf of BMW Motorsport, I would like to congratulate the DTM on this milestone,” said BMW Group Motorsport Director Jens Marquardt. “We are happy and proud to have played an active role in much of the history of this series, and indeed to have shaped it at times. We won the very first DTM race with Harald Grohs and the BMW 635 CSi in 1984, and have competed in the DTM with the most successful touring car ever – the BMW M3. Since 2012 we have been part of the ‘new DTM’ and are in the process of working closely with Gerhard Berger, the ITR and the other manufacturers on establishing a long and successful future for the series. We are all very much looking forward to what we hope will be many more races.“
A BMW driver has won the DTM Drivers’ Championship six times since 1984. Volker Strycek (GER) won the title in the inaugural season in a BMW 635 CSi. In 1987 and 1989, Eric van de Poele (BEL) and Roberto Ravaglia (ITA) triumphed in a legendary BMW M3. After BMW took a break from the DTM from 1993 to 2011, Bruno Spengler (CAN) promptly won the Drivers’ title in a BMW M3 DTM when the Bavarian manufacturer returned to the series in 2012. In 2014 and 2016, Marco Wittmann (GER) was crowned champion in the BMW M4 DTM.
More facts and figures on BMW in the DTM:
- 315 races in total in the DTM since 1984.
- 116 races since returning to the DTM in 2012.
- 3 Manufacturer titles since the DTM comeback in 2012 (2012, 2013, 2015).
- 87 race wins in the DTM since 1984.
- 38 race wins since the DTM comeback in 2012.
- 74 pole positions in the DTM since 1984.
- 44 pole positions since the DTM comeback in 2012.
- 295 podiums in the DTM since 1984.
- 113 podiums since the DTM comeback in 2012.
- 41 DTM wins for the BMW M3.
- 28 DTM wins for the BMW M4 DTM.
- More than 300,000 kilometres of racing in the DTM.
- More than 80,000 laps of racing in the DTM.