Bill Auberlen To Start Race Number 500 For BMW at 2022 Sebring 12 Hour; IMSA All-Time Victory Leader Will Be Added To Motorsports Walk Of Fame in Long Beach on April 7th.

Woodcliff Lake, N.J. – March 8, 2022 . . . Racing driver Bill Auberlen has been synonymous with winning and BMW for some 25 years. He was an IMSA winner before he signed on with The Ultimate Driving Machine® in 1996 and he has continued to be a winner in every BMW racing car he has driven in the past quarter century. The 53-year-old Californian sits at the top of the all-time IMSA pole position (45) and victories (64) list and on March 19th he will make his 500^th start in a BMW racing car at the 70^th Twelve Hours of Sebring. That’s more than any other BMW driver on the planet.

Breaking records is an Auberlen hallmark, and it was recently announced that he will be honored with his induction to the Motorsports Walk of Fame on April 7^th, the day before practice begins for the Grand Prix of Long Beach weekend.

“When I look back on 500 races with BMW, I am humbled and proud,” said Auberlen. “When I look to what the next seasons may bring, I say bring on race number 600! It feels appropriate that my 500^th for BMW comes at Sebring as the 12 Hour is a special race for me. In 1985, I was the truck driver and crew for my father’s win there. Ten years later I scored my first win at the 12 Hour. My induction to the Motorsports Walk of Fame in Long Beach feels almost surreal. It’s kind of a “local kid makes good” thing and I am truly honored.”

Auberlen, a native Californian, grew up in Redondo Beach, just north of Long Beach. He was a GT class winner in 2013 and 2015 and has a total of nine top-five finishes in 14 starts dating back to 1990. He has been a class winner at the 24 Hours of Daytona twice and finished in the top five twice at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. A six-time professional auto racing champion, Auberlen currently drives the No. 96 BMW M4 GT3 for Turner Motorsport in the WeatherTech SportsCar Championship.

On-track action at Sebring International Raceway runs from March 16-19, capped off by the Twelve Hours of Sebring race that begins at 10:10 a.m. ET Saturday, March 19. Peacock’s live streaming coverage starts at 10 a.m., with USA picking up the NBC Sports telecast at 3:30 p.m. through the end of the race. IMSA Radio also provides a flag-to-flag broadcast.

The 16th annual Motorsports Walk of Fame ceremony, open to the public, will take place at 11 a.m. PT on South Pine Avenue in front of the Long Beach Convention and Entertainment Center as part of the festivities surrounding the 2022 Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach.

BMW Group In America

BMW of North America, LLC has been present in the United States since 1975. Rolls-Royce Motor Cars NA, LLC began distributing vehicles in 2003. The BMW Group in the United States has grown to include marketing, sales, and financial service organizations for the BMW brand of motor vehicles, including motorcycles, the MINI brand, and Rolls-Royce Motor Cars; Designworks, a strategic design consultancy based in California; a technology office in Silicon Valley and various other operations throughout the country. BMW Manufacturing Co., LLC in South Carolina is the BMW Group global center of competence for BMW X models and manufactures the X3, X4, X5, X6 and X7 Sports Activity Vehicles. The BMW Group sales organization is represented in the U.S. through networks of 350 BMW passenger car and BMW Sports Activity Vehicle centers,146 BMW motorcycle retailers, 105 MINI passenger car dealers, and 38 Rolls-Royce Motor Car dealers. BMW (US) Holding Corp., the BMW Group’s sales headquarters for North America, is located in Woodcliff Lake, New Jersey.

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Journalist note: Information about BMW Group and its products in the USA is available to journalists on-line at www.bmwusanews.com and www.press.bmwgroup.com/usa.