[Jason]

Tommy Milner and Dirk Müller powered the BMW GT2 to a 1st place finish at the first round of the Asian Le Mans Series. This win marks the second 1st place finish for the BMW GT2, which previously won the ALMS race in Road America.

Summary of the race win, via Paddocktalk:

(DE) and Tommy Milner (US) celebrated victory with the BMW M3 GT2 in the first round of the Asian Le Mans Series. At the “Okayama International Circuit” the drivers of the BMW Rahal Letterman Racing Team put in a flawless performance and crossed the line as winners in the GT2 category after 113 laps, relegating Marc Lieb (DE) and Wolf Henzler (DE) in their Porsche 911 RSR to second with a gap of 0.292 seconds. Following the victory in the American Le Mans Series race in Road America (US), this is the second win for the new GT sports car, and also the car’s maiden win in Asia.

The final phase of the Asian Le Mans Series inaugural event was a thriller. After Müller, who was in the car at the start, had worked his way up from fifth on the grid to second in the early stages of the three-hour race, Milner took over the wheel of the BMW M3 GT2 on lap 52. The 23-year-old took the lead with a successful overtaking manoeuvre on Henzler on lap 78. In order to save time, the BMW Rahal Letterman Racing Team decided not to change tyres during his second pit stop on lap 103 when Milner remained in the car.

The gap which he had kept thanks to this brave strategy diminished lap by lap. Eight minutes before the end of the race Lieb, running on fresh tyres, started to put Milner under constant pressure, But the BMW driver successfully defended the lead in a nail-biting finale, committed no mistakes and ultimately took the chequered flag as winner.

The second round of the Asian Le Mans Series will be held on Sunday. The red lights go out at 9:00hrs local time (0:00hrs GMT).

Bobby Rahal (Team Principal):

“This is a fantastic result. In qualifying we didn’t achieve the maximum, so it was important that Dirk gained some ground after the start. Our fuel economy and the pace of the car were very good. During our second pit stop we didn’t change our Dunlop tyres. Tommy then drove the race of his life. The Porsche managed to close the gap, but just couldn’t get by. There’s only a little time to celebrate our win as there is a second race to contest tomorrow. Up to now Japan has proved excellent ground for us.”

Tommy Milner:

“This was a tough race. As we didn’t change tyres during the pit stop I knew it would be a close finish. Marc Lieb put me under pressure, and I had to fend off his first attacks in order to keep my chances alive. I managed to do that. Finally I scored my first win. In the ALMS I finished on the podium five times, and many times I got close to victory. Now it has happened at last. A big thank you to my team. The guys are once again doing a great job.“

Dirk Müller:

“We knew that our package would be competitive. But it’s just great that it was strong enough for the win. After the start I gained several positions. In these close battles my experiences from the World Touring Car Championship are a bonus. I didn’t risk anything when behind the Porsche and patiently waited for my chance. That paid off. Tommy did a perfect job today and wrapped up our victory.”

Results Saturday race, GT2 category.

1 Müller/Milner, BMW M3 GT2, BMW Rahal Letterman Racing Team, 3:00:43.317
2 Lieb/Henzler, Porsche 911 RSR, Team Felbermayr-Proton, 3:00:43.609
3 Farnbacher/Simonsen, Ferrari F 430 GT, Team Farnbacher, 3:01:58.089
4 Ried/Holzer, Porsche 911 RSR, Team Felbermayr-Proton, +1 lap
5 Tanaka/Hiranaka, Ferrari F 430 GT, Jimgainer Racing, +1 lap
6 Aoki/Fujii, Ferrari F 430 GT, Team Daishin, +2 laps
7 Kinoshita/Kageyama, Porsche 911 RSR, KTR, +4 laps
8 Robertson/Robertson/Murray, Ford GT Mk7, Robertson Racing, +5 laps
9 Lee/Ma/Enge, Aston Martin Vantage, Team Hong Kong Racing, +6 laps
Not classified: Koijma/Hori/Kimura, Porsche 911 RSR, Scuderia Forme

[E90SLAM]

WOHOO!!!!

[Tony717]

Impressive!

[scott@bmwhn]

very nice!

[Antinontoxic]

Could use some spacers

[MDivPower]

Originally Posted by Antinontoxic

Could use some spacers

I heard the term spacers many time before but i did not quit understand what it means!! please can you tell me what exactly is it and what it does to the looks or performance of the car!

[DemoDave]

Congrats to the team!

Originally Posted by MDivPower

I heard the term spacers many time before but i did not quit understand what it means!! please can you tell me what exactly is it and what it does to the looks or performance of the car!

Why would I want wheel spacers?

Appearance. This pushes the wheels out wider for a better looking, more aggressive stance and look.

Clearance & Correction. Many wheels are not a direct fit with big brake kits or coilover suspensions. A wheel spacer helps by moving the wheel away from the caliper, wheel spokes, or suspension that is causing the clearance issue. If your wheels have the wrong offset (too high an offset, causing the wheels to be too far inward) a set of wheel spacers can correct this by pushing the wheel out to the correct offset.

Handling. By adding wheel spacers, you are widening the overall "track" (or width) of your BMW. A wider track improves cornering, increases stability and safety.

[KANdaddy]

///M Power FTW!!

[thesixsins]

I wonder how a street version of that body kit would look or work... humm...

[Koroush]

As expected.

[Slikpak]

wow that looks like some stiff competition against an m3. Is that thing supercharged haha.

[c-who]

Man, that thing is LOW!!!

[service@shellybmw.com]

i believe BMW also capture the American version la man too.. both BMW car go 1st and 2nd place. here is an article on this one


BMW M3 Races to Victory Lane at Road America with 1-2 GT2 Finish

In its inaugural season, the new BMW M3 Racing program entered the winner’s circle this Sunday with a 1-2 finish by the BMW Rahal Letterman Racing Team at the American Le Mans Series race in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin.

The No. 90 M3, driven by Joey Hand and Bill Auberlen, achieved the new M3 racing program’s first victory. Teammates Tommy Milner and Dirk Müller in the No. 92 M3 scored their fourth podium finish of the season.

As the race began, starting drivers Bill Auberlen, in the No. 90 M3, and Tommy Milner, in the No. 92 M3, took advantage of their front row starting positions and opened a lead on the GT2 class. Only 15 minutes in, an early yellow slowed the field, but instead of reducing the BMW M3s lead to mere feet, it increased it to almost a full lap as both M3s received a wave-by when the pace car picked up the overall leader. Before the race went green again, both M3s were able to pit for fuel, and Milner picked up the lead through pitstop speed.

At the one hour mark Milner still held the lead over Auberlen, but as the race’s second caution period occurred a “race within the race” began. Pitting both M3s under yellow, the crew of the No. 90 M3 got Hand serviced just a tick of the watch ahead of Müller to take the lead. Unfortunately, too many men over the wall for the No. 92 M3 resulted in a 60 second penalty, putting Müller an additional minute behind Hand, but still in second place.

Pitting a second time under the race’s third caution period, the M3s cycled through two more fast stops for fuel and new Dunlop tires. Today, able to keep the competition in check, the two M3s stayed in front for the remainder the contest to open another winning chapter in the history of BMW Motorsport.

“Previously, I was asked about the best moment of this program and my answer was bringing the new BMW M3s to the grid at Sebring.” said Martin Birkmann, BMW of North America Motorsport Manager, “Now, I would give a different answer. We were fast from the beginning of the weekend and brought home the first victory for the program. We have now arrived at a level where we can fight for top honors and that’s what the program was designed to do.”

“It can’t get better than this!” said Bobby Rahal, Team Principal, “Great for the team and great for BMW. Everyone did a super job today!”

Round 8 of the American Le Mans Series will be held at Mosport International Raceway on August 30th.

Posted by BMW of North America

[ronushi]

very impressive because in these kind of races always porsche or ferrari won most of the time and to see a bmw its amazing... as far as the car its perfect no wonder they cant compete with bmw... truly amazing

[service@shellybmw.com]

BMW Rahal Letterman Racing Team Scores GT Victory in Japan


Okayama (JP), 31st October 2009. – Coming off a third-place finish in the American Le Mans Series championship, Dirk Müller (DE) and Tommy Milner (US) celebrated victory Saturday with the BMW M3 GT2 in the team’s first-ever entry in the Asian Le Mans Series, besting the field at the Okayama International Circuit in Japan.

The drivers of the BMW Rahal Letterman Racing Team put in a flawless performance and crossed the line as winners in the GT2 category after 113 laps, relegating Marc Lieb (DE) and Wolf Henzler (DE) in their Porsche 911 RSR to second with a gap of 0.292 seconds. Following this year’s ALMS victory at Road America (US), this is the second win for the new GT sports car, and also the car’s maiden win in Asia.

Both drivers contributed mightily to the win, as the final phase of BMW’s inaugural Asian Le Mans Series inaugural event was a thriller. After Müller, who was in the car at the start, had worked his way up from fifth on the grid to second in the early stages of the three-hour race, Milner took over the wheel of the BMW M3 GT2 on lap 52. The 23-year-old took the lead with a successful overtaking maneuver on Henzler on lap 78. In order to save time, the BMW Rahal Letterman Racing Team decided not to change their Dunlop tires during his second pit stop on lap 103 when Milner remained in the car.

The bold strategy gave Milner a wide gap on the pursuing Porsche but things tensed up as the race clock wound down. Eight minutes before the end of the race Lieb, running on fresh tires, started to put Milner under constant pressure, But the BMW driver successfully defended the lead in a nail-biting finale, committed no mistakes and ultimately took the checkered flag as winner.

The second round of the Asian Le Mans Series will be held on Sunday. The red lights go out at 9:00hrs local time (0:00hrs GMT).

Bobby Rahal (Team Principal):
“This is a fantastic result. We had a little misfortune in qualifying, so it was important that Dirk gained some ground after the start. Our fuel economy and the pace of the car were very good. During our second pit stop we didn’t change our Dunlop tires. Tommy then drove the race of his life. The Porsche managed to close the gap, but just couldn’t get by. There’s only a little time to celebrate our win as there is a second race to contest tomorrow. Up to now Japan has proved excellent ground for us.”

Tommy Milner:
“This was a tough race. As we didn’t change tires during the pit stop I knew it would be a close finish. Marc Lieb put me under pressure, and I had to fend off his first attacks in order to keep my chances alive. I managed to do that. Finally I scored my first win. In the ALMS I finished on the podium five times, and many times I got close to victory. Now it has happened at last. A big thank you to my team. The guys are once again doing a great job.“


Dirk Müller:
“We knew that our package would be competitive. But it’s just great that it was strong enough for the win. After the start I gained several positions. In these close battles my experiences from the World Touring Car Championship are a bonus. I didn’t risk anything when behind the Porsche and patiently waited for my chance. That paid off. Tommy did a perfect job today and wrapped up our victory.”


Results Saturday race, GT2 category.

1 Müller/Milner, BMW M3 GT2, BMW Rahal Letterman Racing Team, 3:00:43.317
2 Lieb/Henzler, Porsche 911 RSR, Team Felbermayr-Proton, 3:00:43.609
3 Farnbacher/Simonsen, Ferrari F 430 GT, Team Farnbacher, 3:01:58.089
4 Ried/Holzer, Porsche 911 RSR, Team Felbermayr-Proton, +1 lap
5 Tanaka/Hiranaka, Ferrari F 430 GT, Jimgainer Racing, +1 lap
6 Aoki/Fujii, Ferrari F 430 GT, Team Daishin, +2 laps
7 Kinoshita/Kageyama, Porsche 911 RSR, KTR, +4 laps
8 Robertson/Robertson/Murray, Ford GT Mk7, Robertson Racing, +5 laps
9 Lee/Ma/Enge, Aston Martin Vantage, Team Hong Kong Racing, +6 laps
Not classified: Koijma/Hori/Kimura, Porsche 911 RSR, Scuderia Forme

Press Contact:
Ingo Lehbrink, Phone: +49 (0) 176 20340224, Email: ingo.lehbrink@bmw.de
Florian Haasper, Phone: +49 (0) 177 5637923, Email: f.haasper@sport-media-service.de
Information about BMW Group products is available to consumers via the Internet at:

[stylinexpat]

Great article and post

PS: If you are into the tuning scene don't buy your BMW at Shelly BMW unless you don't mind your warranty being voided.

[KANdaddy]

Anyone know how the second race ended up?

[vladberca]

these are the overall results:
LM GT2 :
1 HANKOOK TEAM FARNBACHER (FERRARI F 430 GT), Germany, 16 pts
2 RAHAL LETTERMAN RACING TEAM (BMW M3 E92), USA, 14
3 TEAM FELBERMAYR-PROTON (PORSCHE 911 GT3 RSR 997), Germany, 13.

[vladberca]

these are some specs for the LM GT2 category:
> Less modified than the LMGT1s, they are also less powerful (between 450 and 500BHP).
> Minimum weight: 1,125kg
Maximum width: 200cm
Identical maximum engine capacity to the “LM"GT1 category
Carbon brakes forbidden (exclusively iron based)
Fuel cell capacity: 90 litres
Maximum 6 speed gearbox

[service@shellybmw.com]

Originally Posted by stylinexpat

Great article and post

PS: If you are into the tuning scene don't buy your BMW at Shelly BMW unless you don't mind your warranty being voided.

how did we void your warranty?