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VALENTINO ROSSI TO BECOME NEW MEMBER OF THE BMW M MOTORSPORT WORKS DRIVER FAMILY

The BMW M works driver squad for the 2023 season is gaining a well-known 21st member. Valentino Rossi (ITA) and BMW M Motorsport have agreed a works commitment that goes beyond the race appearances with BMW M Team WRT announced last week. The nine-time motorcycle world champion, who called time on his long-standing, successful career on two wheels back in autumn 2021, is set to contest the Fanatec GT World Challenge Europe powered by AWS and Bathurst 12 Hour in the BMW M4 GT3 next year – and will also be available for further race and test appearances in BMW M Motorsport racing cars.

PORSCHE MOTORSPORT EXPANDS FACTORY COMMITMENT IN 2023 WITH A RETURN TO THE TOP CLASS AT LE MANS

Porsche tackles the 2023 motorsport season with ambitious goals, extensive works commitments and new options for customer racing. In the FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC) and the North American IMSA WeatherTech Sportscar Championship, the Porsche Penske Motorsport works team pursues overall wins with two 963 hybrid prototypes fielded in each series. In the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship, the TAG Heuer Porsche Formula E Team has set its sights on claiming the title with the new 99X Electric Gen3. Many Porsche customer teams will race the 992-generation Porsche 911 GT3 R on GT stages worldwide. Porsche announced its 2023 motorsport programme on Saturday evening at the “Night of Champions” in Weissach.

BMW M TEAM WRT DRIVER LINE-UP CONFIRMED FOR BATHURST AND GT WORLD CHALLENGE EUROPE

BMW M Motorsport returns to Australia after an enforced three-year absence. BMW M Team WRT will undertake its first works-supported race outing with the BMW M4 GT3 at the Bathurst 12 Hour, the opening round of the Intercontinental GT Challenge, in February 2023. This is followed by the GT World Challenge Europe which begins in April 2023. The two cars will be occupied by top-class drivers, including nine-time motorcycle world champion Valentino Rossi (ITA), who will share the #46 BMW M4 GT3 with BMW M works drivers Maxime Martin (BEL) and Augusto Farfus (BRA). Challenging for top results in the #32 car will be the two new BMW M works drivers Dries Vanthoor and Charles Weerts (both BEL), together with DTM champion Sheldon van der Linde (RSA).

RECORD SEASON FOR AUDI CUSTOMER RACING

Audi Sport customer racing has never won as many titles with its teams as it did this year. In the 14th season of the customer racing program, teams all over the world celebrated remarkable successes in individual competitions as well as in championships at sprint and endurance distances. The balance is spread across Europe, Asia, North America, Australia with New Zealand and, for the first time, Africa.

MERCEDES-AMG CELEBRATES MOST SUCCESSFUL CUSTOMER RACING SEASON TO DATE

In the 2022 season, Mercedes-AMG has continued its success story in customer racing with race and title wins in the world’s most significant GT series. The teams with GT3 and GT4 cars from Affalterbach raced on all six continents and racked up 63 teams’ and drivers’ titles as well as four manufacturers’ titles for AMG in the process. That is a new record in the twelve-year history of the Customer Racing programme. Highlights are three titles in the Intercontinental GT Challenge (IGTC), the overall win in the TotalEnergies 24 Hours of Spa, the ADAC GT Masters championship win and the title in the Fanatec GT World Challenge Powered by AWS manufacturers’ standings. Worldwide, the Customer Racing Teams competed in over 470 races and celebrated 80 race and 225 class wins while doing so. In total, over 600 podium results could be secured. The international competitiveness of the Customer Racing cars and the reliable worldwide support convinced both existing and new customers. As a result, over 240 Mercedes-AMG GT3s and over 180 Mercedes-AMG GT4 were delivered by this time. In the 2023 season, the new Mercedes-AMG GT2 further extends the portfolio.

WRIGHT MOTORSPORTS ASSEMBLES IMPRESSIVE LINEUP TO DEFEND ROLEX 24 VICTORY IN No. 16 PORSCHE

The highly-anticipated 61st Rolex 24 At Daytona will kick off the 2023 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship next month, and Wright Motorsports has assembled another impressive lineup to defend last year’s unforgettable victory. Ryan Hardwick, Jan Heylen, and Zacharie Robichon all return to the Wright Motorsports No. 16 1st Phorm Porsche 911 GT3 R (type 992) in defense of the win and will be joined by veteran Wright driver Dennis Olsen.

K-PAX RACING RETURNS TO DOMINANCE

It was almost a feeling déjà vu at the conclusion of the 2022 Fanatec GT World Championship America Powered by AWS Championship – almost. While K-PAX Racing celebrated a duplication of the previous season, sweeping the series three major championships, in hindsight it did not come without new challenges. In fact, how the team reacted to this season’s unforeseen adversity casted a much different light upon 2022.

THAILAND SUPER SERIES 2022 ENDS ON A HIGH NOTE WITH ACTION PACKED RACES IN BURIRAM

A hectic weekend for the final round of Thailand Super Series 2022 with a championship battle unfolding that saw the two almost level pegging title protagonists, Andrea Gagliardini and Jacopo Guidetti in the #11 Honda NSX GT3 and Sandy Stuvik and Akash Nandy in the #25 B-Quik Absolute Audi R8 LMS GT3 evo II, going head-to-head in what would be nothing less than a winner takes all scenario.

BMW M MOTORSPORT PRESENTS WORKS DRIVERS AND RACE PROGRAMME FOR THE 2023 SEASON

The squad of works drivers at BMW M Motorsport for the 2023 season includes more prominent newcomers. Belgians Dries Vanthoor and Charles Weerts receive works driver contracts and join the BMW M Motorsport family. They will compete with BMW M Team WRT in the coming season, among other outings. The initial race programmes for the BMW M Motorsport teams and works drivers have also been confirmed. They include appearances in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship with the new BMW M Hybrid V8, as well as starts with the BMW M4 GT3 in GT World Challenge Europe, the Intercontinental GT Challenge and the Nürburgring 24 Hours (GER). More race programmes – including the DTM that is undergoing a major transformation at the moment – are being planned and will be announced at a later date.

ADAC CREATES SUSTAINABLE AND FUTURE-ORIENTED STRUCTURES FOR THE DTM

Under the umbrella of the DTM from 2023, the DTM will line up at the forefront of a strong German motorsport platform. Having acquired the trademark rights for the DTM, the ADAC is using synergies to create future-oriented and sustainable structures for the top classes on the circuit racing scene. On the way to introducing synthetic fuels in the future, the DTM will use an environmentally friendly and innovative fuel from Shell, made from 50% renewable components, as part of a new sustainability concept. The DTM’s tried-and-tested concept of one driver per car remains. The calendar consists of eight rounds and sees the series focus on Germany as the essence of the brand, without sacrificing outings at internationally-renowned circuits.

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