20 years: BMW M starts anniversary season as “Official Car of MotoGP™”

A special MotoGP season gets underway for BMW M GmbH at the “Losail International Circuit” in Qatar this weekend (16th to 18th March): it is BMW M’s 20th season as “Official Car of MotoGP”. BMW and BMW M GmbH have been involved as partners of MotoGP organiser Dorna Sports since 1999. Activities are focussed on providing the safety car fleet. In the 2018 anniversary season, the fleet will be headed by the new BMW M5 MotoGP Safety Car. BMW M GmbH will provide a total of seven BMW M high-performance cars this year to ensure the safety of the race events.

“I would like to take this opportunity to thank Dorna Sports for the faith they have shown in us for what is now two decades. Rarely do you come across such a long and successful partnership in sport, and we are proud of this special anniversary,” said Frank van Meel, President of BMW M GmbH. “When we partnered with MotoGP organiser Dorna Sports in 1999, our aspiration was to use all our expertise, innovative technology from motorsport and new ideas to serve safety in the MotoGP. That remains the case today. 20 years down the road, Dorna Sports still has a strong partner on board, in BMW M GmbH, for whom the safety of the riders takes top priority.”

The fleet of safety and official cars has always consisted of the latest BMW M models, optimised for use on the racetrack. Celebrating the 20th anniversary, BMW M GmbH remains true with this philosophy and sets a real highlight with the new BMW M5 MotoGP Safety Car.

The new course car is based on the high-performance sedan BMW M5 (combined consumption: 10.5 l/100 km; combined CO2 emissions: 241 g/km)*, which was showcased to the global public for the first time in August 2017. The BMW M5’s technical features ensure perfect handling, even at the limits of driving dynamics. These features include the newly-developed M-specific all-wheel drive M xDrive, which is being used in the BMW M5 for the first time. The 4.4-litre V8 engine with M TwinPower Turbo technology represents another significant increase in performance compared to previous models, with 441 kW/600 HP and maximum torque of 750 Nm in the production M5. Painstaking manual work at the BMW M Manufaktur in Garching converted the high-performance base car into the BMW M5 MotoGP Safety Car, preparing it to appear as the course car in MotoGP.

In the 2018 season, the fleet of official MotoGP vehicles includes a total of seven different BMW M high-performance cars. Alongside the new BMW M5 MotoGP Safety Car the BMW M3 Safety Car will also be in action. BMW M GmbH will provide the Safety Officer and the Race Director with a BMW M4 Coupé Safety Car with water injection and a BMW M2 Safety Car. In addition, the BMW X5 M Medical Car will take to the track this season and a BMW M6 Gran Coupé Safety Car also stands ready to be in action. Two BMW S 1000 RR, which BMW Motorrad provides as safety bikes, complete the 2018 safety car fleet.

Among the many other activities that make up BMW M GmbH’s commitment to MotoGP is the BMW M Award, which will be presented for the 16th time in 2018. This award is presented at the end of each MotoGP season to the rider with the best overall result in qualifying.

The winner receives an exclusive BMW M car. The BMW M MotoGP Experience sees guests of BMW M GmbH experience an unforgettable race weekend. They are given an exclusive glimpse behind the scenes by BMW M MotoGP experts Loris Capirossi and Alex Hofmann. Furthermore, BMW M GmbH presents its latest models and products with on-site campaigns on selected Grand Prix weekends.