BMW returns to the endurance world championship in 2019-2020

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BMW returns to the endurance world championship in 2019-2020
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BMW returns to the endurance world championship in 2019/2020

BMW drives EWC
Bayern start on the long haul

BMW is expanding its international works involvement with the new BMW S 1000 RR to include the FIM Endurance World Championship (FIM EWC).


Uli Baumann

08/22/2019

From the coming season 2019/20, which will take place on 21./22. September starts with the Bol d’Or in Le Castellet (FRA), that happens BMW motorcycle World Endurance Team with the new RR in the FIM EWC, the Bavarians announced at the beginning of August.

Long-term title in sight

The deployment takes place in cooperation with the MRP team led by Team Manager Werner Daemen (BEL). Kenny Foray (FRA), Julian Puffe (GER) and Ilya Mikhalchik (UKR) were named as drivers. The 35-year-old Foray has been part of the BMW Motorrad Motorsport family for several years and is a real long-distance expert. He has been contesting endurance races since 2008, and in 2014 he celebrated winning the FIM Endurance World Championship. Foray has been competing with BMW teams in the FIM EWC since 2016 – and is with BMW S 1000 RR also successful in the French Superbike Championship (FSBK), in which he was crowned champion in 2017. In 2016 and 2018 Foray took second place in the FSBK championship ranking. Foray is closely involved in the development of the long-distance version of the new RR and completed the previous test drives together with the team.

The 23-year-old Puffe and the also 23-year-old Mikhalchik have been teammates in Werner Daemen’s team in the International German Motorcycle Championship (IDM) since last season. So they know each other, the team and the new RR very well.

Dunlop is involved in the project as a tire partner. “Endurance races like Bol d’Or or Le Mans are real endurance tests for man and machine, in which we can prove the performance of our BMW S 1000 RR on an international stage. The FIM EWC is becoming more and more popular worldwide, and it enables us to be present in the Asian markets, ”explains BMW Motorrad boss Markus Schramm. BMW clearly sees the first season as an apprenticeship year. In the long term, however, BMW wants to be among the leaders and aim for the title. The season starts on 21./22. September with the 24-hour race Bol d’Or in Le Castellet (FRA).

In preparation for the start of the season, the BMW Motorrad World Endurance Team is currently developing a long-distance version based on the RR Superbike, which is used in the FIM Superbike World Championship (WorldSBK). Among other things, the superbikes in the endurance world championship have larger tanks, a quick tank system and other modifications that aim to improve durability and ergonomics, among other things.

As part of its customer racing program, BMW has been a member of the FIM EWC for a number of years.

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