The most successful model in the history of touring car racing, the BMW 3 Series, will make a spectacular return to the British Touring Car Championship in 2019 with Team BMW and BMW Pirtek Racing.
Three examples of the 330i M Sport will be driven by Andrew Jordan , Colin Turkington and Tom Oliphant and run by reigning champion team WSR, who have designed and built the race car around the new seventh-generation model.
The 3 Series has won major championships on every continent including five Drivers’ titles and two Manufacturers’ crowns in the BTCC between 1988 and 2009 and gained iconic status as one of motor racing’s greatest cars.
Sunbury-on-Thames-based WSR began its ultra-successful relationship with BMW with the fifth-generation 320si in 2007. Winning the Independent Drivers’ and Teams’ titles for three consecutive years, the team achieved a first outright BTCC crown in 2009 with Colin Turkington netting the Drivers’ championship at a dramatic Brands Hatch season finale.
The 330i M Sport replaces the 125i M Sport, which has been the most successful car in WSR’s history. Debuted in 2013, it propelled Colin to two Drivers’ championships as well as taking four Teams’ titles, three Manufacturers’/Constructors’ crowns, 36 race wins and 116 podium finishes.
The new BTCC season starts at the legendary Brands Hatch circuit in Kent on April 6-7, with the 330i set to appear for the first time in public at the same circuit at the series’ Media Day on March 27.
Andrew Jordan, Pirtek Racing Driver, said “Since our relationship started with Pirtek back in 2005 we have been involved in some very exciting and successful projects. As we enter 2019 and our 3rd year with WSR, the news that BMW are bringing the all new BMW 3 series back to the BTCC is not only very exciting but also something we should all be very proud of. To have the Pirtek livery on the latest BMW race car is something that shows all of our hard work over the last 15 years and from a driving point of view I am very excited to be involved in the project from the start. WSR are working seriously hard to ensure we hit the ground running come round 1 at Brands Hatch and I am hugely motivated for 2019 and look forward to a winning season with Pirtek, BMW and WSR.”
Dick Bennetts, Team Principal, West Surrey Racing, said: “We are really pleased to be bringing the BMW 3 Series back to the BTCC. We achieved a great deal of success with the fifth-generation model between 2007 and 2012, so we are hugely excited to see what the latest version is capable of. A lot of hard work and countless hours lie ahead, but we are all confident of turning this car into a winner and hopefully reinstating it in its rightful place – at the front of the field in Britain’s premier motorsport series.”
Chris Stuckey, Managing Director, Pirtek UK, said: “Andrew Jordan and Pirtek have been competing as a successful team in the BTCC for the last decade. We are looking forward to partnering with the new BMW 3 series car for the next season and are excited to have the opportunity to repeat the podium success that BMW have previously experienced. With Andrew Jordan behind the wheel representing BMW Pirtek Racing, the 2019 season looks set to be very exciting for us in the BTCC.”
N.B. Please note this is not an accurate image of the Pirtek Racing car
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