BMW racers continue to fare well in sim racing events. Bruno Spengler won again in the IMSA iRacing Pro Series, and Maximilian Günther won the first race in the new ABB Formula E Race At Home Challenge. Spengler also ran on a Z4 GT3 team that finished third in a Digital Nürburgring Endurance Series race; a Walkenhorst Z4 finished second in that event. And finally, sim racer Dirk Groeneveld finished fourth in the second SRO GT Rivals E Sports event piloting a simulated M6 GT3.
Shane van Gisbergen finished second in the Laguna Seca sim race.
In the 90-minute IMSA race, run on a virtual Laguna Seca circuit on April 16, Spengler led a trio of M8 GTEs across the line, with Shane van Gisbergen second and Nick Catsburg third. It was the second podium sweep in the series for the M8 GTE. Twenty racers in the all-GTLM sim car pack were in M8 GTEs. The series runs again on April 30 on the virtual Mid-Ohio circuit.
Maximilian Günther leads the simulated Formula E pack.
Günther won on a virtual Monaco circuit in the April 18 test round for the new ABB Formula E sim racing series. His BMW i Andretti teammate Alexander Sims, who had received his simulator just a few days before the race, dropped out, while Kevin Siggy in another simulated BMW iFE.20 finished second in a separate contest run for sim racers. The event was a prelude to an eight-race season that begins on April 25.
A Walkenhorst Z4 GT3 finished second on the digital Nürburgring.
A Walkenhorst Z4 GT3 piloted by David Pittard, Sam Michaels, and Scott Michaels finished second in the three-hour Digital Nürburgring Endurance Series race run on April 18. Bruno Spengler, Nils Koch, and Kay Kaschube finished third. Philipp Eng, Alexander Voss, and Laurin Heinrich finished first, but they were penalized for a pit stop violation and were classified sixth. The win went to Alex Arana and Agustin Canapino in a Mahle Racing Audi R8 LMS.
In the SRO GT Rivals race run on the simulated Misano circuit in Italy, Groeneveld finished fourth, and Toby Grahovec in another M6 GT3 finished 21st. The winner was sim racer Josh Staffin in an Audi R8 LMS Evo.—Brian Morgan
[Photos courtesy BMW Motorsport.]