Now that Walkenhorst Motorsport has closed out the Asian Le Mans Series season, they will focus on the DTM championship for the rest of the season, and longtime BMW team Schubert Motorsport will also line up in the DTM as well, with both teams campaigning the M4 GT3. The two teams will run two cars apiece in the series, with works drivers Marco Wittmann and newcomer Esteban Muth competing for Walkenhorst and works drivers Philipp Eng and Sheldon van der Linde driving for Schubert.
Marco Wittman (who won DTM championships in 2014 and 2016 with the M4 DTM) drove in the DTM for Walkenhorst with the M6 GT3 last year and is looking forward to 2022. “It is great to be a part of Walkenhorst Motorsport again, and to compete in the DTM,” he said. “As I have always raced in the DTM since 2013, I am very much looking forward to the challenge. Last year, we found our feet well as a new team, and in the new GT3 format. We enjoyed some real highs, claimed two victories with the BMW M6 GT3, and were in contention for the title until shortly before the end of the season. In the end, we finished fourth overall. We are now looking to build on that success in 2022, especially in the knowledge that we race with the new BMW M4 GT3 this year.”
Schubert Motorsport will make their debut in the DTM this year and feels like they have the experience and the drivers to be competitive from the start. “The ITR (the sanctioning body for DTM) did a super job with such a large field in the first year (2021 was first year DTM used GT3-spec cars), and I am certain that we will again see a lot of good drivers and very strong teams on the grid this year,” said Eng. “The DTM quite simply has a crazy charisma about it, and I am pleased to be back – especially with our new BMW M4 GT3. I am particularly thrilled to be driving for Schubert Motorsport. We have never worked together at races in the past, but I know the team very well. We have a very sound basis, and I am looking forward to finally going racing.”
Philipp Eng will drive for Schubert Motorsport
The DTM season opens the 2022 season at the Portimao circuit in Portugal at the end of April, and will race at iconic European tracks, including Spa in Belgium, Imola in Italy, the Red Bull Ring in Austria, and the Nürburgring and Hockenheimring in Germany. “The DTM provides a perfect stage for our new BMW M4 GT3 and our BMW M Motorsport teams,” said BMW M CEO Frank van Meel. “We are looking forward to top-class, captivating racing at some fantastic international racetracks. At the same time, the DTM platform also plays a key role in our other activities. In the DTM Trophy, the BMW M Motorsport teams are strongly represented with the BMW M4 GT4. In the BMW M2 Cup, we are taking our own one-make cup onto the track within the framework of the DTM, and in the DTM Classic, we will witness fascinating vehicles from BMW M history. We are already really looking forward to the start of a great 2022 season.”—David Haueter
[Photos courtesy BMW.]
