On Friday, 4 December 2020, a press release appeared in which BMW Motorsport said goodbye to its most successful BMW M racing team to date: Schnitzer Motorsport.

The Corona pandemic and the ensuing economic difficulties are forcing many carmakers to take drastic measures. Due to cutbacks and discontinued programmes, there is currently an oversupply of teams. It is, however, a pity and difficult to understand why BMW is terminating the Schnitzer team. It was their most prestigious and most successful team. No other team was active for so long and scored so many victories and titles.

Meanwhile, several months later, it has been announced that the racing team has ceased to exist. All the material of the race team has been put up for sale. A heavy and difficult decision which we must respect, but would have preferred not to see happen.

Where in the early years, the Schnitzer team was a good private team and prepared its own BMW cars, it was incorporated into the official BMW Motorsport programme in the mid 1980s. First with the 635 CSi and then with the M3, it became the benchmark among the BMW M Teams. Schnitzer was sent out by BMW Motorsport with only one goal: to achieve victory. In addition to competing under their own name, they also used cars in the name of BMW Motorsport for several years. Their greatest successes came from this period with the BMW V12 LMR, M3 GTR and M3 GTE. Even the FIA GT and Le Mans programme with the Mclaren BMW F1 GTR in 1997 was successfully run by Schnitzer on behalf of BMW Motorsport.

The history of Schnitzer begins modestly in 1963. Brothers Josef and Herbert restore a battered Fiat Abarth and turn it into a racing car. Josef was also the driver and it was not long before their name became a household word in motor sport. On circuits, but especially in the European climbing championship, they are unbeatable in their early years. Then the Fiat is replaced by a BMW 1800ti. A first German track title follows for Josef in 1966. In 1967 he stops racing and devotes himself to improving and developing BMW racing engines. Half-brothers Karl “Charly” and Dieter Lamm join the troops and now the train has completely left. Schnitzer goes on to win the European Touring Car Championship, Fia GT, DTM, BTCC, Japanese Touring Car Championship, Le Mans, IMSA, VLN Nurburgring, DTM ( Class 1 ) and the GT3 Championship ( national and international ).

Victories in all major races are on their list of honours, the most important being the 24 Hours of Lemans and the 12 Hours of Sebring in 1999.  Five times they win the 24 hours of Francorchamps and in the 24 hours of Nürburgring they walk away with the biggest trophy four times. In 2018, they won the GT3 World Cup on the street circuit of Macao.

They win prestigious championships all over the world such as the BTCC 1994 ( English Touring Car Championship ), the Japanese Touring Car Championship 1995, the WTCC 1987 ( World Touring Car Championship ), the Asian Pacific Championship 1994, the European Touring Car Championship in 1983/1986 and 1988 and the Italian Touring Car Championship in 1989 and 1990. They are also very successful in their homeland with German titles in 1966, 1978, 1989, 1995, 1998 and 2012. In America, they won the Imsa GT title in 2001. In 1975, they even won the European Formula 2 Championship with an engine developed by Josef Schnitzer based on the BMW 2 litre 4 cylinder engine.

That this is a historic team is also proven by the names of the pilots that we find on their cars. And there were some very big names among them. A selection of the most important ones: Hans Stuck, Dieter Quester, Roberto Ravaglia, Steve Soper, JJ Letho, Nelson Piquet, Manfred and Joachim Winkelhock, Johnny Cecotto, Harald Ertl, Ronnie Peterson, Walter Röhl, Hans Heyer, Augusto Farfus, Bruno Spengler, Eric Van de Poele, Emanuele Pirro, Roland Ratzenberger, Gerhard Berger, Brian Redman, Henri Pescarolo, Bob Wollek, Vittorio Brambilla, Rolf Stommelen, John Fitzpatrick, Ivan Capelli, Christian Danner and Marc Surer.

Small quiz question: How many pilots, who ever drove in a Formula 1 race, are listed here?  The answer can be found at the very bottom.

57 years after Jozef Schnitzer debuted with his Fiat Abarth in a climbing race in Gaisberg – Austria, the team’s last race took place at the 2020 Nürburgring 24 Hours. Augusto Farfus, Jens Klingmann, Martin Tomczyck and Sheldon van der Linde drove their BMW M6GT3 onto the podium in third place in the final standings. Nobody could have predicted then that this would be their last exploit. For many motorsport fans this would later become a “black Sunday”. When thinking of a racing BMW, Schnitzer was usually the first to come to mind.

The history and the associated record of the Schnitzer team are enormous and we will ensure a dignified farewell. Who wants to enjoy this with us, can do so in the course of the next few months in our section “Retrospective”.

For those who would like a foretaste, we refer you to the following film made by BMW Motorsport to thank them for their long-standing co-operation.

Mis zeker de volgende artikels niet!

Antwoord op de quizvraag: 20

Verslag: Joris De Cock
Foto’s: Joris De Cock & BMW Motorsport