BMW's commitment to young driving talent goes back as far as the 1970s, when the company supported the BMW Junior Team and the spectacular Procar series over many years. From 1991 to 2001, BMW was involved in the Formula ADAC championship as the engine supplier, helping gifted young drivers progress from go-karts to Formula racing. In many cases, these drivers subsequently went on to compete in international motor sports. Indeed, over the past twelve years, well over forty beneficiaries of BMW ADAC Scholarships have made their way into Formula 3. The most famous graduate has to be Ralf Schumacher, who competed in his first Formula ADAC race on the Norisring in 1992 and is now one of the leading drivers in Formula 1.
In only its seventh year worldwide, Formula BMW has become one of the top choices of karters around the world to make the progression to race cars. The series provides a strong platform of races along with a diverse Education and Coaching Program. With the help of three championship series held in Europe, the Americas, and the Pacific, Formula BMW takes talented young drivers who have outgrown the kart track and introduces them to professional motor racing.
PhilosophyEven the best talent needs support. That is why BMW doesn't just offer gifted young go-kart drivers a seat in a Formula racing car - it promotes the most promising candidates as Formula BMW Juniors.
Apart from financial support, the young drivers are offered an Education and Coaching Program that gives them the best possible preparation for their career in motorsports. This program is of course also available to all other drivers in the championships.
The primary objective is to back motor racing at the grass-roots level by offering drivers the comprehensive training they need. Internationally applied sporting and technical regulations ensure that all participants compete against each other with identical equipment and in a fair, competitive environment. That means nobody gains an advantage through financial or technical means, and that is the basis of an absolutely level playing field in the context of relatively limited budgets.
As a vital part of experienced racing teams, the young talents get accustomed to the atmosphere in a professional single-seater series. The effectiveness of this concept has produced drivers such as Nico Rosberg, Ralf Schumacher, Christian Klien, Timo Glock and many more, who have made it from the Formula BMW into a Formula One cockpit.
The Fastest Classroom on Earth
Drivers wishing to compete in the Formula BMW Championship must first obtain their Junior or International C license. . Drivers as young as 15 can apply for a 'Junior' license as long as they turn 16 within their first year of racing in the category. Drivers older than 18 require a C-license to compete in a Formula BMW Series. Instruction for either two-day license course takes place at the Formula BMW Racing Center in Valencia, Spain, where drivers are taught both the theory and the practicalities of such subjects as set-ups, gear changes, braking, racing line, flags, regulations, standing starts, and how to behave while the safety car is on track.
All this is carried out under the professional supervision of Jörg Müller (current BMW works driver) and Mike Strotmann (Coordinator Formula BMW Racing Center). These two experts pass on their invaluable expertise to a new generation, and are responsible for short-listing talented young drivers and making the final assessment that determines who will be accepted into the BMW Motorsport Scholarship Program in the upcoming season.Source - Formula BMW
Ricardo Favoretto from Sao Paulo, Brazil drives the number 7 Formula BMW Americas car. He is part of team Eurointernational.
By Daniel Vaughan | Jun 2008
Giancarlo Vilarinho from Sao Paulo, Brazil drives the number 9 Formula BMW Americas car. He is part of team Eurointernational.
By Daniel Vaughan | Jun 2008
Maxime Pelletier from Montreal, Quebec, Canada drives the number 10 Formula BMW Americas car. He is part of team Apex-HBR Racing.
By Daniel Vaughan | Jun 2008
Alexander Rossi from Nevada City, California drives the number 16 Formula BMW Americas car. He is part of team Eurointernational.
By Daniel Vaughan | Jun 2008
Mikael Grenier from Stoneham, Quebec, Canada drives the number 17 Formula BMW Americas car. He is part of team Apex-HBR Racing.
By Daniel Vaughan | Jun 2008
Alexandre Ruiz from Sao Paulo, Brazil drives the number 19 Formula BMW Americas car. He is part of team Apex-HBR Racing.
By Daniel Vaughan | Jun 2008
Jorge Goncalvez from Los Teques, Venezuela drives the number 20 Formula BMW Americas car. He is part of team Apex-HBR Racing.
By Daniel Vaughan | Jun 2008
David Ostella from Maple, Ontario, Canada drives the number 26 Formula BMW Americas car. He is part of team Eurointernational.
By Daniel Vaughan | Jun 2008
Gianmarco Rainmondo from St. Catherine, Quebec, Canada drives the number 50 Formula BMW Americas car. He is part of team Autotecnica.
By Daniel Vaughan | Jun 2008
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