BMW Team SRM endured a heavy schedule at the Phillip Island Grand Prix circuit over the weekend, campaigning back-to-back events with both the fourth round of the Australian GT Championship and the opening round of the Australian Endurance Championship contested at the popular Victorian circuit. With the #100 BMW M6 GT3 finally in full 2016 FIA GT3 specification – matching their European and American siblings – reigning Bathurst champion Steven Richards and team-mate Max Twigg contested two 60-minute races for Australian GT, followed by a 101-lap, three-hour enduro on Sunday afternoon.
For Richards the results don’t give a true indication of just how competitive the BMW Team SRM M6 was across the weekend, after two poorly placed Safety Car interventions and a string of tyre failures dropped the team down the order in the closing stages of all three races, although the reigning Bathurst 1000 champion admitted he was more than happy with the outcome and the pace of the car.
Twigg qualified ninth in the opening leg, whilst Richards was comfortably mid-field, the team playing the strategy game on tyres in preparation for the two stop event, but whilst on target for a comfortable top ten result, fate intervened with three separate tyre failures during the race which ultimately affected strategy and dropped them down the order by race end. They weren’t the only ones, 30-separate incidents occurred with tyres during the race, in most cases as a result of the debris on track, although for Richards that was cold comfort.
BMW Team SRM now shifts its focus to the penultimate round of the Australian GT Championship on the streets of Townsville on 8-10 July, followed by round two of the Endurance Championship at Sydney Motorsport Park on 26-28 August.
Keep up to date with BMW Team SRM team across the Phillip Island weekend by visiting; www.facebook.com/BMW_Team_SRM and get involved with the conversation on Twitter; www.twitter.com/BMW_Team_SRM
