BMW Hypercar Drivers in Reduced DTM Lineup

BMW will be represented by a single, three-car team on this year’s DTM grid, with Schubert Motorsport fielding a lineup consisting entirely of Hypercar factory drivers.

The Munich manufacturer is scaling back its presence in the series compared to last year, with Team Project 1 dropping off the grid after it was revealed on Monday that the German squad is filing for bankruptcy.

Marco Wittmann, who was Project 1’s full season driver, will move across to Schubert to join Sheldon van der Linde and Rene Rast, who have been retained after both winning races with the team last year.

The three drivers share six DTM titles between them, with Van der Linde most recently winning the crown with Schubert in 2022.

Wittmann, Rast and Van der Linde will all dovetail their DTM commitments with a program in the FIA World Endurance Championship’s Hypercar class. There are no direct clashes between the two series, although the Zandvoort round does fall on the same weekend as the 24 Hours of Le Mans test day.

“The DTM continues to play a very important role in our extensive racing programme for the 2024 season,” said BMW M Motorsport director Andreas Roos.

“We underline our commitment with a top-class line-up that boasts a total of seven DTM titles: one team title for Schubert Motorsport, three drivers’ titles for René Rast, two drivers’ titles for Marco Wittmann, and one drivers’ title for Sheldon van der Linde.

“By concentrating our BMW M works drivers on one team, we are pooling our strengths and creating optimal conditions to be able to play an important role in the title fight again.”

Mercedes-AMG announced last week that it too will field a smaller, more concentrated effort in the German sprint series this year, with Landgraf Motorsport dropping off the grid after a single season.