WRT Completes First Test With BMW M4 GT3 at Barcelona

BMW M Team WRT completed the first tests with the BMW M4 GT3 at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, with Valentino Rossi also turning his first laps behind the wheel of the Bavarian marque’s GT3 challenger.

A pair of cars, one in a white livery and the second carrying a black color scheme and Rossi’s trademark No. 46 insignia, were out on track a day after the Fanatec GT World Challenge Europe powered by AWS Endurance Cup finale.

A statement from BMW about the test said it was primarily used as an opportunity for the team to ‘gain experience’ and ‘get early impressions of driving behavior’ before it campaigns the cars as part of its switch to BMW for next season.

“It is just a first rollout, just to understand the car and how we could work”, said team principal Vincent Vosse.

“But obviously it is something very different from what we know.”

As part of the test, Valentino Rossi drove the M4 GT3 for the first time ahead of his sophomore campaign in GT racing.

Both driver and team were supported at the test by factory driver Philipp Eng, who contested last weekend’s finale with ROWE Racing.

It is believed that other several drivers, including Thomas Neubauer, also got behind the wheel.

WRT will be racing the M4 GT3 in parallel to its development duties with the BMW M Hybrid V8 LMDh car, which it will field in a factory effort in the FIA World Endurance Championship in 2024.

The team’s race schedule in GT3, along with the driver lineup, will be announced at a later date.