The MotoGP season is heating up, and the BMW M cars will continue to make sure the fun doesn’t get out of hand. The company announced it is including the M5 and 1M as safety cars for this year’s races, and will soon roll out a safety car-livery M6 coupe.
BMW announced that MotoGP, which kicked off its 2012 season last week in Qatar, will continue its six-year-old partnership with the M division. The pairing provides MotoGP stewards, medics, and safety officers with a variety of BMW-crafted vehicles for use during events, including X5 and X6 Ms, 535i Tourings, and S 1000 RR motorcycles.
For the first half of the year, MotoGP races will continue with last year’s arrangement, which includes the BMW M5 and the 1 Series M safety cars. About halfway through the year, M will turn up the heat by replacing the 1M with something a bit hotter: the new M6 Coupe. The M6 Coupe is powered by the same 4.4-liter twin-turbo V-8 engine from the M5 sedan, which makes 560 horsepower and 500 pound-feet of torque, and is sent through the rear wheels through a seven-speed dual-clutch transmission. If the current M5 is any indication, the M6 will receive slight modifications in the form of adjustable traction control, aerodynamic tweaks, a sportier exhaust system, and a more sculpted racing bucket seat.
As for the racers behind the pace car, they can look forward to some love from BMW as well: it will continue its M Award program this year, which rewards the driver with the best qualifying results during the season. The winner will be celebrated at a special night in Valencia, Spain this year, where he’ll receive a BMW M3 Coupe Competition Edition, wearing a special shade of Frozen Silver paint and black M wheels.
