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HILLIARD, Ohio — BMW of North America, LLC and Rahal Letterman Racing announced today the addition of Tommy Milner and Dirk Müller as BMW Rahal Letterman Racing Team drivers in BMW’s return to American Le Mans Series competition in 2009. The duo will join Bill Auberlen and Joey Hand as the drivers for the team’s inaugural two-car effort in the ALMS GT2 class in 2009.
“With the high level of competition already established in the ALMS GT2 class, the BMW Rahal Letterman Racing Team is moving into a very fast lane,” said Martin Birkmann, BMW of North America Motorsports Manager. “Previous BMW M3 and ALMS GT racing experience were critical parameters in our driver selection process. The addition of Tommy Milner and Dirk Müller to Bill Auberlen and Joey Hand gives us a highly qualified driver lineup.”
Milner, 22, of Leesburg, Va., began his racing career in 2004 as a Formula BMW USA Junior driver. The son of Prototype Technology Group owner Tom Milner, Tommy would join PTG later that year and qualify on pole position in his very first professional sports car race. He made his ALMS debut in 2006, and went on to join Rahal Letterman Racing in 2007, co-driving the team’s Porsche to five podium finishes and fourth place in GT2 driver points. When RLR decided to forego the ALMS in 2008, Milner joined the Panoz where he co-drove with Joey Hand, finishing on the podium in the season’s final race.
“I'm very pleased to be racing for BMW,” said Milner. “Following the start of my career as a Formula BMW Junior driver in 2004, I've also had some of my best results driving previous generation M3s. I hope to continue those successes in 2009 for the BMW Rahal Letterman Racing Team.”
Müller, 33, originally from Burbach, Germany, is considered to be one of the best GT drivers in the world. With vast experience in sprint and endurance racing series in both North America and Europe, Dirk Müller has raced in five previous ALMS seasons between 1999 and 2008. Winning the ALMS GT driver’s championship in 2000, Müller became a BMW driver for the first time in 2001, continuing through 2005. Driving a BMW M3 GTR in 2001, Müller raced to five podium finishes in a season that saw the BMW sweep all ALMS GT class titles. Müller also co-drove the M3 GTR to victory in the 2004 Nürburgring 24 Hour race.
“I am honored to be part of the BMW Rahal Letterman Racing Team and to be working with BMW of North America and Bobby Rahal,” said Müller. “I enjoyed being part of the BMW family from 2001 until 2006 so this makes me feel like I am home again. I am also happy to have the engine back at the front of the car!”
The BMW Rahal Letterman Racing Team is currently preparing its BMW M3 race cars at its Hilliard, Ohio shop in advance of the January 26-28 ALMS Winter Tests at Sebring International Raceway. The team recently conducted its initial M3 testing by making runs at Road Atlanta and Sebring.
"Adding a pair of drivers with the skills and road-racing acumen of Dirk Müller and Tommy Milner really increases the overall talent level of the BMW Rahal Letterman Racing Team,” said Rahal Letterman Racing co-owner Bobby Rahal. “We have worked with Tommy over the last two years in a number of different cars and he has been a quick study and taken each of our cars straight to the front! Dirk has long been recognized as one of the top talents in road racing and we think the addition of Milner and Müller to our team gives us one of the best lineups in the ALMS GT2 class."
The BMW Rahal Letterman Racing Team will begin the 2009 American Le Mans Series season on March 22 at the 12 Hours of Sebring.
BMW Group In America
BMW of North America, LLC has been present in the United States since 1975. Rolls-Royce Motor Cars NA, LLC began distributing vehicles in 2003. The BMW Group in the United States has grown to include marketing, sales, and financial service organizations for the BMW brand of motor vehicles, including motorcycles, the MINI brand, and the Rolls-Royce brand of Motor Cars; DesignworksUSA, an industrial design firm in California; a technology office in Silicon Valley and various other operations throughout the country. BMW Manufacturing Co., LLC in South Carolina is part of BMW Group’s global manufacturing network and is the exclusive manufacturing plant for all Z4 models, X5 Sports Activity Vehicles and X6 Sports Activity Coupes. The BMW Group sales organization is represented in the U.S. through networks of 338 BMW passenger car centers, 335 BMW Sports Activity Vehicle centers, 142 BMW motorcycle retailers, 83 MINI passenger car dealers, and 30 Rolls-Royce Motor Car dealers. BMW (US) Holding Corp., the BMW Group’s sales headquarters for North, Central and South America, is located in Woodcliff Lake, New Jersey.
Journalist note: Information about the BMW Group and its products is available to journalists on-line at the BMW Group PressClub at the following address: www.press.bmwgroup.com. Broadcast quality video footage is available via The NewsMarket at www.thenewsmarket.com.
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