Valencia. The fastest qualifier of the 2021 MotoGP™ season is once
again Fabio Quartararo. The Frenchman, who wrapped up the world
championship title with races to spare in October, won this year’s
coveted BMW M Award, for the second season in a row. The award is an
integral component of BMW M’s activities as ‘Official Car of MotoGP™’
and was presented for the 19th time in 2021. The prize for the winner
is traditionally a high-performance car from BMW M – this year the new
BMW M5 (fuel consumption, combined: 11.3 – 11.1 l/100 km [25.0 – 25.5
mpg imp] correspond to NEDC; 11.3 – 10.9 l/100 km correspond to WLTP,
CO2 emissions, combined: 258 – 253 g/km correspond to NEDC,
257 – 248 g/km correspond to WLTP)* in Brands Hatch Grey Metallic. The
prize car was presented at the final race weekend of the season at
Valencia by Franciscus van Meel, CEO of BMW M GmbH, and Carmelo
Ezpeleta, CEO of MotoGP™ rights holder Dorna Sports.
Having won the BMW M Award for the first time in 2020, Quartararo was
unbeatable again in this special competition. The Frenchman secured
pole position five times this season on his way to winning his first
MotoGP™ World Championship title. In total, he amassed 318 points for
the BMW M Award standings and ended the season 15 points clear of his
closest rival.
Quartararo received his new BMW M5 CS after the final qualifying of
the season on Saturday. The formal handover by Franciscus van Meel and
Carmelo Ezpeleta took place in the MotoGP™ VIP Village at Valencia’s
‘Circuit Ricardo Tormo’.
“The BMW M Award is of great significance to us. MotoGP is the
pinnacle of motorcycle racing and it is very important for us to
recognise the outstanding performances of the MotoGP riders over the
course of the season,” said van Meel. “Every race weekend, they thrill
us with breath-taking performances on the track. MotoGP brings
together the best motorcycle racers in the world – and the BMW M Award
is the fitting reward for the fastest of them all. For the second time
in a row, that person is Fabio Quartararo. He has once again shown his
skill and speed this season, deservedly winning the world
championship, and has also been in a class of his own again in the BMW
M Award. We are delighted to present him with the BMW M5 CS in
recognition of his qualifying performances. Congratulations, Fabio –
on the world championship title and winning the BMW M Award again. Our
23rd season as ‘Official Car of MotoGP’ draws to a close here at
Valencia, and we are now looking forward to 2022. It will be a special
year for us at BMW M, as we will be celebrating our 50th birthday –
and plans are already being made for an anniversary highlight in MotoGP.”
“The BMW M Award has been an important part of MotoGP since 2003, and
the presentation ceremony on the Saturday afternoon of the season
finale is a nice tradition,” said Ezpeleta. “BMW M GmbH comes up with
something special every year when selecting the prize car. This shows
how much they value the performances of our riders, and how important
the partnership is with MotoGP. This was already the 23rd season
together in this long-term and close collaboration. In the BMW M5 CS,
BMW M GmbH has again provided a fantastic prize car. Congratulations
to our new world champion Fabio Quartararo on his second BMW M Award
in a row. He has once again thrilled us with his outstanding
performances this year. I am sure he will have a lot of fun with the
BMW M5 CS.”
“It has been a fantastic season for me, winning my first MotoGP World
Championship, and my second BMW M Award is the icing on the cake at
the end of this special year,” said winner Quartararo. “I am delighted
to have won the BMW M Award again in 2021, having claimed my ‘maiden
victory’ last year. I really enjoy driving the BMW M2 CS from the 2020
BMW M Award, and I have to say that the new BMW M5 CS obviously caught
my eye as soon as it was presented as this year’s prize car. Even from
the outside, you can see how much power and performance it has. It is
fantastic that I have actually won it and can take it home with me.
Thank you very much to BMW M GmbH, who have been involved in MotoGP
for so many years, and who highlight and recognise our performances as
riders with the BMW M Award.”
The BMW M5 CS is the new top-of-the-range, high-performance model
from BMW M and, with its 4.4-litre V8 engine generating 467 kW/635 hp,
is the most powerful car in the company’s history. The new BMW M5 CS
sprints from 0 to 100 km/h in just 3.0 seconds, and from 0 to 200 km/h
in 10.3 seconds. The top speed is an electrically governed 305 km/h.
The high-performance engine teams up with an eight-speed M Steptronic
transmission with Drivelogic and uses the M xDrive all-wheel-drive
system, which also offers a 2WD mode for pure rear-wheel drive, to
channel its power to the road. With the BMW M5 CS, BMW M GmbH has
focussed on consistently lightweight design, with many components made
from carbon-reinforced plastic (CFRP). Examples of this include the
bonnet, front splitter, exterior mirror caps, rear spoiler, rear
diffuser, M Power engine compartment cover and intake silencer. The
chassis has also been adapted to the weight of the car, which is
lighter than other M5 models, with retuned bearing springs at the
front and rear axle, and further refined damper control. Many details
of the new BMW M5 CS are a tribute to the close association between
BMW M GmbH and motorsport.
The BMW M Award is an important pillar in BMW M GmbH’s involvement as
‘Official Car of MotoGP™’. Since 2013, the fastest qualifier in
MotoGP™ has been recognised at the end of each season with an
exclusive high-performance car. The riders score points at each Grand
Prix weekend, based on their results in qualifying and using the same
points system as in the races themselves. The record winner of the BMW
M Award is Marc Márquez, who won the award seven times in a row.
Valentino Rossi and Casey Stoner both have three victories in the BMW
M Award to their name. Fabio Quartararo and Jorge Lorenzo have both
been honoured as the top qualifier on two occasions, while Sete
Gibernau and Nicky Hayden have received the award once.
For more information about BMW M GmbH and the involvement as the
‘Official Car of MotoGP™’, see: www.bmw-m.com