Go to any track day, at any time of year, and you’re guaranteed to see a BMW 2 Series of some kind. Whether it’s an old M235i with a Quaife diff and a few other goodies or a fully tricked out M2 with more than 500hp, there’s always going to be at least one. Fast, fun, well balanced and easily tuneable, they make good entry level track cars. Or more senior track cars, in fact, if budget permits.
BMW had previously been keen itself to take advantage of the car’s potential, creating a range of Racing models (M235i, M240i, M2 CS) for entry-level motorsport. We say entry-level; it obviously wasn’t EnduroKa or 2CVs, but with standard powertrains they offered a relatively low cost way into tin top BMW racing underneath GT4-spec machines. The Nurburgring 24 Hours is often teaming with six–pot 2 Series howling around; there are surely far worse ways to kick off a rear drive enduro racing career than with a small(ish), factory built BMW.
Having not really mentioned the current M2 and motorsport much, BMW has now confirmed that there will be a new racecar coming for 2026. Like those previous Racing models, this one - name TBC - aims to be the first rung on the ladder. A bit like the M240i xDrive road car, it’s the junior 2 Series that gets people into a BMW, then they work their way up through the range. BMW says ‘affordable and technically sophisticated entry-level racing cars are a tradition’, this one there like the previous coupes to be a ‘perfect stepping stone into higher GT4 and GT3 classes.’
Certainly this looks the part, hunkered down on race wheels and Goodyear slicks, with the cage and OMP seat visible through the glass. The CSL-style ducktail is a nice touch, and even without a livery this M2 (we’ll assume it’s not an M240i this time around) is looking very racy already. Perhaps a dimly lit room helps a favourable impression of something derived from the G87, though we’ll retain just a bit of optimism for now.
Björn Lellmann, Head of Customer Racing at BMW M Motorsport, said of the new project: “Proximity to our customers is one of the maxims we pursue at BMW M Motorsport. From our point of view, this also includes offering a car for grassroots racing that teams and newcomers to racing can afford and that at the same time offers them BMW M Motorsport technology at the highest level. Accordingly, we are delighted to be able to announce a successor model to the BMW M235i Racing, BMW M240i Racing, and BMW M2 CS Racing at this point. Our engineers are already working intensively at this early stage of development to optimally prepare the car for customer use.”
More as we get it, then - but best get your team assembled soon, just to be sure.
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