BMW Scales Back Motorsports, Amplifies EV

Led by three-time IndyCar champion Bobby Rahal, BMW Team RLL got back on the road over the weekend. 

The Twelve Hours of Sebring is part of the WeatherTech SportsCar Championship series and the second major endurance race of the 2021 season. The team last raced the Tour of Sebring in November after the race’s traditional March date was delayed due to the pandemic.

Despite Team RLL’s participation, BMW announced ahead of the race that it will limit its involvement in motorsports this year. The company will only be involved in four of the 13 scheduled SportsCar Championship series events. 

The decision comes as BMW focuses on electric vehicles. “We are intent on ensuring that the ‘greenest’ electric car on the market is made by BMW,” CEO Oliver Zipse said in a statement. The company expects half of its sales to come from electric vehicles by 2030. 

BMW recorded a pre-tax profit of $5.6 billion in the final six months of 2020 compared to $5.1 billion during the same period in 2019. Q4 specifically saw pre-tax profit reach $2.7 billion compared to $2.4 billion a year earlier.

BMW could have 2 million electric vehicles in circulation by 2025 and 10 million by 2030. It’s set to unveil its first all-electric sedan, the i4, later this year and hopes to have 25 electric cars in its lineup by mid-decade.