Racing team West Surrey Racing (WSR) was the star of the show at the 2019 Professional MotorSport World Awards, picking up not only the International Race Car of the Year for its BMW 330i M Sport, but also the European Race Series Team of the Year Award for its triumphant 2019 season in BTCC.
The BMW manufacturer team secured its fourth consecutive manufacturer’s title and was the first in the history of the PMW Awards to win the award two years in a row.
If there was still any doubt, Colin Turkington and Team BMW certainly proved they were worthy of the award on the final day of the season at Brands Hatch. Looking to overturn an eight-point deficit in the finale, Turkington took his BMW 330i M Sport from 25th on the grid into the top 10 to earn WSR its 11th title in six seasons.
Teammate Tom Oliphant also produced an incredible fightback in the final race of the day to climb from 30th – and last on the grid – to 10th place. Completing the success story, BMW Pirtek Racing’s Andrew Jordan – whose 330i is also run by WSR – claimed runner-up spot in the driver’s championship.
Team founder and principal Dick Bennetts was keen to stress the ‘team’ aspect of the award: “It’s a team effort – there’s 27 of us, so it’s really for everyone on the team, plus BMW, who supported us. It’s been an incredible year, considering it was a brand-new car back in March.”
“All three of our drivers work together, that’s one of the team rules. No one has any advantage, they all get equal treatment, and they get on well together.”
