2014 BMW M6 Coupe Is This Year’s MotoGP Qualifying Prize

Although the top qualifier during the 2013 MotoGP season won’t necessarily win the series championship, that racer is still in line for a fairly nice prize: A 2014 BMW M6 Coupe has been selected as the 2013 BMW M Award, presented annually to the MotoGP rider with the season’s best qualifying results. It will be the 10th time that BMW has given the award and comes during the M brand’s 15th year as the Official Car of the world’s No. 1 motorcycle-racing series—and the 90th anniversary of the launch of BMW Motorrad.

(“Motorrad,” of course, is German for “motorcycle,” and reflects the fact that, as some readers may know, the modern-day purveyors of the Ultimate Driving Machine first got their start building two-wheeled vehicles; the company didn’t begin offering cars until five years after it opened for business.)

But getting back to the 2014 BMW M6 Coupe, it will be distinguished by an exterior that shows off the logical next step in the evolution of the brand’s “frozen” matte colors: Frozen Black Metallic. The exclusive finish is further accented by:

• Lightweight 20-inch matte-black M wheels
• Adaptive LED headlights
• Multifunction driver and front-passenger seats
• A leather interior done in Merino and Sakhir Orange leather and featuring carbon-fiber highlights
• BMW “Professional” navigation system and head-up display
• Carbon-ceramic brakes
• Motivation from a BMW M TwinPower Turbo V8 that delivers 560 hp, 500 lb.-ft. of torque, and a 0-60 time of 4.1 seconds

Just remember, even those drivers who aren’t attempting to qualify for a MotoGP event this year can get into a 2014 BMW M6 Coupe—provided they have $109,200 to spare.

2014 BMW M6 Gran Coupe Leads Bavarian MotoGP Support Fleet

Meanwhile, as the 2014 BMW M6 Coupe plays the role of this year’s MotoGP M Award, its four-door sibling—the 2014 BMW M6 Gran Coupe—has been put to work as the lead car in BMW’s MotoGP safety fleet. To be clear here, the M6 Gran Coupe, despite its name, is undoubtedly a sedan, but with a striking, coupe-like silhouette and equally coupe-like performance. In fact, brandishing the same powertrain as the 2014 BMW M6 Coupe, the Gran Coupe also boasts the same ability to sprint from 0-60 in 4.1 seconds, as well as the same (electronically limited) top speed of 155 mph.

That power certainly will help the 2014 BMW M6 Gran Coupe feel at ease on the world’s MotoGP tracks, where it will be joined by a full complement of BMW vehicles that will be on duty during the contests. Joining the Gran Coupe as safety cars will be a BMW M6 Coupe and BMW M5, as well as a BMW M3 Coupe driven by each track’s safety officer, a pair of BMW M550 xDrive Touring models that serve as medical cars, and two BMW HP4 motorcycles that will be keeping the courses covered as safety bikes.

“We are delighted that our cooperation with MotoGP is already entering its 15th season,” said Thomas Schemera, Director of Sales and Marketing at BMW M GmbH. “This shows that Dorna Sports [the management company that oversees the series] sees us as a reliable partner when it comes to guaranteeing that practice sessions, qualifying and races pass safely in the pinnacle of motorcycle racing—even in the most difficult weather conditions.”