Adieu, Maxime. After the 2024 season, the paths of BMW M works driver Maxime Martin and BMW M Motorsport will part ways. The 38-year-old will leave the Munich-based works line-up at his own request to pursue new challenges. This marks the end of a long and successful collaboration that began when Martin made a name for himself as a young talent in the BMW M Sports Trophy.
Thanks to his impressive performances in BMW M Motorsport’s customer racing programme, Martin earned his place in the works driver line-up, joining for the first time in 2013. He initially competed as a regular driver for BMW M Team RLL in the American Le Mans Series before moving to DTM from 2014 to 2017. In 2016, he celebrated victory at his home race, the 24 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps, driving the BMW M6 GT3 for ROWE Racing. In 2018, the Belgian moved to Aston Martin but returned to BMW M Motorsport as a works driver in the 2023 season.
Driving the BMW M4 GT3, the GT specialist continued to achieve success. Alongside Dries Vanthoor, Sheldon van der Linde, and Marco Wittmann, he secured a podium finish at the 2023 24 Hours Nürburgring, finishing in second place with ROWE Racing. At BMW M Team WRT, Martin formed a strong duo in the #46 BMW M4 GT3 with Valentino Rossi for two years. Highlights included victories in the GT World Challenge Europe at Rossi’s home race at Misano in 2023 and 2024. In the FIA World Endurance Championship (FIA WEC), Martin, Rossi, and Ahmad Al Harthy reached the podium twice this season in the LMGT3 class. This was complemented by appearances in the BMW M Hybrid V8 with BMW M Team RLL in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship.
On behalf of the entire BMW M Motorsport family, I would like to thank Maxime Martin for the many years we have spent together. He has been a tremendous asset to the BMW M Motorsport family in every aspect. We wish Maxime all the best for his future and look forward to seeing him again, though as a competitor, but still as a friend.
BMW M Motorsport has played a significant role in my career from the very beginning, and I look back fondly on everything we achieved together. I am very grateful for the time we spent together and for my seven years as a BMW M works driver. I wish BMW M Motorsport great success in the future, and the brand will always remain a part of me. But now it’s time for me to take on new challenges.