Walkenhorst has expanded to a second car for its sophomore campaign in the DTM, with two-time series champion Marco Wittmann joined in the team by ex-T3 Lamborghini racer Esteban Muth.
Wittmann will continue to carry the colours of Schaeffler on his BMW for a fourth season, having first linked up with the brand in 2019. However, Walkenhorst has revamped the livery for this year, with green replacing white as the base colour on his BMW M4.
Wittmann's new teammate Muth will sport a tricolour livery, carrying sponsorship from Chinese brands CATL and IQOO - both partners of BMW Motorsport.
Over at Schubert, a newcomer in the DTM this year as a replacement for Rowe Racing, one time-race winner Sheldon van der Linde will be racing with the iconic colours of oil giant Shell on his M4, rekindling their relationship from 2019-20.
The blue RoboMarkets livery will also be making a return for the first time since the demise of the DTM's Class One era, with Philipp Eng's car featuring the colour scheme previously sported by Joel Eriksson.
Eng is back in the DTM after a one-year absence, having spent the 2021 season racing on the other side of the Atlantic in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship.
“The face of the DTM may have changed after the end of the Class 1 era, but it has not lost any of its appeal when it comes to race action, the impressive number of competitors signed up for this season, and the high-class field of teams and drivers,” said Timo Resch, Vice President Customer, Brand and Sales at BMW M.
“I am thrilled that, as we do, our long-term BMW M Motorsport partners continue to recognise the huge potential of the DTM platform and have decided to support the BMW M Motorsport teams – Walkenhorst Motorsport and Schubert Motorsport – in 2022.
"I really like all the BMW M4 GT3 designs. They will be real eye-catchers in a large field. Thank you to all the partners for their support!”
2022 is an important year for the BMW in the DTM and its new M4 contender, having contested the last season with the out-of-production and ageing M6 model.
Despite the M6 not being built for the DTM's sprint style format, Wittmann emerged as a strong contender for the title, with only a poor of results at the end of the campaign leaving him fourth in the final standings.
