HAUSER: ANOTHER BMW CASUALTY

FOLLOWING the news that BMW Motorrad Superbike Team Manager Davide Tardozzi had left the team (see: http://krnewsroom.blogspot.com/2010/10/bmw-split-tardozzi-gone.html ) we now have word that he was not the only casualty in what appears to be an internal battle of wills.

Tardozzi was released from his three year contract over "differences of opinion about the way the team should be organized," with rumours that he and BMW Motorrad Motorsport Director Berthold Hauser (right) were clashing over the way the team should be run.

Tardozzi was one of the most widely respected team managers in World Superbikes, and credited with much Ducati's Superbike World Championship success, where he was team manager for many years before joining BMW.

It has now emerged that Tardozzi was not the only victim of that encounter, with the BMW team issuing a press release announcing that Hauser is also to be replaced, with immediate effect.

The press release is as follows:

BMW Motorrad Motorsport is heading into the future with a new management structure. Bernhard Gobmeier will replace Berthold Hauser as BMW Motorrad Motorsport Director with immediate effect. The move comes two weeks after BMW Motorrad and Team Manager Davide Tardozzi agreed to part company by mutual consent. Gobmeier will be responsible for all BMW Motorrad Motorsport activities, including the company's factory involvement in the Superbike World Championship.

"I'm pleased to announce this fundamental realignment," says Hendrik von Kuenheim, General Director of BMW Motorrad.

"The new structure puts BMW Motorrad Motorsport in extremely good shape to meet the challenges of the future. Bernhard Gobmeier has filled a variety of roles within the BMW Group over the years and brings his experience in motor sport to the job. I'm in no doubt that he will continue to take BMW Motorrad Motorsport forwards with his analytical and structured approach. He will bring himself up to speed with the current situation as quickly as possible and put the necessary measures in place."

And von Kuenheim continues: "I would like to thank Berthold Hauser for all his good work over recent years. He can look back on some impressive successes in his career as BMW Motorrad Motorsport Director. Under his leadership Richard Sainct won the Paris-Dakar Rally in 1999 and 2000 as BMW Motorrad made its return to the event. And Berthold Hauser was also responsible for the team's successful start to life in the Superbike World Championship and its first podium finishes. He will continue to perform a managerial role for BMW Motorrad."

New BMW Motorrad Motorsport Director Gobmeier, adds: "I'm looking forward to taking on this new challenge in a top-class race series with a professional racing team and two strong riders. Our aim is clear: to build consistently on the positive foundations which Berthold Hauser and his team have put in place over recent years, so that we can be in a position to win races on merit as soon as possible."

Gobmeier, a qualified engineer, has worked for BMW AG for more than 16 years, during which time he has performed a variety of roles. In 1994 and 1995 he was responsible for overhauling the company's sales activities for BMW M vehicles in North America and restructuring its racing activities in the American Le Mans Series (ALMS) with the BMW M3 GT. The native Bavarian then filled various management positions within BMW M GmbH between 1996 and 2008, before taking over as head of chassis development at BMW Motorrad in 2008.