The first official image of the new BMW Sportboxer

BMW are set to enter their SportBoxer twin in four endurance races this season, with the Le Mans 24 hours event this weekend being the opening round for the factory backed team.

The 140bhp, 195kg (fully-fuelled) R1200S based machine will be ridden by road racers with BMW Cup experience: Stéphane Mertens, Thomas Hinterreiter and Rico Penzkofer, with Marcus Barth as the back-up rider.

In 2007, the team will enter a total of four 24-hour races. In addition to the "24 heures moto" at Le Mans (21/22 April) the program also includes the 24-hour races of Barcelona (07/08 July), Oschersleben (11/12 August) and Magny Cours (Bol d’Or, 15/16 September).

The final production version of the Sport Boxer will be officially unveiled at the Paris Motorcycle Show in September.

For more info click here