ETCC: Zanardi/BMW make it official

Thursday 18TH December 2003 - Former F1 and Champ Car star Alex Zanardi, who lost his legs in a horrific racing accident two year's ago, has confirmed that he will return to racing in the 2004 European Touring Car Championship (ETCC).

The 37-year-old Italian finished an impressive seventh in a one-off outing at the final round of the 2003 season, at Monza, and that performance -- together with a promising test at Valencia earlier this week -- has convinced Alex to commit to a full season with BMW.

"I'm happy to take part in the FIA European Touring Car Championship with BMW Team Italy-Spain," Zanardi told the official ETCC website. "Racing in Monza was great. The car was very competitive, especially the engine, and that is a great motivator to continue its development.

"Our competitors are strong and won't give us any presents, but we are facing the 2004 season aiming to be competitive from the very first race," he added.

Zanardi's car will be developed by the Ravaglia Motorsport team together with Fadiel, manufacturer of the special driver assistance system which he will use.

-bmw-

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