BMW Pays Tribute To Alex Zanardi With A Very Special M3

Six months after racing driver and Paralympic champion Alex Zanardi passed away, BMW Italy is paying tribute to him with a special one-off M3 Competition. The Italian driver raced with BMW for several years, and although he's no longer around to see what BMW has built for him, the tribute car has some special touches we're sure he'd be proud to see.

The most personal reference to Zanardi is the pineapple motif on the car's C-pillar. The pineapple became a permanent fixture on Zanardi's helmets and served as his good-luck charm. BMW Italy didn't just slap on the multi-colored pineapple and call it a day. The special one-off M3 Competition is finished in matte white and includes red accents on the front splitter, as well as the colors of the M division running along the sides.

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There are also red and blue accents on the hood as well as "BMW M3 G80 2026 / 60th Tribute Alex Zanardi" script on the hood and front doors celebrating what would have been Zanardi's 60th birthday. A blacked-out rear bumper completes the look. Several interior elements distinguish this one-off from a regular, run-of-the-mill G80 M3. The same pineapple motif found on the C-pillar has been embroidered into the headrests. The seats are trimmed in black Alcantara with colorful center inserts, a feature that's been carried through to the door cards. Red stitching has been added to the Alcantara center console to again pay tribute to Zanardi.

Zanardi was a successful go-kart racer and made his open-wheeled racing debut in the 1988 Italian Formula Three Championship. He worked his way up the ranks and, in 1991, made his Formula 1 debut. He also competed in the top tier of motorsport in 1992, 1993, and 1994 before transitioning to the PPG Indy Car World Series in 1996 with Target Ganassi Racing. He enjoyed almost immediate success with the team and finished third in the driver's championship.

The following year, Zanardi raced in the CART series with Ganassi, claiming five race wins and seven podiums, walking away with the championship title. He backed this up the following year by winning the 1998 CART championship in dominant fashion. Zanardi again competed in the CART series in 2001, but he lost both his legs in a devastating crash during the 2001 American Memorial 500. For most, an injury like this would have ended their racing career.

However, Zanardi didn't let the injury hinder him, and he returned to race in 2003 with BMW in the European Touring Car Championship. He continued to race for BMW until his retirement from motorsport in 2019. Zanardi didn't just make a name for himself on the racetrack. He famously took up para-cycling after his 2001 crash and went on to win four gold medals at the 2012 London and 2016 Rio de Janeiro Paralympic Games.

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