Angel Sergeev is a seasoned automotive journalist with over 15 years of experience covering the automotive industry. Born in Sofia, Bulgaria, he began his writing career in 2010 while pursuing a degree in Transportation Engineering.
His early work included contributions to the local edition of F1 Racing magazine (now GP Racing magazine) and roles at various automotive websites and magazines.
In 2013, Angel joined Motor1.com (formerly WorldCarFans), where he dedicated over a decade to delivering daily news and feature articles. His expertise spans a wide range of topics, including electric vehicles, classic cars, and industry topics. Angel’s commitment to automotive journalism is further demonstrated by his membership in the Bulgarian Car of the Year jury since 2013.
BMW M is pulling the plug on its Competition badge. And no, that’s not a loss for enthusiasts – it’s a win. Future M cars will launch at the same firepower that used to be locked behind the Competition step. In Tokyo last week, BMW M boss Frank van Meel said buyers made the choice for them: “More than 80 percent of our customers went straight for the Competition,” he told BMW Blog. So M decided to make that spec the new default.
The next wave of M cars won’t make you pay extra for the good stuff. Power, chassis tuning, and hardware that used to sit in the upper tier will come baked in. The shift came after years of two-tier trims that customers mostly ignored by buying the faster one.
You can already see the direction in the metal. Take the refreshed M2. The 2025 car packs 473 hp in U.S. spec (480 hp globally), which outguns the old M2’s baseline and brushes up against what Competition once meant on the badge. That’s the new starting point.
M is also cleaning up the lineup names. The new, simpler hierarchy includes the M cars as the core products, now at former Competition levels, the M CS as the lighter and sharper limited-run special, and the M CSL as the halo, track-obsessed collectible.
For enthusiasts, this move solves a long-running headache. You no longer need to parse option sheets to avoid the “slow” one. Expect stronger outputs, stiffer bushings and mounts, wider rubber, and cooling packages that handle hot laps without the temp gauge nagging you. Historically, Competition trims also brought stickier alignments, more aggressive diff logic, and – on models like the M3/M4 – extra torque paired with the quick-shifting automatic and available xDrive. If that level becomes the floor, the average M buyer gets a car that feels closer to a CS right out of the box, minus the roll-cage vibes and the limited build numbers. CS and CSL still stay special – that’s the point.
The decision didn’t happen in a vacuum. Back in 2023, reports already hinted that M would lean into Competition-spec cars and phase out the entry trim. Today’s announcement is the logical next step – keep the spec, lose the badge clutter. Cleaner naming, clearer value, quicker cars, to put it simply.
This streamlining also sets the table for what’s coming next – electrified Ms on the Neue Klasse architecture. Van Meel has been open about that future – quicker electric Ms, smarter torque shaping, and the same driver-first focus. With fewer trim lines, M can spend more time tuning the one that matters. In his words, “Every M model today is a Competition.”
Source: BMW Blog
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