Steve Soper

Steven Soper
Born	(1951-09-27) September 27, 1951 United Kingdom
Occupation	Racing driver
Years active	1980s–2001, 2013 (comeback)
Known for	Japanese Touring Car Championship champion (1995), multiple endurance race victories, prominent BMW touring car driver

Steven Soper (born 27 September 1951) is a British racing driver renowned for his participation in prominent sports car and touring car championships throughout the 1980s and 1990s. He achieved the Japanese Touring Car Championship crown in 1995, and secured victories in significant endurance contests such as the 24 Hours Nürburgring in 1987, the 24 Hours of Spa in both 1992 and 1995, as well as the Guia Race in 1997. His career was notably intertwined with BMW, establishing him as one of the leading figures in Touring car competition.

Career

Across more than twenty years, Soper earned triumphs in major endurance events including the 24 Hours Nürburgring (1987), 24 Hours of Spa (1995), and Guia Race (1997).

One-Make Racing

Soper demonstrated considerable skill in single-make championships, notably clinching victory in the inaugural MG Metro Challenge during 1981.

Touring Car Racing

Making his debut in the British Saloon Car Championship in 1982 behind the wheel of an Austin Metro, Soper quickly drew attention.
(legend) (Races shown in bold denote pole position; those in italics represent fastest lap)

1997 nowrap BMW-Team Isert nowrap BMW E36 | Hockenheimring HOC < br/> 1 | Hockenheimring HOC < br/> 2 | Zolder ZOL < br/> 1 | Zolder ZOL < br/> 2 | Nürburgring NÜR < br/> 1 | Nürburgring NÜR < br/> 2 | Sachsenring SAC < br/> 1 | Sachsenring SAC < br/> 2 | Norisring NOR < br/> 1 | Norisring NOR < br/> 2 | Wunstorf WUN < br/> 1 | Wunstorf WUN < br/> 2 | Zweibrücken ZWE < br/> 1 | Zweibrücken ZWE < br/> 2 | Salzburgring SAL < br/> 1 | Salzburgring SAL < br/> 2 | Regio-Ring REG < br/> 1 | Regio-Ring REG < br/> 2 |style = " background : # DFFFDF ; " Nürburgring NÜR < br/> 1 < br/>< small >16 </ small > |style = " background : # DFFFDF ; " Nürburgring NÜR < br/> 2 < br/>< small >12 </ small > !30th !23

Season	Team	Vehicle	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	Final Position	Points
1995	BMW Team Schnitzer	BMW 318is	ZOL 1	ZOL 2	SPA 1	SPA 2	ÖST 1	ÖST 2	HOC 1	HOC 2	NÜR 1	NÜR 2	SAL 1 11	SAL 2 7	AVU 1 22	AVU 2 20	NÜR 1 3	NÜR 2 4					21st	90
1996	BMW Team Bigazzi	BMW 320i	ZOL 1 7	ZOL 2 4	ASS 1 1	ASS 2 3	HOC 1 6	HOC 2 3	SAC 1 5	SAC 2 2	WUN 1 1	WUN 2 3	ZWE 1 3	ZWE 2 2	SAL 1 1	SAL 2 2	AVU 1 < br/> < small > Ret < / small >	AVU < br/> 2 < br/> < small > 6 < / small >	NÜR < br/> 1 < br/> < small > 13 < / small >	NÜR < br/> 2 < br/> < small > Ret < / small >			2nd	491

Complete Bathurst 1000 results

Year	Team	Co-Drivers	Vehicle	Category	Laps Completed	Pos.	Class Pos.
1984	Template:Country data GBRTemplate:Namespace detect showall Mobil Rover Racing	Template:Country data AUSTemplate:Namespace detect showall Ron Dickson	Rover Vitesse	Group A	116	29th	8th
1987*	Template:Country data SWITemplate:Namespace detect showall Ford Texaco Racing Team	Template:Country data BELTemplate:Namespace detect showall Pierre Dieudonné	Ford Sierra RS500	1	161	DSQ	DSQ
1988	Template:Country data AUSTemplate:Namespace detect showall Miedecke Motorsport	Template:Country data AUSTemplate:Namespace detect showall Andrew Miedecke	Ford Sierra RS500	A	102	DNF	DNF
1993	Template:Country data AUSTemplate:Namespace detect showall Benson & Hedges Racing	Template:Country data AUSTemplate:Namespace detect showall Tony Longhurst	BMW M3 Evolution	A	79	DNF	DNF

* The 1987 event was initially won on track but the result was later annulled.

24 Hours of Le Mans results

Year	Team	Co-Drivers	Vehicle	Category	Laps Completed	Pos.	Class Pos.
1983	Template:Country data JPNTemplate:Namespace detect showall Mazdaspeed	Template:Country data GBRTemplate:Namespace detect showall Jeff Allam Template:Country data GBRTemplate:Namespace detect showall James Weaver	Mazda 717C	C Jr.	267	18th	2nd
1996	Template:Country data ITATemplate:Namespace detect showall Team Bigazzi Team BMW Motorsport	Template:Country data FRATemplate:Namespace detect showall Jacques Laffite Template:Country data BELTemplate:Namespace detect showall Marc Duez	McLaren F1 GTR	GT1	318	11th	9th
1997	Team BMW Motorsport BMW Team Schnitzer	Template:Country data FINTemplate:Namespace detect showall JJ Lehto Template:Country data BRATemplate:Namespace detect showall Nelson Piquet	McLaren F1 GTR	GT1	236	DNF	DNF
1998	Team BMW Motorsport	Hans-Joachim Stuck Template:Country data DENTemplate:Namespace detect showall Tom Kristensen	BMW V12 LM	LMP1	60	DNF	DNF
1999	Template:Country data GBRTemplate:Namespace detect showall Price+Bscher	Thomas Bscher Bill Auberlen	BMW V12 LM	LMP	345	5th	4th

Macau Grand Prix Guia Race Outcomes

Year	Team	Vehicle	Category	Heat 1	Heat 2	Overall Ranking
1993	Watson’s Team Schnitzer	BMW 318i	FIA Class 2	-	-	Did Not Finish
1994	San Miguel Team Schnitzer	BMW 318is	FIA Class 2	2nd place	2nd place	2nd place overall
1995	BMW Team Schnitzer	BMW 318is	FIA Class 2	5th position	2nd position	2nd position overall
1996	Template:Country data ITATemplate:Namespace detect showall BMW Team Bigazzi	BMW 320i	FIA Class 2	Did Not Finish	1st place in heat	12th overall
1997	Template:Country data ITATemplate:Namespace detect showall BMW Team Bigazzi	BMW 320i	FIA Class 2	Victory in heat 1	Victory in heat 2	1st overall finish
1998	BMW Team Schnitzer	BMW 320i	FIA Class 2	First place in heat one	First place in heat two	Overall winner
2001	Template:Country data GBRTemplate:Namespace detect showall WK Longman Racing	Peugeot 306	Super Production class	3rd position in first heat	Did Not Finish second heat

External links

• Official Steve Soper Website