The Ring magazine has been publishing its pound-for-pound number one ranked boxer since 1990. The term pound-for-pound had been used in combat sports for a long time previously, too, as a way of determining who the best in the world is, regardless of weight category. To take an example at the time of writing, Canelo Alvarez would comfortably beat Naoya Inoue in a fight owing to his bigger size and greater power. Inoue, however, is ranked no.2 in The Ring’s pound-for-pound list, with Canelo no.6. Inoue, you see, has held multiple world championships in four weight classes and is one of only three fighters to become the undisputed champion in two weight classes in the four-belt era. For SEO purposes I must mention the BMW M4 Competition at this point, but I promise we’ll come back to it.
Inoue, you see, is a special fighter and has been ranked no.1 by The Ring previously. The man above him, Oleksandr Usyk and the man below him, Terrence Crawford, are the other two to have achieved this four-belt feat. Determining who, or what, is the best is a deeply subjective endeavour, but the term pound-for-pound is widely understood in modern lexicon. Now is a more natural juncture at which to introduce the BMW M4 Competition.
You see, this is a special car. Would it beat, say, a McLaren 750S? No, it wouldn’t, just as Inoue wouldn’t beat Canelo. Can we compare it to a Ferrari Roma? Again, utterly pointless. But the M4 has the tools at its disposal to bloody more illustrious noses. Power, performance, practicality; could it be the pound-for-pound no.1 in the automotive world?
Living with the BMW M4 Competition
Before we get all giddy, this is, first and foremost, a family saloon. It’s based on the hugely popular BMW 4 series and that’s a good thing. Before you get into power and aesthetics, you get a plenty big enough boot and more than enough room to carry four people comfortably.
Tick the right options and you get parking assistant and a very useful 360-degree overhead view of the car. This came in handy in my local multi-storey to ensure I didn’t scrape any of the carbon fibre exterior trimmings.
BMW’s iDrive infotainment system is really good, too. You can use it as a touchscreen or use a rotary dial to control it, which means fans of the physical control or touchscreen are both covered. You get wireless connection to your phone as standard and the Harmon/Kardon audio relays your favourite tunes perfectly well.
Despite its aggressive posture, the BMW M4 Competition ticks off the mundane very well. This was somewhat surprising given the model tested had the kitchen sink thrown at it in the factory. Options? Yeah, load ‘em up. The M Race Track Package doesn’t scream ‘sensible family car’ with its upgraded top speed, race exhaust and carbon bucket seats. Yet commuting to work was sensible enough.
I was worried about the comfort of the carbon bucket seats. A 450-mile round trip lay in wait on my Saturday with the M4. How would my spine react to the lack of adjustability? Absolutely fine was the answer. So much so that I’d be hovering over the £4,450 option in the configurator. They’re remarkable seats. You can place yourself on the floor of the car and they lend a very racy feel to the setup.
What’s the BMW M4 Competition like to drive?
That seating position gets things off to a great start. My initial foray was with my youngest son, so Isofix in the rear was handy. Despite the carbon fibre roof and lairy exhaust, he got a good 40-minute kip back there. You’d never know he’d just been for a spin in a 3.0ltr turbocharged inline six cylinder engined car producing 523hp and 650Nm of torque.
That, however, is not really what the BMW M4 Competition is about. There’s all that power, aggressively packaged and ready to let rip. And boy, does it let rip. 0-60mph is quoted as being 3.4secs but I wouldn’t be stunned if it’s a bit quicker. Even when left in comfort, it’s an eager runner.
As with all M Sport cars, there are M1 and M2 buttons on the steering wheel. You can set these to whatever you want, but I agreed with the previous occupant’s settings. M1 dialled everything up a notch, M2 dialled things up to 11.
You don’t really need them, but they’re a handy option to have in the back pocket. Each press brings a different baritone note from the exhaust and you can almost sense the car tensing around you.
Set the eight-speed ‘box to manual and you bring the long leavers behind the steering wheel into play. As you approach the redline, the dash illuminates to let you know it’s time to pull on the right one. Changes are near instant and it adds a layer of engagement.
It’s also a useful option in motorway driving. When you want to add a bit of speed, it tends to drop from eighth to sixth, when in actual fact there’s either enough torque available in eighth or one move down the cogs would be sufficient.
What’s the BMW M4 Competition really like to drive, though?
The 450-mile round trip to Leeds and back was surprisingly enjoyable. Any concern about the comfort of the seats had been wiped away by the time we stopped near Mansfield. Even my dad found them comfortable, even if ingress and egress are increasingly compromised in correlation to age.
At higher speeds it’s quite loud, owing to that roof mainly, but it works as a GT. You could get the family around very easily, a point I was expecting having managed a family holiday in the BMW M4 Convertible. Trundling in and out of West London to work was fine, too.
But you’ll always long for a bit of open road. The BMW M4 Competition is a remarkable driver’s machine. With the X-drive system, all wheel drive, it inspires a little more confidence than the rear-wheel-drive version. I appreciate that’s a point which M Sport purists will baulk at, but you can test your cajones and turn the traction control off and put it in rear wheel drive if you wish. Yeah, I didn’t do that.
There’s just so much traction available, it’s brilliant. I over eagerly turned into one corner and was expecting understeer, but not a hint of it. The steering is sharp and precise, but you never catch it out. Then there are the carbon ceramic brakes, which saved a collision when someone pulled out in front of me. An £8,800 option, but if you’re doing track days, they’re worth having. I suspect you could save the money if you’re not doing the track stuff.
Ultimately, the BMW M4 Competition is a fabulous car to drive. It was enjoyable in every setting, providing memorable drives along the way. And, it makes you feel like a good driver, too, even for those with smaller cajones.
Conclusion
I simultaneously love and loathe having cars like the BMW M4 Competition. I love them because I get to have them for a week; I loathe them because I only get to have them for a week. The keys had to be reluctantly handed back to Paul, the nice man from BMW.
Was a week enough? More than, in reality. From the moment you lay eyes on the BMW M4 Competition you know exactly what it’s going to deliver. Then you slide into those carbon bucket seats, grip the thick steering wheel and lower yourself to the floor. Press the starter button, six cylinders burst into life and the exhaust clears its throat. Early dabs on the throttle instantly reveal an aggressive setup. Then you briskly enter the first roundabout you encounter and it positively zips round, all stability and composure. That’s enough, you know what this car is.
Time has calmed perception of this car, too. I’ve got through this without even mentioning the grille. No one gives an airborne act of copulation about it now. They were striking at first, jarring, even, to many, but time mellows opinions and this was a car that drew many an admiring glance. It looks fabulous and menacing in the flesh, a car brimming with intent.
At £111,104 it’s not cheap, but if you only added the seats, park assist and a couple of comfort features you’d be looking at c.£90,000. That’s still a lot. Pound-for-pound the best? Well, it’s a prism through which we can discuss the M4 alongside the Civic Type R, McLaren 750S, Caterham 620S, DBX707, Ferrari Roma, Audi S8; it’s entirely subjective but they’re all cars I love. The M4 is in that bracket, an Usyk, Inuoe or Crawford of the automotive world.
