An angrier, louder, faster version of BMW's smallest M-car has leaked out online for all to see, ahead of its widely tipped launch at June's Beijing Motor Show.
BMW Australia's online portal released images of the new M2 Competition, as well as some of the model's specs. They then promptly removed them, though not quick enough for BMW fans to perform a snatch-and-grab first.
The result are these video-game-like images and some new information to help fill in the blanks of what's looking like a very competitive little coupé.
In Competition guise, our 2016 Performance Car of the Year gains 30kW and 85Nm over standard — moving up to 302kW (404hp) and 550Nm of power from its 3.0-litre twin-snail inline six.
The healthy boost in power puts the M2 Competition squarely in the territory of its big brother; the M4. In the leaked release, BMW claimed the pint-sized fighter could hit 100km/h in 4.2 seconds, which is just a tenth off the M4's best. And while it comes with less power, the M2 is equipped with just as much torque.
In a lighter package (supported by new 'lightweight' wheels), the M4 would have an interesting time holding the M2 Competition at bay.
A new black twin-kidney grill and more aggressive front aero pack (including three notched vents in the base of its big mouth) underline the added potency ... though good luck getting Joe Blogs off the street to pick it out from a standard M2 Coupe.
As you'd expect, pricing has yet to be announced anywhere (a standard M2 weighs in at $117,050 and an M4 at $172,700, with the M3 a fraction less at $162,550. Just for the record...).
And — perhaps just as worryingly to BMW purists — the presence of a manual transmission option hasn't been announced either. Nonetheless, the Competition is another tasty proposition in the M-range.