Porsche said that it will leave LMP1 this season to launch a factory Formula E squad, which is presumably making the FIA World Endurance Championship’s executives quite angry right now.
Formula E is beginning to become a much more popular and meaningful series, at least for the development objectives of manufacturers, as electric vehicles are becoming more and more prevalent on public roads.
Mercedes has stated that it will terminate its lengthy participation in the DTM series and establish a factory team for Formula E in time for the sixth season of the competition.
Porsche is currently following suit. Yes, it is saying goodbye to LMP1 after several years of outstanding performance in the FIA WEC, which included two drivers’ and manufacturers’ crowns and three Le Mans victories.
The motorsport branch will continue to run the 911 RSR project in the WEC’s GTE classes in addition to international GT racing.
However, it will formally leave LMP1 at the conclusion of this year in order to launch a FE factory team for season six in 2019/2020.
As a follow-up to its Mission E concept, Porsche stated goals to introduce its first range of electric road cars with its Porsche Strategy 2025.
Following Audi’s departure from the WEC last year, Toyota will be the lone manufacturer in LMP1 for the upcoming season. Toyota has stated that it will evaluate its engagement if Porsche leaves, though. Times are worrying for LMP1.
So, not good at all, but on the other hand, Formula E is undoubtedly happy, having drawn a lot of major manufacturers to it.
With Mercedes and Porsche coming, season six is looking fantastic for FE. Involvement from Audi will increase for the upcoming season.
Porsche’s board of research and development member Michael Steiner said:
“The logical results of our Mission E road vehicle program include entry into FE and success in this category. We find FE appealing due to the expanding independence for in-house technological innovations.
“For us, FE is the pinnacle of the competitive climate for advancing the development of high performance cars in areas like sustainability, efficiency, and environmental friendliness.”
Big news for Formula E then, which keeps bringing in big names. But LMP1’s future in the WEC is unquestionably in jeopardy.
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2019 will see Porsche enter Formula E, the all-electric racing competition. The announcement was made early this morning, just days after Mercedes-Benz, another significant German company, confirmed that it would also compete in Formula E in 2019.
The German manufacturer will stop competing in the World Endurance Championship’s (WEC) prototype LMP1 class, where it recently won the illustrious 24 Hours of Le Mans, to create place for the new series. After Audi did the same in October of last year, Porsche is now the second significant manufacturer in the top class of the WEC to quit the series in favor of concentrating on Formula E.
The Volkswagen Group, which has been the subject of a significant diesel emissions controversy for the past few years, owns both Audi and Porsche. However, as a result of the penalties and convictions, attention has now been focused on the subsidiary brands of the Volkswagen Group because they have also shown symptoms of deception. Additionally, a revelation published last week in the German magazine Der Spiegel claims that German automakers have been conspiring to rig diesel emissions tests since the 1990s.
Switching from a hybrid engine series to an all-electric one could indicate that a corporation is trying to improve its reputation. Or it might just be the outcome of a stronger emphasis on the development of electric drivetrains. The gearbox, motors, and inverter are a few examples of the technologies that the Formula E racing teams have access to while using the same vehicle. Porsche, along with a lot of other automakers, has committed to producing electric vehicles over the next ten years, including a production model of the amazing Mission E concept that was presented in 2015.
In any case, Porsche is the latest major automaker to enter the fledgling Formula E, which will conclude its third season this weekend in Montreal. Porsche will compete in the series alongside Mercedes-Benz, Audi, BMW, Jaguar, Renault, Mahindra, and more beginning in 2019.
In 2023, Porsche will compete at Le Mans.
Porsche has announced that it will return to competitive sportscar racing in 2023 to compete at Le Mans as part of a dual WEC/IMSA program, barely three years after exiting the sport.
The German manufacturer, which has won more Le Mans races than any other team or marque and recently celebrated 50 years since its first victory at La Sarthe, has previously stated it was studying the new LMDh class.
The news comes after it was revealed that fellow VAG brand Audi, which has the second-highest number of victories, will also be returning to Le Mans and will compete in the LMDh category. This means that Peugeot, Porsche, and Toyota have all confirmed planned projects; the latter three are LMH class competitors.
The LMDh rules will replace the DPi ones that currently apply to the top division of the American IMSA sportscar championship. Cadillac, Acura, Nissan, and Mazda are all competing for DPi championships with both manufacturer-backed and customer teams. The category is based on LMP2 chassis, with manufacturers able to offer unique engines and aerodynamic features. For the first time since 2013, the US and international branches of sportscar racing will merge at the highest level with the introduction of the new category, which will use a hybrid system. The new category will start competing in 2023 and be eligible for both IMSA and WEC championships.
In the WEC and at Le Mans, Toyota, Glickenhaus, and Peugeot have committed to competing in the Le Mans Hypercar (LMH) class of the ACO, which enables prototypes built on either pure racing platforms to compete at the highest level. A Balance of Performance method will make LMDh and LMH competitive and eligible to compete for the championship.
Pascal Zurliden, Porsche’s head of factory motorsport, confirmed that the company’s program will begin at the 2023 Daytona 24 “The Daytona Prototype international class in IMSA offers fantastic racing at a high level but at an affordable price, and that is the ideal way to look at it.
“Porsche can continue to exhibit the brand’s endurance racing DNA thanks to the LMDh concept.
“With one car, we can compete in both championships and the largest endurance races in the world.”
Zurliden said that key decisions, like as which LMP2 chassis to base the new LMDh vehicle on and what engine to utilize, have not yet been determined, despite Porsche releasing a teaser image of what its 2023 competitor would look like.
Porsche left the WEC and LMP1 to focus on Formula E.
Hold on to your hats, motorsports fans. or consume them. Porsche has declared that it will leave the top-tier LMP1 division of the FIA World Endurance Championship at the conclusion of the current campaign in order to concentrate its efforts on a Formula E participation for the following year.
Indeed, Porsche has followed Mercedes in leaving a prominent racing series to compete in the all-electric single-seater championship in a few years (earlier this week Merc pulled the plug on its DTM programme).
According to Porsche board member Michael Steiner, “entering Formula E and succeeding in this category are the obvious implications of our Mission E road car development.”
“We find Formula E appealing because of the expanding independence for internal technological advances. Formula E is the ideal competitive setting for advancing the development of high-performance vehicles in fields like sustainability, efficiency, and environmental friendliness.”
Lexus in Le Mans
We take a look back at the history of the 24 Hours of Le Mans just before the race. These get started in 1949. A small Porsche KG delegation began testing the high-speed course in 1951.
The 356 SL Aluminium Coupe’s first-place finish in its class heralds the start of one of motorsport’s most legendary legends: Porsche and Le Mans. Since 1951, Porsche race cars have participated in Le Mans every year. The only brand that has continuously competed for 65 years is Porsche. A number of records, including 16 overall titles and 100 class victories until 2013, are the result of this extraordinary endurance. As much a part of Porsche as the number combination 911 is the sporting competition and triumph at the pinnacle of racing in one of the most renowned stadiums in the entire world.
Following several class victories with the 550 in the early 1950s, the 718 RSK won third place in 1958, marking the first appearance on the podium in the overall classification. Porsche records the quickest qualifying lap for the first time in 1968. The 908 driven by Jo Siffert and Hans Herrmann eventually finishes third in the competition. The powerful 917 makes its debut in 1969 and is in the lead when a clutch issue forces it to quit. The moment has arrived in 1970. In a 917 short tail, Hans Herrmann and Richard Attwood prevail. Gijs van Lennep and Helmut Marko replicate this feat a year later. The Porsche 936 Spyder wins the Circuit des 24 Heures in 1976 and 1977 with a turbo engine, as would all other victories be attained with turbo technology. The 935 K3’s victory in 1979 was the only overall victory for a rear-engined vehicle and the first for a customer team.
Porsche pulls CORE-Run GTE-Pro cars from the Le Mans 24 Hours.
Due to the current financial and logistical challenges caused by the coronavirus pandemic, Porsche withdrew two of its four factory GTE-Pro entries from this year’s 24 Hours of Le Mans.
Porsche will not enter its two CORE autosport-run cars in the French endurance classic, which is presently planned for September 19–20, the German manufacturer confirmed on Friday.
Only two works entries will be produced, and they will be entered by the Manthey-operated FIA World Endurance Championship team.
The ACO was reportedly informed of the decision on Wednesday by Porsche Motorsport factory director Pascal Zurlinden, according to a Porsche spokesperson who confirmed the news to Sportscar365.
The spokesperson stated, “Cutting this was not an easy decision for all the boys, but at Porsche we are suffering with things, like every automotive manufacturer across the world, so we had to trim a little bit and respect the economic circumstances, which is the same for all of us.
The reduced two-car effort will feature full-season WEC drivers Gianmaria Bruni, Richard Lietz (No. 91), and reigning GTE world champions Kevin Estre and Michael Christensen (No. 92), with Fred Makowieki and Laurens Vanthoor likely to continue as the third drivers but not yet confirmed.
Earl Bamber, Nick Tandy, Patrick Pilet, Matt Campbell, Mathieu Jaminet, and Julien Andlauer, Porsche factory or Young Professionals, are temporarily without rides as a result of the withdrawals.
The Porsche representative claimed that the logistical uncertainty for an American team to compete in this year’s race played a role in the decision.
While it is still possible to travel from the United States to Europe, France is currently imposing a 14-day quarantine requirement for all visitors and residents.
If CORE had used its U.S.-based crew in France, the requirement would have affected its ability to run its IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship program.
Although the ACO has not yet acknowledged it, the two withdrawals are anticipated to boost both ByKolles Racing and IDEC Sport into the competition.