Porsche may have brought to an end five seasons of Toyota dominance in the FIA World Endurance Championship by claiming its first title in the discipline’s top-tier since 2017, but the manufacturer is predicting an ‘even tougher’ challenge next season.
In taking the chequered flag in Bahrain last month, Porsche Penske Motorsport trio Kévin Estre, André Lotterer and Laurens Vanthoor secured the FIA Hypercar World Endurance Drivers’ Championship crown, seeing off high-calibre opposition from Toyota and Ferrari. And the German/American outfit is already eyeing a repeat performance with its Porsche 963 in 2025 – along with other high-profile goals.
In the cockpit, former Porsche ‘Junior’ Julien Andlauer has been promoted to the works line-up and will share the #5 hybrid prototype with the incumbent Michael Christensen. The sister #6 entry will continue to be piloted by Estre and Vanthoor, with Matt Campbell and Mathieu Jaminet set to join the crews for selected races, including the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
An unprecedented 20th outright victory at La Sarthe is one of the brand’s major targets for the forthcoming campaign, as well as the FIA WEC Manufacturers’ laurels, which narrowly escaped its grasp this year. In recent weeks, engineers have been busy fine-tuning the suspension of the 963, with a view to better adapting its set-up to suit the specific characteristics and demands of individual circuits.
There will be a third 963 in the FIA WEC Hypercar ranks in 2025, fielded by Proton Competition, with the experienced Neel Jani the first confirmed driver. The Swiss star won both Le Mans and the World Championship in 2016 behind the wheel of a Porsche 919 Hybrid.
In the LMGT3 category, there will be a brace of 911 GT3 R entries run by Manthey Racing, which ruled the roost in 2024 against cars from eight rival marques. Klaus Bachler, Joel Sturm and Alex Malykhin swept to title glory, with stablemates Richard Lietz, Morris Schuring and Yasser Shahin backing them up by securing second spot in the final FIA Endurance Trophy for LMGT3 Drivers and Teams standings.
Between them, the two Porsche crews won half of the eight races – including Le Mans. Sturm subsequently picked up the coveted Porsche Cup – presented annually since 1970 – at the prestigious ‘Night of Champions’ at the Porsche Development Centre in Weissach, as the best amateur driver at the wheel of a Porsche racecar in 2024. The 23-year-old German beat team-mate Malykhin to the award.
For 2025, factory driver Lietz will remain on-board the #91 entry – to be joined by Ryan Hardwick and Riccardo Pera – with the Iron Dames switching to Manthey’s other car as they return to Porsche power following a season with Lamborghini.
