The 24-hour classic in Le Mans is one of the greatest challenges in motorsport worldwide. In front of 332,000 spectators during the race week, the competition in the top class was thrilling right to the end. Despite starting from the back of the grid, the number six Porsche 963 of Matt Campbell, Kévin Estre and Laurens Vanthoor fought its way to second place, just 14.084 seconds behind the leading Ferrari.
On the first lap, the number six 963 overtook seven of its rivals, and after two hours established itself in the leading group. From then on, the team were in contention for overall victory at Le Mans until the very last of the 387 laps.
The number five sister car was also involved in the battle for the lead for long stretches. From third on the grid, Julien Andlauer took the lead on the very first lap. However, the Frenchman, his compatriot Mathieu Jaminet and the Dane Michael Christensen were set back by tyre damage and penalties during the night – in the end, the trio finished seventh. The number four Porsche crossed the finish line two positions behind them. At the wheel of the third 963, Briton Nick Tandy and Felipe Nasr from Brazil alternated with reigning Formula E world champion Pascal Wehrlein. The German impressed on his Le Mans debut with extremely fast and consistent lap times.
“Pioneering spirit, courage and sportsmanship are part of Porsche's self-conception. That's why we never gave up and fought with determination right to the end. We did a lot of things right in the final phase. That made it very exciting once again,” summarised Thomas Laudenbach, Vice President Porsche Motorsport. “We got the absolute maximum out of our number 6 Porsche and certainly have nothing to hide. During the night nobody would have expected us to finish on the podium. We can be very proud of that. Of course, we also look back on the result with a teary eye: in the end, we were just 14 seconds short of overall victory. But the joy and the thanks to everyone who was involved outweigh this. Congratulations to our Manthey customer team on their second Le Mans class victory in a row!”
The three Porsche 963 of the factory team completed a total of 1,159 laps on the 13.626-kilometre track during the race. As part of the “Racing for Charity” initiative, Porsche is donating 500 euros for every lap completed. The total amount will go to the two children's aid organisations Interplast Germany e.V. and Kinderherzen retten e.V.. Porsche has received the “Sustainability Award” from Le Mans organiser ACO for its commitment, as it did in 2023.
Porsche 911 GT3 R from Manthey 1st Phorm wins the LMGT3 class
Team Manthey celebrated its second Le Mans victory in a row in the LMGT3 class. Porsche factory driver Richard Lietz, Ryan Hardwick and Riccardo Pera crossed the finish line first in the Porsche 911 GT3 R under the Manthey 1st Phorm name. For Lietz, who was competing at Le Mans for the 19th time, it was his sixth success with a Porsche in the GT category. Now with 112 class victories at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, Porsche remains the most successful manufacturer.
“I'm overwhelmed,” cheers Sebastian Golz, Project Manager Porsche 911 GT3 R. “An outstanding team has grown together. The decisive factors included perfect cooperation, proven routines and the unbridled belief in success – this was the only way Manthey could realise the second Le Mans victory in a row with the 911 GT3 R. Congratulations and many thanks to everyone! I'm already looking forward to next weekend: then the next 24-hour race is on schedule at the Nürburgring."
The two identical 911 GT3 R under the Manthey and Iron Dames entries finished the race in sixth and 16th place, with the Iron Dames' number 85 getting stuck in a gravel trap after a collision through no fault of its own and losing a possible place in the top 10 as a result.
Race results
Hypercar class:
1. Kubica/Ye/Hanson (POL/CHN/GBR), Ferrari #83, 387 laps
2. Estre/Vanthoor/Campbell (FRA/BEL/AUS), Porsche 963 #6, +14.084 seconds
3. Pier Guidi/Calado/Giovinazzi (ITA/GBR/ITA), Ferrari #51, +28.487 seconds
7. Andlauer/Christensen/Jaminet (FRA/DNK/FRA), Porsche 963 #5, -1 lap
9. Nasr/Tandy/Wehrlein (BRA/GBR/DEU), Porsche 963 #4, -1 lap
14. Jani/Pino/Varrone (CHE/CHL/ARG), Porsche 963 #99, -4 laps
LMGT3 class:
1. Hardwick/Lietz/Pera (USA/AUT/ITA), Porsche 911 GT3 R #92, 341 laps
2. Heriau/Mann/Rovera (FRA/GBR/ITA), Ferrari #21, +33.259 seconds
3. Van Rompuy/Andrade/Eastwood (BEL/AGO/IRL), Corvette #81, +1.11.710 minutes
6. Au/Bachler/Hartog (HGK/AUT/NLD), Porsche 911 GT3 R #90, -1 lap
16. Bovy/Frey/Martin (BEL/CHE/FRA), Porsche 911 GT3 R #85, -7 laps
All results can be found at
fiawec.alkamelsystems.com.