Porsche have pulled the plug on their factory WEC Hypercar programme, bringing an end to their global 963 LMDh effort.
Announced on Tuesday, the German manufacturer will cease competition with Porsche Penske Motorsport in the world championship after November's season-ending 8H Bahrain, but will continue the factory collaboration in IMSA's GTP class into 2026.
Without a two-car manufacturer presence in the full WEC season, Porsche will not be eligible to race at the 24H Le Mans in 2026 regardless of success in the IMSA GTP championship.
The biggest factor in Porsche’s decision is the German marque’s current status in the global automotive market.
Earlier this year Porsche suffered a reported 40% drop in operating profit, a massive decrease in Chinese sales in the EV market, and that updated US import tariffs resulted in an additional €400M burden on North American business.
To save the long and winding details, the decision to cut the WEC programme is largely the result of these ongoing and seemingly unending financial difficulties.
Porsche has reaffirmed its commitment to IMSA’s GTP class, which can expect to see two Porsche Penske Motorsport 963 LMDHs continue to race in the North American series.
The decision does throw massive doubt on the possibility of Proton Competition to continue racing in the WEC.
Without the presence of a two-car factory entry, Proton must essentially double-up and become the manufacturer effort or follow in PPM’s footsteps.
The Porsche LMGT3 presence is also subject to a WEC Entry Committee decision, but is likely to see a two-car Manthey effort remain on the grid.
Dr Michael Steiner, Member of the Executive Board for Development at Porsche AG, said “We very much regret that, due to the current circumstances, we will not be continuing our involvement in the WEC after this season.”
"Motorsport has always been of major importance for Porsche and is an essential part of the brand.
“We use motorsport as a development platform for future technology and to illustrate the potential of our sports cars,” says Thomas Laudenbach, Vice President Porsche Motorsport.
“With the Porsche 963 in the North American IMSA series and the Porsche 99X Electric in the Formula E World Championship, we want to continue to fight for overall victories in the future. That is our tradition and our focus.”
More to follow...