Dear Porsche
Let’s start with a thank you. Thank you for coming back to prototype endurance racing. It’s been pretty great.
We were all excited when you confirmed that you were coming back to LMP1. Your fans, your rivals, we were all looking forward to seeing what you’d bring to an already brilliant series. Unsurprisingly, you didn’t disappoint.
The World Endurance Championship presented you with a problem, and you solved it with a beautiful piece of tech, the 919 hybrid. Completely different to its rivals, running a turbocharged V4 against a V6 turbodiesel and a twin-turbo V6, the 919 raised a few eyebrows at the beginning. Any doubts were quickly quelled, especially by the time 2015 rolled around. You created a beast of a machine, one that we’ll miss seeing on our grids.
Although, it’s not just the car that made you great - your Porsche people were excellent too. Always friendly, while remaining as professional as we’d expect and you’ve put together some great driver squads. From Andre Lotterer’s Instagram tours around various Porsche facilities to your live social media coverage of races - we’ve always felt included in what you do, both on and off the track. Long may this continue with the GTE teams.
Talking of the track, what about your rivals? WEC has always had a great dynamic and bringing another big player to the table only made it better. The three-way battles between you, Audi and Toyota have provided entertainment for so many people around the world, and we've loved it. It was tough for everyone when Audi left, and you showed that in the best way. But boy, it’s going to be tough to lose you too.
Let’s not focus on the negatives, you’ve had a pretty damn good run. Six championships, sixteen wins, three of which came from Le Mans - it’s incredible what you have achieved since 2014.
And on that note, I’ll go back to where I began. You’ve given us so much in a short time, and it’s been a privilege to have you back in LMP1. So thank you, Porsche, for all you’ve given to the World Endurance Championship and thank you for continuing to support GTE. Enjoy Formula E. I’m sure you’ll be brilliant.
Photo header credit: Lou Johnson
