Heinrich “Would Be Lying” If Porsche GTP Drive Wasn’t Goal

Laurin Heinrich said he “would be lying” if achieving factory driver status with Porsche wasn’t his goal after the reigning GTD Pro class champion’s testing time in a Porsche 963 and possible driver changes on the horizon for the German manufacturer.

Heinrich, who has climbed the ranks of Porsche’s pyramid from regional Carrera Cup and Porsche Supercup competition before rising to the GT3 ranks in recent years, notably won the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship GTD Pro drivers’ title in his rookie season last year with AO Racing.

The Porsche-contracted driver said full factory driver status is on his radar as he looks ahead towards what his driving duties will be for next year.

The Porsche driver market, however, is in flux with the recent announcement of the discontinuation of its factory Hypercar program in the FIA World Endurance Championship.

As previously reported by Sportscar365, Porsche is currently evaluating Heinrich for a potential 963 seat next year.

The German driver recently got behind the wheel of the LMDh car for the first time at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta in a pair of two-day tests in late August and early September.

“I would be lying if I said it wasn’t my goal to be a factory driver for Porsche in the top class,” Heinrich told Sportscar365. “In the end, that’s where I want to prove myself.

“Sure, if I drive in the simulator or do a test in the real car that they are looking at me and evaluating me. In the end, there’s a lot of movement inside of the program at the moment.

“No one knows what the future will hold on the drivers’ side and in the drivers’ market.

“I can only influence what I can influence and to be honest. I don’t know yet what I’ll do next year, so the only thing I can do right now is to focus on the races I will still this year.”

Heinrich’s laps aboard the 963 were his first in anger in prototype machinery.

Nevertheless, relished at the opportunity to drive Porsche’s LMDh offering ahead of this weekend’s WeatherTech Championship season finale at Road Atlanta, where he and AO will battle for the top-three in the GTD Pro standings.

“It’s cool,” said Heinrich. “For me, first of all, I don’t have any previous prototype experience, so it was a bit of a fresh start, but I got prepared pretty well with some simulator sessions before.

“I tried to also prepare myself as best as I could. In the end, it was also a cool experience because it was at this place where I did my very first race and driving in the U.S. in a Cup car back in 2022.”

Heinrich remarked that despite the test’s overarching function of providing setup data and preparing the title-contending 963s for the title-decider, the experience was still enlightening and positive.

“The preparation paid off, and I was quite happy,” he said. “I knew that any lap I got was good for me, and I tried to use it as best as I could.

“Now, driving the top-class prototype from the Porsche factory team was a small dream come true, and it was a very eye-opening experience.

“Obviously, the car is quite different to anything I drove previously.

“At the same time, I didn’t want to hamper the true meaning behind the test, which was, in the end, preparing for the Petit race for the factory drivers.

“In the end, I was happy with my development, happy with my progress and I couldn’t have wished for more in the end.”