Wehrlein Completes Porsche Penske Lineup at Le Mans

Pascal Wehrlein will make his 24 Hours of Le Mans debut as the final driver in Porsche Penske Motorsport’s three-car Hypercar lineup, the German marque has confirmed.

Wehrlein, the reigning ABB FIA Formula E world champion, will join Nick Tandy and Felipe Nasr aboard the No. 4 Porsche 963 for the 93rd running of the French endurance classic.

As previously reported by Sportscar365, Porsche had a “short list” of drivers under consideration for the final vacant Le Mans seat, with Wehrlein’s Formula E teammate Antonio Felix da Costa as well as Nico Mueller options for the drive.

Wehrlein made his debut outing behind the wheel of the 963 earlier this year when he joined JDC-Miller Motorsports at January’s Rolex 24 at Daytona.

“Competing for Porsche Penske Motorsport at Le Mans is a dream come true for me,” said Wehrlein.

“I’m looking forward to this major challenge because, unlike in Formula E, I have to share everything in the Porsche 963 that I would normally tailor specifically to myself: seating position, setup, strategy, and more.

“Of course, I want to add major titles in other series to my Formula E World Championship victory, but my primary goal is to do a strong job for the team and learn as much as possible.

“Porsche has such an iconic motorsport heritage; I am extremely grateful for this opportunity.”

Da Costa, meanwhile, is set to make a return to Le Mans after a year’s absence, with Porsche hinting that the Portuguese racer will compete in the LMP2 class. The 33-year-old secured a class victory with JOTA Sport in 2022.

It is currently not yet known with which team da Costa will compete, with a Porsche spokesperson telling Sportscar365 that the team in question ‘has no relationship’ with the German marque and will make an announcement at a later date.

“The Porsche driver roster is absolutely top-tier and incredibly deep,” said Porsche Motorsport boss Thomas Laudenbach.

“It only makes sense to leverage our strong personnel from the Formula E factory team for the third Porsche Penske Motorsport entry at Le Mans.

“Pascal Wehrlein has fully convinced us with his performance in testing and his participation in the 24 Hours of Daytona.

“As the reigning Formula E World Champion, he has earned his Le Mans debut at the wheel of a Porsche 963.

“Antonio Felix da Costa, making his seventh start in France, will undoubtedly be among the fastest LMP2 drivers once again.”