Porsche works driver Laurin Heinrich: “We’ve all learnt a lot”

“But my season isn’t over yet; I’ve still got a few races to go,” says Laurin Heinrich, announcing a short world tour: Shanghai (Asian GT World Challenge), Asian Le Mans at Paul Ricard, the GT World Cup in Macau, and the Australian GT World Cup. The fact that the year has been almost a dream come true for the 25-year-old from Würzburg – who now calls Styria home – came as a complete surprise even to him. After all: “I started as a rookie in the GTP class of the IMSA (the American sports car championship, ed.) and thought I’d be driving three races as the third driver. The start of the season was brilliant and, with the victories at Daytona and Sebring, completely exceeded my expectations, because that was the first time I’d competed in a full-size prototype there. Then came the opportunity with JDC Miller, which meant I could drive more races than planned. The idea behind it was that I should clock up more kilometres and gain experience in the 963, with a view to the full season with Porsche Penske in 2027.”

Switching between the teams was challenging despite the 963 (albeit with different specifications): “The cars are really complex; you need plenty of race kilometres because there are few opportunities for testing. Things didn’t go too badly at Long Beach, and straight after that came the win at Laguna Seca, which changed the situation in the championship – I was suddenly in the lead. We knew that Laguna could be very good for the 25 car, but the fact that I was able to overtake Earl Bamber on the final lap was definitely a highlight. In consultation with the teams – as I was actually supposed to drive the 24 Hours of Spa – it was decided that I should stay in the IMSA and focus on the championship. Watkins Glen and Road America went well, then I returned to Penske for Indianapolis and Road Atlanta. It didn’t quite work out in the championship, but it was still a great season,” summed up the Porsche works driver.

There’s a big difference between a works team and a customer team: “In the works team, there are so many people to turn to for all the details, and the back office in Weissach is there; in the customer team, there are fewer staff and the lines of communication are effectively shorter. But I’m familiar with working with customer teams from GT Sport. Things went very well with JDC Miller. I think we’ve both learnt a great deal.”

Winning the IMSA Endurance Cup is a major success

Heinrich also emphasises: “Winning the IMSA Endurance Cup is no small feat. We were able to come out on top at Daytona and Sebring because we were also leading in the interim standings and scoring points.” And he describes his debut in the 24 Hours of Le Mans in an LMP2 car as follows: “I was desperate to go there because it’s such an important race. Who knows what the future holds, so I wanted to have that experience at least once. The opportunity with Crowdstrike by Algarve Pro came at just the right time. With George Kurtz and Alex Quinn, we were a strong team. The fact that I managed to win Le Mans on my first attempt is almost legendary. That also helped me make a name for myself in prototype racing.”

Most recently, as part of my return to GT racing, I secured victory in the 1,000 kilometres of Suzuka in the Intercontinental GT Challenge on ‘one of my favourite circuits – it was my third time there. The win was immensely important for Porsche in this region; it’s the highlight of the year. I was already familiar with the AO racing team from IMSA (2024 GTD-Pro title, ed.).”

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Heinrich is set to compete in the 2027 IMSA season with Porsche Penske, although the driver line-up has not yet been finalised. He is due to compete in the Asian Le Mans Series this winter. “And of course I’m hoping for another opportunity at Le Mans and the Nürburgring,” says Heinrich. The reason he now lives near Graz goes back to his appearance in the Porsche Supercup at Spielberg in 2022: that’s where the then Porsche Junior got to know Sophie: “She had no interest in motorsport, but was accompanying her father, who’d managed to get tickets.” It’s as simple as that.