2017 FIA World Endurance Championship kicks off with the 6 hours of Silverstone this weekend!

SILVERSTONE, UK- Silverstone will see the first duel between the re-worked Porsche 919 hybrid and the Toyota TS050 Hybrid. WEC fans can still recall the agonizing 2016 Le Mans finish wherein the Toyota crawled to a halt, after leading most of the race, with just a few corners to go before the checkered flag.

This year, Porsche, the 2015 and 2016 World champions and Le Mans, winners, are looking for a three-peat. At Silverstone, the Porsche 919 Hybrids will run with significantly lower downforce than what is demanded in this relatively flat track. This is in support of their aero-dynamic strategy for the entire year.

The Porsche 919 Hybrid has been re-worked significantly, with 60-70 % of its parts featuring new developments, centering on the aerodynamics, chassis and combustion engine. The compact two-liter turbo charged V-4 with hybrid system boasts of 900HP (662kW) with two different energy recovery systems. Brake energy from the front axle and exhaust energy are combined and stored in liquid-cooled lithium ion batteries. The combustion engine is what drives the rear axle while the electric motor propels the front axle.

Driving the #1 Porsche 919 Hybrid are defending World champ Neel Jani, Nick Tandy, and Porsche newcomer Andre Lotterer, meanwhile, the #2 Porsche will have Earl Bamber, Brendon Hartley and Timo Bernhard behind the wheel.

“The team has done an amazing job during the recent weeks and months. Now it’s time to finally go racing. The prologue has proven that we can expect a very tough fight with Toyota. Silverstone is going to be six hour sprint race” said Fitz Enzinger Vice President LMP1.