Porsche GT Team completes testing ahead of Le Mans

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The Porsche GT Teams have undertaken official pre-testing for the 2019 Le Mans 24 Hour race, with the four Porsche 911 RSR cars covering 4,279km over 314 laps.

The two factory teams from the FIA WEC and the North American IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship completed pre-testing at the Circuit des 24 Heures, with the No. 93 RSR the fastest 911 on the test day, clocking a time of 3:54.233 minutes.

The focus of the test work for the two teams was vehicle setup, pit stop practice and tire comparisons. Drivers could also familiarize themselves with the upgrades made to the 13.626km circuit – at the exit of the Porsche curves the clearance zone has been changed for this year’s race, the tire barrier has been moved in the Arnage corner, and the Ford chicane now has new curbs to prevent shortcuts.

During the two four-hour test sessions, the six Porsche 911 RSRs run by customers teams Dempsey Proton Racing, Project 1 and Gulf Racing covered a total distance of 5,709km (419 laps).

“For the test day, we had an extensive to-do list,” said Pascal Zurlinden, director GT Factory Motorsport. “We divided up the work on our four cars and managed to tick off all the tasks as planned. The focus wasn’t on simulating qualification conditions, but on preparing for the 24-hour race.

“We have a bunch of new drivers in our customer teams who were impressively quick in familiarizing themselves with the Porsche 911 RSR. It’s a pleasure to see so many strong drivers sharing the 10 cars.”

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Matt joined UKi Media & Events in 2014 after seven years of living and working in Dubai. He has been a journalist for over a decade and has worked for a wide range of publications, including Rolling Stone, Time Out, iQ and Loaded. After starting out on the automotive team as deputy editor of Engine Technology International, Electric & Hybrid Vehicle Technology International and Transmissions Technology International, he has been an editor since 2015, and began editing Tire Technology International in 2018. In 2020, he was appointed editor-in-chief of Tire, Professional Motorsport World, Electric & Hybrid Marine Technology International and Crash test Technology International.




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