WEC – A new world crown for Porsche in Shanghai?

While Porsche remains undefeated in WEC since the 24 Hours of Le Mans, with notably three consecutive victories for the 919 Hybrid from Bernhard-Webber-Hartley, the German manufacturer could win his first world title since 1986 where he was crowned in the World Sportscar Championship this Sunday, November 1 at the end of the 6 Hours of Shanghai (China). The Stuttgart brand has a 53-point lead over Audi with two races remaining in the season, while each event allows a manufacturer to win 44 units.

“To be able to challenge for the title in our second season is a real achievement from the team. We didn't think we'd be in this situation so quickly.", commented Fritz Enzinger, vice-president of the LMP1 department. “The race could be tense in Shanghai. This circuit does not really highlight the strengths of the Porsche 919 Hybrid and Audi has strengthened itself. »

Andreas Seidl, Team Principal, is particularly concerned about the performance of the tires on the Chinese track, known to be abrasive. “The degradation will be strong and the regulations will therefore allow us to use eight sets of slick tires for the race. This means we won't have to double our relays. But it won't be easy to maintain the performance of the tires by constantly attacking in traffic. Tire management and general reliability will be the two main parameters for victory and the title race with Audi. »

If Porsche has a good advantage in the Manufacturers' Championship, the fight for the Drivers' title is tighter since the Bernhard-Webber-Hartley trio only has one point ahead of the Tréluyer-Fässler-Lotterer crew on the 'Audi n°7.