HubAuto Racing has named the driver line-up for its assault on the GTE Pro category in this year’s 24 Hours of Le Mans.
The Taiwanese outfit upgraded its entry from GTE Am to GTE Pro earlier in the year, although its line-up had not yet been announced at the time.
It has now confirmed that its #72 Porsche 911 RSR-19 will be piloted by Maxime Martin, Alvaro Parente and Dries Vanthoor.
“We are greatly anticipating blending the skills of Maxime, Alvaro and Dries with HubAuto Racing’s technical ability,” said team owner Morris Chen, who raced in last year’s edition in GTE Am.
“All three drivers are accomplished 24 Hours of Le Mans drivers and extremely talented. It is a wonderful opportunity for HubAuto Racing to have them join us, for what we believe is a superb line-up for this prestigious event.
Maxime Martin will be making his seventh start at Le Mans and will be defending the GTE Pro crown, having captured last year’s class victory with Aston Martin.
“When the team contacted me about the drive I was immediately interested and knew it would be a great opportunity,” he said. This year will be my seventh year competing at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. I am happy to have the chance to defend my victory from last year and will do everything to win it again.”
Alvaro Parente, an accomplished GT3 racer, only has two previous starts at Le Mans. He has, however, previously won the Bathurst 12 Hours.
“I’ve been keen to drive with HubAuto Racing for some time and we have spoken on a few occasions,” Parente said. “Each time there has been a clash or other commitments. As soon as the team told me it was a Pro entry for the 24 Hours of Le Mans, I wanted to be involved. This time our schedules didn’t clash.”
The final man in the line-up is Belgian racer Dries Vanthoor. The brother of Porsche factory driver Laurens Vanthoor won the GTE Am class in his only Le Mans start to date when he raced with JMW Motorsport in 2017.
He will be competing against his brother in the GTE Pro category, as Laurens has been entered into WeatherTech Racing’s line-up.
“When the team messaged me to gauge my interest, I was on the phone to them quickly,” said Vanthoor. “Honestly, I was getting calls from other teams to join their line-up for the 24 Hours of Le Mans, however HubAuto Racing’s offer and the Pro line up is a great chance for the team and I wanted to be part of that.”
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