Phil Hanson told Motorsport Week about how his endurance career progression from LMP2 machinery to Hypercar, and his outgoing Le Mans experience, lent him towards his Hypercar debut.
“Normally the traditional progression in endurance racing is to go up the LMP [Le Mans Prototype] order,” said the #38 JOTA Porsche 963 driver ahead of his eighth Le Mans, but his first in the WEC’s top category.
“Obviously Hypercars are now the newer version of what used to be LMP1, so that was always my goal. In LMP2, [it] was to progress into that.
“I was sharing the car for many years with people that had previously been in Hypercar or currently do race, or did race in the US equivalent, which obviously is GTP, which I also do.
“So that step of mine was something I’ve been working towards for many years and I was super fortunate to be given the opportunity here at JOTA with such a good team.
“The cars [LMP2 and Hypercars] are surprisingly not so dissimilar to drive, and knowing the circuits and knowing the championship very well was a very easy transition for me.
“… the element of the endurance with the traffic management, that hasn’t changed. It’s just getting my head around the car itself and all the systems and electronics, which was made very easy to me because the team was super helpful in that educational process.
“Oliver [Rasmussen] – I’ve raced against the last few years and Will [Stevens] in the #12 car, my other sort of sister teammate, I’ve been racing against him in many years in LMP2.
“Obviously not racing against Felipe [Albuquerque] anymore or with Felipe, but many of within the LMP2 field have now found themselves in Hypercar so largely it was like the class graduated and we’ve all found ourselves in a Hypercar.”
After competing in United Autosports’ LMP2 programme at Le Mans for every year since 2018, having won in an LMP2 class of 22 entrants in the 2020 edition with Felipe and Paul di Resta.
It will not be his first time behind the wheel of a Porsche having driven a JDC Miller MotorSports Porsche at the 24 Hours of Daytona, and to the 12 Hours of Sebring, and for next week’s 6 Hours of the Glen which marks the third out of five IMSA Endurance Cup events he will compete in for this year.
In addition, he made his Hypercar debut with JOTA this year in their second car with teammates Rasmussen and Garage 56 Chevrolet Camaro driver – and 2009 Formula 1 champion – Jenson Button.
After their 11th placed-result at the 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps, the team hopes to seek a possible podium for the 92nd Le Mans 24 Hours with Porsche seemingly competitive and content with any of the six Porsche machinery seeking victory.
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