Porsche 963 Is A New Racer Designed To Win Le Mans In 2023

When Porsche reveals a new racing car, it’s kind of a big deal - especially when the 963 racer in question marks the brand’s return to the top level of the 2023 World Endurance Championship, along with its companion IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship in the US.

To mark its arrival, the motorsport giant has flown the new white, red and black 963 Le Mans prototype to Goodwood’s Festival of Speed for a fitting debut. Porsche announced its exit from Le Mans racing in 2018, and in the years since Toyota has largely dominated proceedings.

The 963’s chassis will be built in collaboration with Multimatic, the same firm responsible for much of the development of the Ford GT racing car and its road-going sibling. It complies to the latest LMDh regulations, so while it has the general shape of an all-out Le Mans prototype, it now sports a different look, with smaller headlights than the legendary 919 Hybrid. The 963’s chassis will be built in collaboration with Multimatic, the same firm responsible for much of the development of the Ford GT racing car and its road-going sibling. It complies to the latest LMDh regulations, so while it has the general shape of an all-out Le Mans prototype, it now sports a different look, with smaller headlights than the legendary 919 Hybrid.

The driver still sits inside an enclosed cockpit, and a massive central fin connects to a large rear wing to provide high-speed stability and downforce. Porsche’s designers have even managed to carry over a few evocative styling cues, including a wide strip of LED rear lights in a nod to the Porsche 992 - the latest generation of 911.

Power comes from a twin-turbocharged 4.6-litre V8 hybrid that’s based on the engine from the Porsche 918 Spyder road car. It produces 671bhp and it’s mated to some standardised components from Bosch, Williams Advanced Engineering and Xtrac, in accordance with the rules for the class.

You’ll be able to see the 963 in action for the first time at the 24 hours of Daytona in January, before it heads to iconic tracks including Le Mans, Sebring and Road Atlanta. Porsche’s driver line-up has also been announced, and is set to include Kévin Estre, Michael Christensen, André Lotterer, Laurens Vanthoor, Matt Campbell, Mathieu Jaminet, Dane Cameron and Felipe Nasr.