Porsche Penske Motorsport will run a throwback livery inspired by the 24 Hours of Le Mans-winning GT1 at this year’s IMSA 12 Hours of Sebring.
Commemorating the 30th anniversary of Porsche’s partnership with Mobil 1, the white, red and blue livery pays tribute to the GT1’s success in the late 1990s.
The GT1 in 1996 was the first to race under the collaboration, and two years later, the GT1 ’98 went on to take a sensational win at the Circuit de la Sarthe.
Those iconic colours will return on March 21 for the 74th running of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship’s 12 Hours of Sebring.
The livery
A white base, with swirling blue lines and red highlights, the Porsche 911 GT1 has long been a fan favourite colour scheme.
Not only does it look good, but the car was fast. When it made its 24 Hours of Le Mans debut in 1996, the 911 GT1 hit a top speed of 330 km/h (205 mph) on the Mulsanne Straight during practice. In the race itself, it finished second and third overall (first and second in the LMGT1 class).
The following year, a privately-owned version of car – known as the 911 GT1 Evo – finished fifth overall at Le Mans, while also scoring top five finishes in the endurance races at Spa, Suzuka, Mugello, Sebring and Laguna Seca.
But it was 1998 where it found its biggest success, with the GT1-98, driven by Allan McNish, Laurent Aïello and Stéphane Ortelli, soaring to a stellar victory, while another GT1-98 claimed the runner-up spot.
It was a 16th – and record-breaking – win for Porsche at the iconic race.
The partnership
For over 30 years, Mobil 1 and Porsche have worked together to push the limits of performance.
On Sunday June 14 1996, the original partnership contract was signed trackside at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, marking the beginning of the iconic relationship between Porsche and Mobil 1.
Porsche took a brilliant 1-2-3 result in that race, with a Joest Racing-run TWR-Porsche WSC95 winning ahead of the two 911 GT1.
Since then, the partnership has produced countless podiums, race wins and championship victories, achieving key milestones in engine technology to benefit both racing drivers and Porsche owners.
It is a wide-spanning partnership, with Mobil 1 serving as Official Cooperation Partner of Porsche Motorsport, title sponsor of the Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup, Gold Sponsor of all Carrera Cup series worldwide.
Mobil 1 is also a long-standing supporter of Porsche teams in the World Endurance Championship, IMSA and the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
Continuing to break boundaries, in 2019 Porsche entered Formula E with Mobil 1 as a technical partner and supplier of all high-performance electric powertrain fluids for the Porsche 99X Electric. This marked ExxonMobil’s first involvement in electric racing.
The race
This year’s 12 Hours of Sebring takes place from March 18-21 at the iconic Sebring International Raceway.
One of the United States’ most iconic tracks, the Florida circuit has 17 turns across 6.019 km / 3.740 mi.
After winning this year’s the 24 Hours of Daytona, the #7 Porsche Penske Motorsport car shared by Julien Andlauer, Laurin Heinrich and Felipe Nasr leads the way in the drivers’ standings.
The sister #6 entry, driven by Matt Campbell, Kévin Estre and Laurens Vanthoor is currently fourth in the championship.
Read the report from the 2025 edition
