Looking ahead: May Porsche motorsport preview

The motorsport calendar is in full swing heading into May, with all series having now commenced racing action. Heading into this month, the World Endurance Championship hosts its third round, this time in Belgium at the stunning Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, while the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship heads to Laguna Seca for the MOTUL Course de Monterey. Formula E is set to return to China for its first ever Shanghai ePrix, with a double-header at the Shanghai International Circuit, while the DTM hosts its second round at the DEKRA Lausitzring. Here’s a full preview of all the Porsche motorsport activities taking place in May:

WEC: 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps

Porsche Penske Motorsport holds its lead in both the drivers and manufacturers’ championships heading into round three, this time at Belgium’s Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps from May 9-11. Both factory cars have finished on the podium in both WEC races so far this season, including victory at the opening round in Qatar, and look to continue this success at Spa. Set in the Ardennes Forest, this challenging 7km / 4.35 mile circuit is a true highlight of many series’ calendars, and also hosts the 24 Hours of Spa in June. The WEC has competed at the circuit since 2012, but its predecessor, the World Sportscar Championship, raced there as far back as the 1960s. Porsche has taken nine sportscar-racing wins at the circuit across the decades, with the last having come in 1986. Having narrowly missed out on the podium last year, with the #5 car of Dane Cameron, Fred Makowiecki and Michael Christensen having come fourth, the team will be hoping for at least a step on the rostrum this year.

IMSA: Motul Course de Monterey

IMSA heads to Laguna Seca for its fourth round of the season of 11. The Porsche Penske Motorsport #7 car of Dane Cameron and Felipe Nasr leads the standings, having scored another podium finish last time out at Long Beach. The pair also scored a win at the 24 Hours of Daytona and a third-place finish at the 12 Hours of Sebring, and will be hoping to continue their podium streak. Laguna Seca Raceway is located in central California, and the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship is a mainstay of its racing calendar, having first visited the circuit in 1957. It rejoined the calendar permanently in 1997. The #6 car of Mathieu Jaminet and Nick Tandy finished in second-place at Laguna Seca last year, and will be hoping to improve on that result this time out.

Formula E: Berlin and Shanghai ePrix double-headers

Porsche TAG Heuer Formula E team driver Pascal Wehrlein leads the drivers’ standings as the championship heads to Berlin from 11-12 May, with the team third overall. Marking the home race for both the team and Wehrlein, he will be hoping to capture another victory, having already won in Mexico and Misano. The weekend is another double-header, coming after the last two-race round in Misano, Italy, and marks rounds nine and 10 of the 16-round calendar for the 2023-24 season.

It marks the city’s 17th appearance on the Formula E calendar, having been present since Season 1. All bar one of those races has been hosted at the Tempelhof Airport site. After Berlin, the series visits China from May 25-26, for rounds 11 and 12 of 16. The all-electric series returns to China after a four-year absence due to the COVID pandemic, and will race at the Shanghai International Circuit for the first time. The series last raced in mainland China in 2014, though it held a race on the island of Sanya in 2019.

DTM: DEKRA Lausitzring

The DTM heads to the Lausitzring for its second round from May 24-26. Having had a difficult first round in Oschersleben, Porsche customer team Manthey EMA will be hoping to bounce back at round two of eight at the Lausitzring. Thomas Preining and Ayhancan Güven finished in the points in both races at round one, but will be gunning for victory next time out as Preining hopes to defend his title. The reigning champion narrowly missed out on the podium at the Lausitzring last year, and will be fighting for victory upon his return this month.

Esports: ESL R1

The Porsche Coanda Esports Racing Team is back for the 2024 ESL R1 season, hoping to better its runner-up finish in the teams’ championship. With Charlie Collins joining the team alongside Joshua Rogers, Mitchell deJong and Dayne Warren, with Elvis Rankin as reserve driver, the team looks forward to restarting the Esports action this month. Starting with the six-round Spring Season, the championship will build to the Esports World Cup to be held in Riyadh from August 22-25. The online races will also be moved to Friday evenings, so watching the action just got a little easier. Each race will be a 15 minute competition on a set track with 12 drivers per heat. The first round will be held on May 17, with the second a week later, and all the action will be available to watch on the official Porsche Twitch Channel here.