Manthey ready to fight for a third consecutive FIA WEC title in 2026

After two successful years, Manthey will once again field two Porsche 911 GT3 R - this time as the sole Porsche team in the championship.

Since the LMGT3 class was introduced in 2024, Manthey has won six out of 16 races, including class wins at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 2024 and 2025.

The team is keen to build on its successes in the coming season and take a third consecutive title.

The season kicks off with the 6 Hours of Imola on April 19, after the Qatar 1812km was delayed due to the ongoing geopolitical situation in the Middle East.

The second round, the 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps, is on May 9, before the biggest event of the year - the 24 Hours of Le Mans - on June 13-14.

The second half of the season takes the championship to Brazil, the US and Japan.

The rescheduled Qatar 1812km will take place on October 24, before the season finale in Bahrain on November 7.

The Manthey 2026 FIA World Endurance Championship driver line-ups

Manthey will be fielding two LMGT3 entries to represent Porsche in this year’s championship, and will be fighting to defend its titles.

Timur Boguslavskiy, James Cottingham and reigning DTM champion Ayhancan Güven will be at the wheel of the Manthey DK Engineering #91 Porsche.

Boguslavskiy and Cottingham join from The Bend Team WRT and United Autosports’ LMGT3 teams respectively. Güven will make his WEC debut this season, having won the DTM championship with Manthey in 2025.

The sister #92 car, The Bend Manthey, will be piloted by Yasser Shahin, Riccardo Pera and Richard Lietz.

Shanin returns to Manthey after a year with WRT to join Pera and Lietz in their second year as team-mates.

Patrick Arkenau, Director Racing at Manthey Racing GmbH, said: "We are very confident about our two driver line-ups, which feature newcomers, returning drivers and consistency in equal measure.

“While James and Timur have been competing in the WEC since 2024 but are new to the team, Ayhancan will be making his series debut, but has already won championships and victories with us. I am sure that we will form a strong unit with these exciting drivers.

“The second line-up also promises a lot: While Richard represents absolute consistency and expertise for us, we are happy that Riccardo is entering his second season with us and very pleased that Yasser and The Bend are returning to us following a year with BMW.

“With him and Richard, we celebrated many highlights in 2024 in the new LMGT3 class with Manthey EMA, crowned by the victory at Le Mans.

“We are therefore happy to have him back in our line-up, while Ryan is taking the natural step of joining us in IMSA, thus remaining with us as a strong driver and partner.

“In 2026, we want to pick up with both cars where we left off in 2025 and 2024 and celebrate the next successes together."

The 2026 World Endurance Championship calendar