Porsche 919 Hybrid - 2016

The decision to revise the regulations came when the ACO, the club that organises the 24 Hours of Le Mans, agreed with the FIA to review the restrictions applicable to LMP 1 cars. The objective was to force manufacturers to improve efficiency and reduce the risk of accidents (such as the one that claimed the life of Danish driver Allan Simonsen in 2013) by reducing corner speeds. New aerodynamic and fuel consumption standards were being introduced in order to develop the electrical components incorporated within the hybrid systems. The latter were introduced in 2011, after the ACO imposed restrictions on power, engine capacity and number of cylinders, while permitting energy recovery systems. From 2014 onwards, hybrid engines (mandatory for official teams) were further improved, although more freedom was allowed in terms of engine capacity and number of cylinders. In response to these specifications, Porsche developed a system combining a turbocharged V4 engine with an energy recovery device on the engine itself and a motor generator on the front axle.

The 919 Hybrid, despite its potential, was unable to compete with the hybrids from Audi and Toyota, except at the Interlagos event at the end of the season. The car's reliability issues eliminated any chance of success at Le Mans, where both Porsches were fighting for victory before suffering mechanical problems. The car was revised in 2015, made lighter and more aerodynamically efficient. From then on, positive results followed: at Le Castellet in the preliminary race of the season, the 919 Hybrids proved to be the fastest. During the following months, they took their first podium places at the 6 Hours of Silverstone (2nd place) and at Spa, where Porsche entered three cars that finished 2nd, 3rd and 6th. At the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the domination of the German brand was confirmed during practice at the end of May (1st, 2nd and 4th fastest times) and in the race itself. The 919 Hybrids claimed the leading positions, with Neel Jani setting a new lap record and keeping Audi and Toyota at bay. They finished 1st, 2nd and 5th. The third crew, consisting of Nico Hülkenberg, Earl Bamber and Nick Tandy, became the winners. From that point on, there was no stopping them from taking the leading positions on the podium and, at the end of the season, Porsche was crowned WEC champion with Timo Bernhard, Mark Webber and Brendon Hartley leading the drivers' standings.

That was the start of a three-year period of almost total domination. In 2016, Romain Dumas, Neel Jani and Marc Lieb took pole position and first place at Le Mans ahead of Toyota and Audi, and triumphed at the end of the season with only two victories (the first at Silverstone) but several good placings, while Bernhard, Webber and Hartley, despite four victories, finished fourth. A similar scenario unfolded the following year when the 24 Hours of Le Mans went to Bernhard, Hartley and Bamber, replacing Webber, resisting the attacks of the surprising Oreca LMP2 from the Jackie Chan team.