Christensen will ‘fight to stay in WEC’ despite IMSA rumors

Photo: Julien Delfosse/DPPI

Michael Christensen says he wants to “fight to stay” in the FIA World Endurance Championship amid speculation the Porsche driver could move to the brand's IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship program next year.

Porsche Penske Motorsport managing director Jonathan Diuguid told Sportscar365 at the Circuit of The Americas last month that another driver change could be on the cards for 2025 after the German manufacturer opted to swap Dane Cameron and Matt Campbell between its WEC and IMSA efforts this year.

Speculation in the paddock suggests that a similar swap could take place in the off-season between Christensen and current IMSA racer Mathieu Jaminet.

“I have a contract with Porsche. Whether they have a plan for me or not, they have not yet communicated,” Christensen told Sportscar365 what his future held at Fuji ahead of the penultimate round of the WEC season this weekend.

“We have to wait and see. It's clear that there are a lot of rumors, but no information has come from management. All I hear are rumors. Honestly, I don't know.”

Christensen endured a difficult opening race of the season in Qatar, encountering tyre issues en route to a third-place finish alongside his co-drivers in the No. 5 Porsche, Campbell and Frederic Makowiecki.

The Danish driver was also at the wheel when the No. 5 car retired from the Spa race after hitting a kerb at Blanchimont, causing the hybrid system to be switched off for safety reasons.

When asked if he would rather drive in the WEC or IMSA, Christensen replied: “I have always felt more comfortable in the WEC. I want to fight to stay here. But it is not my decision.”

“I definitely enjoy racing in IMSA, but I simply prefer the WEC, also because of Le Mans – it’s the race of the year and I want to make sure I’m as well prepared as possible for it.

“Of course you could always sit in the third car or whatever. But WEC is my preferred option. It's the best possible way to prepare for Le Mans.”

Lotterer hopes that Porsche “will not change” the No. 6 team

In addition to Jaminet, Julien Andlauer is also being linked with a possible Porsche works driver position in the WEC next year after his impressive performances this year as a driver for the customer team Proton Competition.

This could have an impact on Andre Lotterer, who currently leads the championship in the No. 6 Penske Porsche along with Kevin Estre and Laurens Vanthoor.

But Lotterer, who turns 43 in November, hopes that a successful season this year could convince Porsche to keep the No. 6 lineup unchanged for the 2025 season.

When asked by Sportscar365 whether he was confident of being able to continue racing in 2025, Lotterer replied: “We'll see. I hope so.”

“We are leading the championship, we are doing a good job, I think Laurens, Kevin and I form a good trio, also together with the engineers.

“We have shown a lot of strength and consistency and each of us has our role in the team. You hope they don't change anything that isn't necessary.”

Speaking to reporters at Fuji Speedway this weekend, Diuguid said the driver line-up was not yet finalized but they were happy with the performance of all their factory drivers.

“All options are still on the table,” he said. “I would say we are getting closer to that. I wouldn't say there is a timetable for a decision.”

“As we've said before, all ten of our drivers are doing a really good job at the moment. We're not picking from a bad talent pool.”

Penske “considers everything” when putting together the WEC lineups

With the WEC's proposed three-driver lineup unlikely to be ratified for next year, Diuguid hinted that Penske could explore the option of fielding two-driver lineups in select six-hour races, but also pointed to the benefits of sticking with three-driver teams.

“It’s something we’re looking at and considering,” he said.

“We also consider that these six-hour races are now essentially sprint races. It is quite difficult to have two drivers at the same time, not so much physically but more mentally to make sure they don't make mistakes.

“I think that's one of the strengths of our WEC teams, especially this year. They've made quite few mistakes. I think that's put us in a position to win.”

“We take everything into account, not just the speed, not just the reliability, but we try to put them in the best position to be successful.”

John Dagys contributed to this report

Jamie Klein is Sportscar365's Asia editor. Japan-based Klein, who previously worked for Motorsport Network on the Motorsport.com and Autosport titles, covers the FIA World Endurance Championship and SUPER GT, among others.