Proton Competition has announced that it will not field the Porsche 963 LMDh in the World Endurance Championship’s Hypercar class in 2026.
Following Porsche Penske Motorsport’s shock withdrawal from the championship, the German manufacturer’s only remaining hope of staying on the Hypercar grid rested with customer team Proton Competition.
The situation was complicated by a new regulation introduced at the start of 2025 requiring each manufacturer to enter two cars in the championship.
Proton, which stepped up to Hypercar midway through 2023, has always run a single 963 in the WEC, with its second chassis competing in the IMSA SportsCar Championship.
Although team boss Christian Ried had already stated in last month’s Bahrain finale that Proton didn’t have the funding to expand to a two-car operation, it was widely reported that last-minute discussions were ongoing to keep the team on the grid.
It is understood that Porsche’s factory partner Team Penske was exploring a private partnership with Proton Competition to make a two-car Hypercar entry possible.
Such a partnership would have also allowed Porsche Penske Motorsport to take up the auto-invite it secured for the Le Mans 24 Hours by winning the 2025 IMSA GTP title.
#5 Proton Competition Porsche 963: Neel Jani, Nico Varrone, Nico Pino
Photo by: Art Fleischmann
However, such talks appear to have come to a nought, with Proton revealing on Friday that it will not continue its Hypercar programme for a fourth season in 2026.
“Despite weeks of discussions and every effort from our side, our team Proton Competition will not be able to field a Porsche 963 in the 2026 FIA WEC,” it said in a statement, without mentioning any collaboration with Penske.
“After the exit of Porsche Penske Motorsport, Christian and Michael Ried explored every possible option to keep two Porsche 963s on the grid next season. Unfortunately, the conditions needed for a private entry could not be reached.
“We want to express our gratitude to the people who stood with us throughout this journey: Ferdi Porsche, F.A.T., Mustang Sampling, Ken & Brenda Thompson. And a warm thank-you also to ACO and LMEM for being by our side until the very last moment.
“To all Porsche fans: we know this will be disappointing. We truly hoped to continue seeing the 963 racing in WEC and at Le Mans, and that same passion motivated us to keep pushing for a solution. Still, we look back proudly at what was achieved.”
Despite its departure from Hypercar, Proton is expected to remain a presence in the WEC thanks to its LMGT3 programme with a pair of Ford Mustang GT3 Evos.
#99 Proton Competition Porsche 963: Neel Jani, Nicolas Pino, Nicolas Varrone
Photo by: Shameem Fahath / Motorsport Network
“This update concerns only the 963 project,” Proton clarified. “All our other Porsche programmes continue to be evaluated as we shape the best possible line-up for the future of Proton Competition.”
Proton will also be absent from IMSA’s GTP class next year, with the team missing from the entry list for the 2026 season.
We want to hear from you!
Let us know what you would like to see from us in the future.
Take our survey
– The Autosport.com Team
Read the full article here