Laurens Vanthoor claimed the 2024 drivers’ title in the World Endurance Championship at the season finale in Bahrain.
The Belgian, alongside Kevin Estre and Andre Lotterer, beat out the No. 50 Ferrari AF Corse trio to win the title by 37 points in the No. 6 Porsche 963 Hypercar.
Porsche were unable to hold on to their lead in the Manufacturers’ Championship, as Toyota’s victory at the 8 Hours of Bahrain through Sebastien Buemi, Brendan Hartley and Ryo Hirakawa grabbed them the title by just two points, securing their sixth win in a row.
Despite enduring a disappointing end to the season, Vanthoor and his teammates benefitted from a late penalty for the No. 51 Ferrari for using more tyres than the maximum amount allowed over a race weekend.
With the Italian outfit not scoring any points in Bahrain, the Belgian held his lead with Estre and Lotterer to secure his first WEC title.
Laurens Vanthoor ‘starting crying’ after winning his first WEC title
Vanthoor has enjoyed a highly successful career, winning titles in GT racing and is a two-time champion in the IMSA SportsCar Championship.
The 33-year-old has won the 24 Hours of Spa twice, as well as the Bathurst 12 Hours, the 24 Hours of Nürburgring and the 24 Hours of Le Mans in the GT3 Pro class in 2018.
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Vanthoor has been racing with Porsche Penske Motorsport in the WEC since 2023, finishing sixth in the standings that year with two podiums at Algarve and Fuji.
Speaking on his Over The Limit Podcast with his brother Dries Vanthoor, who also races in the Hypercar class with BMW, Laurens Vanthoor reflected on what was an emotional evening for the Belgian as he claimed the world championship.
Asked by Dries how he felt when he crossed the line, Laurens replied: “I cried. I started crying.
“It’s obviously been a big break since Fuji and although I was quite busy with other stuff, it’s been obviously a very stressful week, because [it’s] not every day that you can win the world championship and especially the position where we were in.
“I mean, we could only lose it and by doing we had to be doing something stupid, which I did multiple times!
“So, once we crossed [the] start/finish, or when I was in the car, it was like everything just released and you just realise that it worked out. It’s an absolute dream come true. Yeah, it was quite emotional.”
The No. 6 Porsche had its worst result of the season at the 8 Hours of Bahrain
Vanthoor and the No. 6 Porsche won twice in 2024 at the season opener in Qatar and Fuji, marking the most wins by a single car along with the No. 8 Toyota who won in Sao Paulo and Bahrain.
The Belgian, Estre and Lotterer also grabbed three more podiums across the season, finishing second at Imola, Spa and Sao Paulo, as well as coming home fourth in the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
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The season did not end the way the trio would have hoped, as they suffered their worst result of the season in Bahrain with 10th place.
After suffering a disastrous opening lap as he slipped to 14th following contact with the Ferrari No. 50, Laurens Vanthoor was penalised three times during the race for contact, a track limits violation while battling his brother Dries Vanthoor and for speeding during a full-course yellow.
The result marks the first time the 33-year-old was beaten by his brother Dries in a WEC race, as the BMW driver came home to finish fifth; the No. 15’s second best result of the year after their maiden podium in Fuji.