The 2020 24 Hours of Le Mans LMP2 Winner Will Make His GTP Debut at the Rolex 24
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Phil Hanson, the talented 24-year-old driver who already has a 24 Hours of Le Mans class win under his belt, was named today by JDC-Miller MotorSports as the third driver of the team’s No. 5 Porsche 963 for the IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup races during the 2024 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship season.
Hanson, from Berkshire, England, has spent the bulk of his sports car racing career driving a Le Mans Prototype 2 (LMP2) for United Autosports. He was the first LMP2 driver to win the FIA World Endurance Championship, European Le Mans Series and 24 Hours of Le Mans all in the same year, 2020. At Le Mans, Hanson teamed with Filipe Albuquerque and Paul di Resta to claim the class win, with Hanson – then just 21 years old – taking the car to the checkered flag in the final stint.
Hanson made his WeatherTech Championship debut in 2018, driving a United Autosports LMP2 in the Prototype class at the Rolex 24 At Daytona. His co-drivers then were current Formula 1 drivers Fernando Alonso and Lando Norris. Now, Hanson prepares to step up to the Grand Touring Prototype (GTP) class with the JDC-Miller Porsche.
“I’m very excited to be joining JDC-Miller MotorSports for the 2024 IMSA endurance races,” Hanson said. “After my first taste of IMSA back in 2018, I am thrilled to be back in the IMSA paddock and, above all, to be making my debut in the GTP class with JDC’s 963 Porsche. I can’t wait to see what we can achieve.”
JDC-Miller was the first customer racing team to enter the new hybrid-powered GTP class in 2023, joining at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca in May and competing in six races overall with best finishes of fourth place at Watkins Glen International in June and Canadian Tire Motorsport Park in July. The team has yet to announce its full-season driver pairing for 2024 but Managing Partner John Church is pleased to have Hanson as the endurance driver.
“We have been following Phil’s career for quite some time and his accomplishments are very impressive,” Church said. “He is a proven winner at the top levels of sports car racing and will be a great addition to the team. It will be fun to see what Phil can accomplish in a Porsche 963 GTP. JDC-Miller MotorSports is excited to take Phil to success at the next level of his already impressive career.”
The Michelin Endurance Cup expands to five races in 2024: the Rolex 24 At Daytona, Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring, Sahlen’s Six Hours of The Glen, TireRack.com Battle on the Bricks and Motul Petit Le Mans. Volker Holzmeyer, president and CEO of Porsche Motorsport North America, believes the addition of Hanson will make the JDC-Miller Porsche a stronger contender at those long-distance events.
“To attract a driver the caliber of Philip Hanson to the team speaks well of the program that has been built,” Holzmeyer said. “I think we will see the true potential of customer race teams show against the works programs in the class. This is like what we saw in the 1980s with the (Porsche) 962 and that speaks well for the future.”
The 2024 WeatherTech Championship season opens with the Roar Before the Rolex 24 test sessions from Jan. 19-21 at Daytona International Speedway. The 62nd Rolex 24 At Daytona runs from Jan. 25-28.