The Porsche Penske Motorsport works team will be entering the tradition-steeped Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring on 21 March with a special colour scheme: both hybrid prototypes from Weissach will feature blue and red accents on a white background at the endurance classic in the US state of Florida. With this special design, Porsche and the oil company ExxonMobil are celebrating a close partnership that has existed for 30 years and is characterised by innovation – both in motorsport and in the automotive sector.

14 June 1996 marked the start of a strong partnership: at the 24 Hours of Le Mans at the time, the two Porsche 911 GT1s of the works team in Mobil 1 livery crossed the finish line in second and third place behind a customer Porsche. On that day, the sports car manufacturer from Stuttgart and the US oil company signed a groundbreaking contract that includes the initial filling with lubricants for all new cars delivered by Porsche.

"The close and highly trusting partnership between Porsche and Mobil 1 has produced countless unforgettable moments and sustainable innovations," says Thomas Laudenbach, Vice President Porsche Motorsport. We have always used competition on the world's race tracks to test technologies and redefine boundaries. Mobil 1 has been accompanying us on this path for 30 years as an optimal partner. We're focusing on that at this year's race at Sebring with the special design. The anniversary is part of our celebrations for 75 years of Porsche Motorsport."

Thomas Laudenbach, Vice President Porsche Motorsport

"Mobil 1 has been an essential technology partner for Porsche for decades – a time marked by race wins, championship titles and pioneering engineering," says Kelli H. Wright, Director of Lubricants Worldwide at ExxonMobil Product Solutions. With a special livery at Sebring, we are commemorating this joint anniversary and celebrating a collaboration that continues to drive performance, efficiency and innovation for the future of motorsport and production cars."

Innovations and successes have shaped the cooperation over the past 30 years. Just two years after the start of the cooperation, the further developed Porsche 911 GT1 in Mobil 1 design won the 24 Hours of Le Mans against the toughest competition. In the 2000s, the partnership played a significant role in the great success of the Porsche RS Spyder in North America and Europe. With the latest developments in the field of engine oils and battery coolants, Mobil 1, together with Porsche, gave the 919 Hybrid the necessary boost on its way to six world championship titles and three overall Le Mans victories from 2014 to 2017.

In recent years, for example, innovations in the cooling of electric motors and batteries have brought Porsche GT4 e-Performance great progress. The purely electrically powered prototype can thus permanently deliver an output of up to 800 kW (1,088 hp) to the tracks. In Formula E, Mobil 1 is an important technical partner of the Porsche works team. The brand has been the title sponsor of the Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup at selected European Formula 1 events since 2007.

"With the current Porsche 963, we are also benefiting from the innovations and expertise of Mobil 1 in many areas," explains Urs Kuratle, Vice President Factory Motorsport LMDh. "In the fierce competition of the IMSA series, it's all about the details – and we've been at the forefront of this on a regular basis recently: the title wins in the past two years and the renewed victory in January at the 24 Hours of Daytona underline this in the long term. Now we want to win together with all our partners in the anniversary year as well."

The race

The traditional race at Sebring is considered a special endurance test for man and machine alike. One reason: the nature of the traditional circuit, which partly leads over a former military airfield. Around 30 percent of the route consists of concrete slabs. The strong bumps also pose a special challenge. The 12-hour race of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship at the 6.02-kilometre Sebring International Raceway enters its 74th edition. With 19 overall victories, Porsche is the most successful manufacturer at this endurance classic.

The Porsche Penske Motorsport works team is fielding two 963s in the top GTP class. The No. 7 car with Daytona winners Felipe Nasr from Brazil, Julien Andlauer from France and Germany's Laurin Heinrich will start the 12-hour race as the leader of the standings. Their teammates Kévin Estre (France), Laurens Vanthoor (Belgium) and Matt Campbell (Australia) currently occupy fourth place at the wheel of the number 6 car. Porsche is at the top of the manufacturers' standings. In the GTD-Pro class, the customer teams Manthey and AO Racing each field a Porsche 911 GT3 R. Other nine-elevens are competing in the GTD category.

Manthey (#911)

Julien Andlauer, Laurin Heinrich and Felipe Nasr (l-r)

Laurens Vanthoor, Kévin Estre and Matt Campbell (l-r)

AO Racing (#77)

Manthey (#911)

Julien Andlauer, Laurin Heinrich and Felipe Nasr (l-r)

The Porsche race cars at the 12 Hours of Sebring

GTP class (Porsche 963):
#6 Porsche Penske Motorsport: Kévin Estre (FRA), Laurens Vanthoor (BEL), Matt Campbell (AUS)
#7 Porsche Penske Motorsport: Julien Andlauer (FRA), Felipe Nasr (BRA), Laurin Heinrich (DEU)
#5 JDC-Miller MotorSports: Nico Pino (CHL), Tijmen van der Helm (NLD), Kaylen Frederick (USA)

GTD-Pro class (Porsche 911 GT3 R):
#77 AO Racing: Nick Tandy (GBR), Harry King (GBR), Alessio Picariello (BEL)
#911 Manthey: Thomas Preining (AUT), Klaus Bachler (AUT), Ricardo Feller (CHE)

GTD class (Porsche 911 GT3 R):
#28 RS1: Spencer Pumpelly (USA), Jan Heylen (BEL), Dillon Machavern (USA)
#120 Wright Motorsports: Adam Adelson (USA), Tom Sargent (AUS), Callum Ilott (GBR)
#912 Manthey 1st Phorm: Ryan Hardwick (USA), Riccardo Pera (ITA), Morris Schuring (NLD)