Laurens Vanthoor Facts for Kids

Quick facts for kids Laurens Vanthoor
Vanthoor in 2024
Nationality	Belgian
Born	(1991-05-08) 8 May 1991 (age 34) Hasselt, Belgium
Related to	Dries Vanthoor (brother)
WEC career
Debut season	2017
Current team	Porsche Penske Motorsport
Racing licence	FIA Platinum
Car no.	6
Former teams	Porsche GT Team, KCMG, Pfaff Motorsports
Starts	58
Wins	9
Poles	4
Fastest laps	6
Best finish	1st in 2019 (GTLM) and 2021 (GTD)
Previous series
2009 2008–09 2010–11 2012–2016 2012–2016 2016	Belgian Touring Car Series German Formula Three Formula 3 Euro Series Blancpain GT Series Endurance Cup Blancpain GT Series Sprint Cup Intercontinental GT Challenge
Championship titles
2024 2021 2019 2016 2014 2014 2013 2009	FIA World Endurance Championship - Hypercar IMSA SportsCar Championship - GTD< IMSA SportsCar Championship - GTLM Intercontinental GT Challenge Blancpain GT Series Endurance Cup Blancpain GT Series FIA GT Series German Formula Three

Laurens Vanthoor (born May 8, 1991) is a Belgian professional race car driver. He drives for Porsche Motorsport as a factory driver. This means he is officially supported by Porsche. He competes in the FIA World Endurance Championship, a top racing series.

Early Racing Days
- Starting in Karting
- Racing in Formula Three (2008-2011)
Sportscar Adventures
Hypercar Racing Career
Images for kids
See also

Early Racing Days

Starting in Karting

Laurens Vanthoor was born in Hasselt, Belgium. He started his kart racing career when he was very young. In 2005, he became a champion in France and Belgium. He also finished fourth in a big European race.

In 2007, Laurens became an official driver for the CRG karting team. Sadly, he had an accident that year. He broke six bones and couldn't race for five months. His best result was finishing second in the North European Championship.

Racing in Formula Three (2008-2011)

In 2008, Laurens moved from karting straight into Formula Three racing. This was a big jump! He finished fourth overall in the championship. He won two races and started from the front row three times.

Because he did so well, the Belgian Automobile Club (RACB) chose him for their "National Team." Also, Volkswagen Motorsport made him an official driver. Laurens became the youngest driver ever to race in the famous Macau Grand Prix. He finished sixth in that race.

In 2009, Laurens became the top driver in the German Formula 3 Championship. He won 11 races and started from pole position 11 times. He won the championship easily at the Nürburgring track.

He then moved to the Formula Three Euroseries in 2010 and 2011. He finished on the podium several times but did not win any races in this series.

Sportscar Adventures

First Steps in FIA GT1 (2012)

In 2012, Laurens switched to FIA GT1 World Championship racing. He joined the WRT team. With his teammate Stéphane Ortelli, he won both races at the first event in Nogaro.

Driving for Audi Sport (2013-2016)

Audi R8 LMS Ultra from W Racing Team during the 2014 Blancpain Endurance Series round at the Nürburgring

In 2013, Laurens and Stéphane Ortelli won the FIA GT Series title for Audi and WRT. In 2014, he raced in two series: the Blancpain Sprint Series and the Blancpain Endurance Series. He won the Endurance Series and the overall Blancpain GT Series championship. He also won the famous 2014 24 Hours of Spa race with René Rast and Markus Winkelhock.

In 2015, Laurens started the year strong at the Bathurst 12 Hour race. He set a new lap record and finished second. Later that year, he won the 24 Hours of Nürburgring with his Audi team. In October, he had a big crash that caused a serious injury. He missed some races but came back to win the Sepang 12 Hours.

In 2016, he won the Dubai 24 Hour race. On November 21, 2016, Laurens won the FIA GT World Cup in Macau, becoming a World Champion. After this, he announced he would leave Audi to join Porsche. His last race with Audi was the Sepang 12 Hours, which he won. This made him the first winner of the Intercontinental GT Challenge.

Driving for Porsche in IMSA (2017-2021)

The #92 Porsche 911 RSR at the 2022 24 Hours of Le Mans

In 2017, Laurens began racing for Porsche in the WeatherTech SportsCar Championship. His first win with Porsche came in 2018 at the Mid-Ohio race.

In 2018, Laurens also joined the Porsche team for the legendary Le Mans 24 Hours race. His car had a special "pink pig" design. He and his teammates, Kévin Estre and Michael Christensen, won the GTE Pro class.

The next year, Laurens and his teammate Earl Bamber won the WeatherTech SportsCar Championship in the GTLM class. They won three races and finished on the podium seven times. Porsche later stopped its factory racing in the GTLM class.

However, Laurens stayed a Porsche factory driver. In 2021, he raced for a customer team called Pfaff Motorsports. He and his teammate Zacharie Robichon won the GTD class championship. Laurens also won the 24 Hours of Spa for a second time in 2020, driving a Porsche 911 GT3 R.

Racing in DTM (2022)

In 2022, Laurens raced in the Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters (DTM) series. He drove a Porsche 911 GT3 R for SSR Performance.

Hypercar Racing Career

The Porsche 963 #6 during the FIA WEC 6 Hours of Portimão

In 2023, Laurens moved to the top class of endurance racing, called Hypercar. He joined the Porsche Penske Motorsport team for the FIA World Endurance Championship. He raced with Kévin Estre and André Lotterer.

They finished on the podium twice in 2023. At the Fuji race, Laurens took the lead at the start and held it for two hours. He showed great skill against the strong Toyota cars. The team finished sixth overall in the championship.

In 2024, Laurens, Kévin, and André continued to race the Porsche #6 car in the WEC. They won their first race of the season at the Qatar 1812 km. This was a big win for the team, as all three Porsche cars finished on the podium!