Phil Hanson (racing driver) facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Phil Hanson
Hanson in 2020
Nationality	British
Born	(1999-07-05) 5 July 1999 (age 26) Sunningdale, Berkshire, England
FIA WEC career
Debut season	2019–20
Current team	AF Corse
Racing licence	FIA Bronze (2016) FIA Silver (2017–2020) FIA Gold (2021–)
Car no.	83
Former teams	Tockwith Motorsports, United Autosports, Hertz Team Jota
Starts	40 (40 entries)
Wins	8
Podiums	14
Poles	1
Fastest laps	1
Best finish	1st (LMP2) in 2019–20
Previous series
2017–23 2016–17, 18–19, 23 2016	European Le Mans Series Asian Le Mans Series Dunlop Endurance Championship
Championship titles
2019–20 2020 2018–19 2016–17 2016	FIA WEC – LMP2 ELMS – LMP2 AsLMS – LMP2 AsLMS – LMP3 Britcar Endurance Championship
Awards
2016–17	AsLMS - Rookie of the Year

Philip Beauchamp Hanson (born 5 July 1999) is a British racing driver. He currently races in the FIA World Endurance Championship for AF Corse.

Phil has won many titles in sportscar racing. These include the Dunlop Endurance Championship in 2016. He also won the 2016–17 Asian Le Mans Series and 2018–19 Asian Le Mans Series championships. In 2020, he won the 2020 European Le Mans Series. Phil also won his class at the 2020 24 Hours of Le Mans. That same year, he won the 2019–20 FIA World Endurance Championship in the LMP2 class. He is the youngest driver ever to win a WEC title. He is also the youngest British driver to win the LMP2 class at Le Mans. In 2025, Phil won the 2025 24 Hours of Le Mans with Robert Kubica and Yifei Ye.

Getting Started in Racing

Philip Beauchamp Hanson was born in Sunningdale, Berkshire, on 5 July 1999. His father, Richard Peter Hanson, helped start a company called Doughty Hanson & Co. Phil won his first championship when he was 15 years old. This was the Whilton Mill Club Championship with BKC Racing. In 2015, he also won the Super One British X30 Junior Karting Championship. He had many wins and top-three finishes in that series.

Phil started racing sportscars in 2016. He joined the Britcar Endurance Championship with Tockwith Motorsport. His teammate was Nigel Moore. They won the championship at the final race in Brands Hatch. They tied on points but won because they had more class victories. Phil also won a British LMP3 Cup event in Snetterton in 2016. This was the first event of its kind in the UK. Phil and Nigel started from the front and won the race.

Later in 2016, Phil and Nigel raced in the LMP3 class of the Asian Le Mans Series. They drove a Ligier JS P3 car. They won races at Fuji and Sepang. This helped them win the LMP3 class championship.

Racing in LMP2 Cars

2017: First Le Mans Race

In June 2017, Phil Hanson became the youngest driver to finish the Le Mans 24 Hour race. He finished 9th in the LMP2 class and 11th overall. He raced with Nigel Moore and Karun Chandhok in a Ligier-Gibson JSP217.

Phil also raced in three FIA World Endurance Championship races that year. These were at Spa, Le Mans, and the Nürburgring. He also took part in three European Le Mans Series races.

2018: Joining United Autosports

Phil Hanson and Filipe Albuquerque won a race at Spa in 2018.

For the 2018 season, Phil joined United Autosports. He raced a full season in the ELMS. Before that, he raced in the 24 Hours of Daytona. His teammates were famous drivers Fernando Alonso and Lando Norris. He also raced in two more IMSA SportsCar Championship races.

In the ELMS, Phil finished fifth overall. He had three podium finishes, which means he finished in the top three. He won races at Spa and Portimão. He also raced in the 24 Hours of Le Mans with Paul di Resta and Filipe Albuquerque. Their race ended early due to a crash.

2019: Winning the Asian Le Mans Title

Phil Hanson raced a Ligier JS P2 for United Autosports with Paul di Resta. They competed in the 2018–19 Asian Le Mans Series. They finished on the podium in every race. This helped them win the LMP2 title by 11 points.

Phil returned to the European Le Mans Series in 2019. He partnered with Filipe Albuquerque for the whole season. They started with a Ligier JS P217 car. For the last three races, they switched to an Oreca 07. They won one race and finished second in another. This helped them finish fourth in the standings.

2020: Double Championships and Le Mans Win

In 2020, Phil Hanson raced in the FIA World Endurance Championship. His co-drivers were Filipe Albuquerque and Paul di Resta. They had a tough start at Silverstone. But they quickly showed their strength, finishing third at Fuji and Shanghai.

After that, they had an amazing winning streak. They won races at Bahrain, Austin, and Spa-Francorchamps. Then, they won their class at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. This win gave United the championship. It also made Phil the youngest WEC champion ever.

He continued racing with United for the rest of 2020. He partnered with Filipe Albuquerque again in the ELMS. They had a very strong season. They won races at Spa, Le Castellet, and Monza. They also finished third in two other races. This meant Phil and Filipe won the ELMS title before the season even ended.

2021: Defending the WEC Title

United Autosports, Phil Hanson, and Filipe Albuquerque returned to the WEC in 2021. They were defending their championship. They had a new teammate, Fabio Scherer. Phil was also upgraded to a "Gold" driver by the FIA. The year started well with a strong win at Spa.

They got another podium finish at Portimão. Phil and his teammates then won another race in Monza. However, the 24 Hours of Le Mans was difficult. A car problem cost them a lot of time. They finished 18th. With two fourth-place finishes in Bahrain, Phil ended the season in fourth place in the driver standings.

Phil also raced in the ELMS again. This time, his teammates were Tom Gamble and Jonathan Aberdein. They had a good season, winning the final race in the Algarve. They finished second in the championship.

2022: A Challenging Year

Phil Hanson continued in the WEC with United and Filipe Albuquerque. Will Owen joined them. This year was not as successful. They had some bad luck, including a crash at the start of the Le Mans 24 Hours. They did not get any podium finishes.

However, the ELMS brought some better results. Phil raced with Tom Gamble and Duncan Tappy. They finished second at Imola and won at Spa-Francorchamps. These results helped them finish third in the teams' standings.

2023: Fighting for Titles

Hanson racing at Spa-Francorchamps in 2023.

Phil returned to United for his sixth year in 2023. He raced in both the WEC and ELMS championships. With Filipe Albuquerque and Frederick Lubin, Phil had more success than the year before. They finished second at Sebring and Portimão.

After a fifth place at Spa, the team was leading the championship. But at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, a mistake caused a lot of damage to the car. They finished eleventh. They narrowly missed a podium at Monza. They finished second at Fuji and ninth in Bahrain. This put them third in the LMP2 standings.

In the ELMS, Phil raced with Oliver Jarvis and Marino Sato. They had some tough races at first. But then Phil got the fastest starting position at Aragón. He and his teammates then won that race. They finished the season strongly with two wins at Portimão. This earned them second place in the standings.

Racing in the Top Class

2024: Moving to Hypercar Racing

At the end of 2023, it was announced that Phil Hanson would move up to the Hypercar class. This is the top class in the WEC. He drove a Porsche 963 for Hertz Team Jota. His teammates were Oliver Rasmussen and Jenson Button. Phil also joined JDC–Miller MotorSports in the IMSA series. He was a third driver for longer endurance races.

Phil had some impressive races in IMSA. He was faster than the factory Porsche cars in qualifying at Sebring and Watkins Glen. He also charged to the front at the start of the Watkins Glen race. His best IMSA result was a third place at Indianapolis.

The WEC season was more challenging. Phil and his teammates did not score points in the first three races. This included a crash at Spa. They finished ninth at Le Mans. They then got their first win for a private team with a seventh place at São Paulo. They finished in the points in the last three races. However, they ended up 19th in the drivers' standings.

2025: Joining AF Corse

Hanson and co-drivers Kubica and Ye won the 2025 24 Hours of Le Mans.

Phil Hanson joined the #83 Ferrari AF Corse team for the 2025 WEC season. He replaced Robert Shwartzman. Ferrari had a strong start to the season at Qatar. Phil led the race for a while. He, Robert Kubica, and Yifei Ye finished second. Phil then won the 2025 24 Hours of Le Mans. He became the 35th British driver to win this famous race.

Racing Career Summary

† As Hanson was a guest driver, he was ineligible to score championship points.
^* Season still in progress.

See also

In Spanish: Philip Hanson para niños