Yifei Ye facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Yifei Ye
叶一飞
Ye in 2021
Born	(2000-06-16) 16 June 2000 (age 25) Xi'an, Shaanxi, China
Nationality	Chinese
FIA World Endurance Championship career
Debut season	2023
Current team	AF Corse
Racing licence	FIA Silver (until 2021) FIA Gold (2022–)
Car no.	83
Former teams	Hertz Team Jota
Starts	20
Wins	2
Podiums	3
Poles	0
Fastest laps	0
Best finish	9th in 2023, 2024 (LMH)
24 Hours of Le Mans career
Years	2021–2025
Teams	Team WRT, Cool Racing, Hertz Team Jota, AF Corse
Best finish	1st (2025)
Class wins	1 (2025)
Previous series
2021–2022 2021–2022 2020 2019 2019 2017–2018 2017–2018 2015–2016 2015–2016	ELMS ALMS Euroformula Open FIA Formula 3 F3 Asian Winter Formula Renault Eurocup Formula Renault NEC Italian F4 French F4
Championship titles
2021 2021 2020 2016	ELMS - LMP2 ALMS - LMP2 Euroformula Open French F4
Chinese name
Simplified Chinese	叶一飞
Traditional Chinese	葉一飛
Hanyu Pinyin	Yè Yīfēi
IPA	[i̯ê í.féi̯]

Yifei Ye (Chinese: 叶一飞) is a talented Chinese racing driver. He was born on June 16, 2000. Yifei competes in the FIA World Endurance Championship for AF Corse. He has won several important championships. These include the 2021 European Le Mans Series and the 2021 Asian Le Mans Series. He also won the French F4 Championship in 2016 and the Euroformula Open Championship in 2020.

Yifei was once part of the Alpine Academy, a program that helps young drivers. From 2021 to 2023, he was a special driver for Porsche Motorsport Asia Pacific. Since 2024, he has driven for Ferrari. He currently races the #83 Ferrari 499P in the 2025 FIA World Endurance Championship. His teammates are Robert Kubica and Phil Hanson. Yifei and his team won the 2025 24 Hours of Le Mans. This made him the first Chinese driver to win this famous race overall.

Early Racing Days

Yifei Ye started his racing journey in karting when he was just ten years old in 2010. He quickly showed his skill. He won the China Karting Championship in both 2011 and 2012. In 2013, he raced in Europe for the first time. He finished fourth in the Junior ROK class at the ROK Cup final. His karting career ended in early 2015. He finished second in the Vega International Winter Trophy. This prepared him for his next step into Formula 4 racing.

Single-Seater Racing

Formula 4 Success

In 2015, Yifei moved up to single-seater cars. He joined the 2015 French F4 Championship. He won two races towards the end of the season. This helped him finish twelfth in the overall standings.

The next year, 2016, was amazing for Yifei in French F4. He was almost always the fastest in qualifying. He won an incredible fourteen races. He won the championship title by a huge 142 points. This was the biggest winning difference in the championship's history. It also made him the first Chinese driver to win a Formula 4 title.

Formula Renault Eurocup

In December 2016, Yifei announced he would race in the 2017 Formula Renault Eurocup. He joined Josef Kaufmann Racing, a top team. He earned three podium finishes, meaning he finished in the top three. He ended the season in eighth place. In 2018, he continued with Josef Kaufmann Racing. He won two races, one at Monza and another at the Hungaroring. He finished third overall in the championship that year.

FIA Formula 3 Championship

In 2019, Yifei competed in the first-ever 2019 FIA Formula 3 Championship. He raced for Hitech Grand Prix. His best result was a sixth-place finish in the final race in Sochi.

Euroformula Open Championship

In May 2020, Yifei joined CryptoTower Racing for the Euroformula Open Championship. He completely dominated this championship. He won all races at the Hungaroring, Red Bull Ring, and Catalunya rounds. In total, he achieved 11 wins, 13 pole positions, and 12 fastest laps.

Formula E Test Driving

In April 2023, Yifei took part in a special test for rookie drivers in Formula E. He drove the Porsche 99X Electric for the TAG Heuer Porsche Formula E Team in Berlin. He quickly got comfortable with the car. He gave useful feedback to the engineers about the car's setup. After this successful test, Yifei also drove the Porsche 99X Electric in a practice session for rookies at the Rome E-Prix.

Sportscar Racing Career

2021: A Great Start

Yifei started his sportscar racing career in 2021. He joined G-Drive Racing in the LMP2 category of the 2021 Asian Le Mans Series. He raced with René Binder and Ferdinand Habsburg. They won two races at the start and kept their lead. They became the ALMS champions.

For his main season, Yifei raced for Team WRT in the European Le Mans Series. His teammates were Louis Delétraz and Robert Kubica. They started strong, winning the first two races in Barcelona and Spielberg. They kept their lead and won the championship at Spa-Francorchamps, with one race still to go.

24 Hours of Le Mans Debut

In August 2021, Yifei raced in the famous 2021 24 Hours of Le Mans with his ELMS teammates. He made the most overtakes in the LMP2 class, passing 315 cars. He was leading the race on the very last lap. However, his car had an electrical problem and had to stop. This meant his team did not finish the race.

Joining Porsche Motorsport

In October 2021, Yifei became a "Selected Driver" for Porsche Motorsport Asia Pacific. This was a big step. He was the first official Chinese driver for Porsche. This move was to prepare him for a possible role in Porsche's future LMDh racing program.

2022 Season

GT Racing Debut

In 2022, Yifei returned to the Asian Le Mans Series. This time, he raced in the GT3 class. This was his first time in GT racing cars. He was fulfilling his role as a new Porsche driver. He achieved a pole position and a second-place finish in the final race. This helped his team finish eighth overall.

Racing with Cool Racing

In February 2022, Cool Racing announced Yifei would join their team for the European Le Mans Series. He raced with Nicolas Lapierre and Niklas Krütten. The team also entered the 2022 24 Hours of Le Mans. For Le Mans, Ricky Taylor joined the team. Yifei took pole position at Spa-Francorchamps. He also achieved three podium finishes during the championship.

2023: Top Class Debut in WEC

FIA World Endurance Championship

In 2023, Yifei made his debut in the top class of the FIA World Endurance Championship. He was the youngest driver in the Hypercar class. He raced with António Félix da Costa and Will Stevens for Hertz Team Jota. They had a great start at Spa-Francorchamps, finishing sixth.

At the 100th running of the 2023 24 Hours of Le Mans, Yifei's team had an amazing race. They went from last place to first in the first half. However, Yifei crashed at the Porsche curves. After repairs, they managed to finish the race. In the last three races, the team finished in the top ten. Their best result was fourth place in Bahrain.

2024: Moving to Ferrari

Ye driving the No. 83 Ferrari 499P at the 2024 24 Hours of Le Mans

Before the 2024 season, Yifei announced he was leaving Porsche. Soon after, he shared that he had signed a contract with Ferrari. Yifei and his teammates, Robert Shwartzman and Robert Kubica, won the overall victory at the 2024 Lone Star Le Mans.

Racing Achievements

Racing Career Summary

^† As Ye was a guest driver, he was ineligible for points.
^* Season still in progress.

24 Hours of Le Mans Results

Year	Team	Co-Drivers	Car	Class	Laps	Pos.	Class Pos.
2021	Team WRT	Louis Delétraz Robert Kubica	Oreca 07-Gibson	LMP2	362	NC	NC
2022	Cool Racing	Niklas Krütten Ricky Taylor	Oreca 07-Gibson	LMP2	367	11th	7th
2023	Hertz Team Jota	António Félix da Costa Will Stevens	Porsche 963	Hypercar	244	40th	13th
2024	AF Corse	Robert Kubica Robert Shwartzman	Ferrari 499P	Hypercar	248	DNF	DNF
2025	AF Corse	Phil Hanson Robert Kubica	Ferrari 499P	Hypercar	387	1st	1st

FIA World Endurance Championship Results

^‡ Ye was entered a guest driver, so he could not score points. ^* Season still in progress.

Images for kids

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  The Oreca 07 entered by Cool Racing driven by Ye, Ricky Taylor and Niklas Krütten

See also

In Spanish: Ye Yifei para niños