Yifei Ye facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Yifei Ye
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叶一飞 | |
![]() Ye in 2021
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Born | |
Nationality | ![]() |
FIA World Endurance Championship career | |
Debut season | 2023 |
Current team | AF Corse |
Racing licence | ![]() ![]() |
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 | |
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Championship titles | |
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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.
Contents
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
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
Season | Series | Team | Races | Wins | Poles | F. Laps | Podiums | Points | Position |
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2015 | French F4 Championship | Auto Sport Academy | 21 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 73 | 12th |
Italian F4 Championship | RB Racing | 15 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 21st | |
2016 | French F4 Championship | FFSA Academy | 23 | 14 | 10 | 17 | 15 | 420 | 1st |
Italian F4 Championship | Kfzteile24 Mücke Motorsport | 18 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 79 | 10th | |
2017 | Formula Renault Eurocup | Josef Kaufmann Racing | 23 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 106.5 | 8th |
Formula Renault NEC | 7 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 104 | 8th | ||
2018 | Formula Renault Eurocup | 20 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 10 | 239 | 3rd | |
Formula Renault NEC | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | NC† | ||
F3 Asian Championship | Absolute Racing | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 37 | 11th | |
2019 | FIA Formula 3 Championship | Hitech Grand Prix | 16 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 21st |
F3 Asian Winter Series | Absolute Racing | 9 | 4 | 2 | 5 | 7 | 154 | 2nd | |
2020 | Euroformula Open Championship | CryptoTower Racing | 18 | 11 | 12 | 12 | 16 | 369 | 1st |
2021 | European Le Mans Series - LMP2 | Team WRT | 6 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 118 | 1st |
24 Hours of Le Mans - LMP2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | N/A | NC | ||
Asian Le Mans Series - LMP2 | G-Drive Racing | 4 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 81 | 1st | |
2022 | European Le Mans Series - LMP2 | Cool Racing | 6 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 70 | 5th |
24 Hours of Le Mans - LMP2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | N/A | 7th | ||
Asian Le Mans Series - GT | Herberth Motorsport | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 21.5 | 8th | |
2023 | FIA World Endurance Championship - Hypercar | Hertz Team Jota | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 38 | 9th |
24 Hours of Le Mans - Hypercar | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | N/A | 13th | ||
FIA World Endurance Championship - LMP2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | NC† | ||
2024 | FIA World Endurance Championship - Hypercar | AF Corse | 8 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 57 | 9th |
24 Hours of Le Mans - Hypercar | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | N/A | DNF | ||
GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup | AF Corse - Francorchamps Motors | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | NC | |
FIA GT World Cup | Harmony Racing | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | N/A | 11th | |
2025 | FIA World Endurance Championship - Hypercar | AF Corse | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 94 | 2nd* |
24 Hours of Le Mans - Hypercar | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | N/A | 1st |
† 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. |
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2021 | ![]() |
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Oreca 07-Gibson | LMP2 | 362 | NC | NC |
2022 | ![]() |
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Oreca 07-Gibson | LMP2 | 367 | 11th | 7th |
2023 | ![]() |
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Porsche 963 | Hypercar | 244 | 40th | 13th |
2024 | ![]() |
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Ferrari 499P | Hypercar | 248 | DNF | DNF |
2025 | ![]() |
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Ferrari 499P | Hypercar | 387 | 1st | 1st |
FIA World Endurance Championship Results
Year | Entrant | Class | Chassis | Engine | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | Rank | Points |
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2023 | Hertz Team Jota | LMP2 | Oreca 07 | Gibson GK428 4.2 L V8 | SEB 1 |
ALG 5 |
NC | 0‡ | ||||||
Hypercar | Porsche 963 | Porsche 9RD 4.6 L Turbo V8 | SPA 6 |
LMS 10 |
MNZ 9 |
FUJ 6 |
BHR 4 |
9th | 38 | |||||
2024 | AF Corse | Hypercar | Ferrari 499P | Ferrari F163 3.0 L Turbo V6 | QAT 4 |
IMO 8 |
SPA 8 |
LMS Ret |
SÃO 11 |
COA 1 |
FUJ 12 |
BHR 8 |
9th | 57 |
2025 | AF Corse | Hypercar | Ferrari 499P | Ferrari 3.0 L Turbo V6 | QAT 2 |
IMO 4 |
SPA 15 |
LMS 1 |
SÃO 8 |
COA |
FUJ |
BHR |
2nd* | 94* |
‡ Ye was entered a guest driver, so he could not score points. * Season still in progress.
Images for kids
See also
In Spanish: Ye Yifei para niños