Reigning FIA Formula E world champion Pascal Wehrlein will be ramping up his preparations for the classic Le Mans 24 Hours endurance race in mid-June with a drive for the factory Porsche Penske Motorsport team in the upcoming World Endurance Championship round, the 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps scheduled for 8-10 May.

The Belgian race will mark the Monaco Increase Management contracted driver’s first appearance in WEC for the factory Porsche squad, where he will team up with Kévin Estre and Laurens Vanthoor as third driver in the #6 Porsche 963 at Spa.

This will not be Pascal’s first experience with the German manufacturer’s hybrid prototype however, as after forming part of the line-up of drivers for the Hypercar’s early shakedown tests, he made his racing debut in January of this year with the 963 for the satellite JDC-Miller Motorsport team in the Daytona 24 Hours, in which he finished sixth.

“It’s obviously first-class that I can celebrate my debut in FIA WEC at Spa-Francorchamps and get to know the way Porsche Penske Motorsport works even earlier – every competitive kilometre with the Porsche 963 counts,” declared Wehrlein.

“In Kévin and Laurens, I have two team-mates from whom I can learn a lot. I’m really looking forward to competing on such an iconic racetrack as the Belgian Grand Prix circuit.”

Wehrlein’s second WEC race therefore at the challenging Ardennes track will be perfect preparation for the 24 Hours of Le Mans, where he will team up with two other factory Porsche drivers, IMSA championship leaders Nick Tandy and Felipe Nasr.

MIM CEO Salvatore Gandolfo was also delighted with this new adventure for his Formula E TAG Heuer Porsche driver, declaring: “I’d like to thank the Penske team and Porsche for giving Pascal this great opportunity to compete with the factory team in two of the most prestigious endurance races on the calendar. I feel sure that he will fully live up to the occasion and help the team achieve the best possible results.”

It’s going to be a busy couple of months for the German driver, with Monaco Formula E on 3 and 4 May followed by Spa one week later, then Tokyo Formula E immediately after and Shanghai at the end of May/start of June, with Le Mans held in mid-June and Jakarta Formula E one week after the French classic.