Brendon Hartley and Nico Hülkenberg both competed for Porsche in the French endurance classic in 2015. Hartley rose up through the Red Bull driver development programme to drive full-time for the German manufacturer. He was aiming for victory, not only at Le Mans but also in the World Endurance Championship, alongside Timo Bernhard and Mark Webber. Hülkenberg took to the wheel of a third 919 Hybrid, entered only at Spa and Le Mans. His seat was originally offered to Frenchman Jean-Eric Vergne, then Fernando Alonso.

Hülkenberg accepted and was teamed with Earl Bamber and Nick Tandy. For the first two, this was their maiden Le Mans appearance. Tandy had already competed in GT but it was his first 24 Hours in a prototype. Despite their lack of LMP1 experience, the trio led the race for the last fifteen hours of the race and served Porsche with its 17th Le Mans win in a one-two finish with Hartley, Bernhard and Webber just behind them. Hülkenberg’s only Le Mans entry to date was thus a triumph and drew much media attention and the admiration – and even a hint of jealousy? – of his F1 colleagues at the Austrian Grand Prix the following weekend.

In 2017, the road to victory was much tougher for Porsche. After suffering problems with its front-wheel drive and hybrid system, the #2 Porsche spent 65 minutes in the garage before setting off again, second-to-last. Hartley was at the wheel and, with teammates Timo Bernhard and Earl Bamber, engaged in a full-throttle fight back to the front. Finally, just before 2 p.m. on the Sunday, Bernhard slipped into first place to take Porsche’s 19th win.

Hülkenberg has been a F1 stalwart since 2010 and will be racing in his 138th Grand Prix in China this weekend. Meanwhile, Hartley can thank his 24 Hours of Le Mans win and his two world endurance titles for opening the door to the very select realm of Formula One. Last year, he renewed contact with Helmut Marko, another former 24 Hours winner and head of the Red Bull driver development programme, resulting in a seat with Toro Rosso for the last four Grand Prix races in 2017 and a full F1 season in 2018.

Hartley narrowly missed out on points at the Bahrain Grand Prix last week because of a penalty. Hülkenberg has been driving for Renault F1 since 2017 and currently ranks sixth in the provisional championship standings.

Photo: After victory at the 24 Hours of Le Mans (2017) and two WEC drivers titles (2015 and 2017) with Porsche, Brendon Hartley is hoping to score his first points with Toro Rosso-Honda in Formula One this year.