Porsche announces new leadership for GT motorsport program and GT production cars

Dr. Frank-Steffen Walliser, 44, takes over as the new Vice President of Motorsport at Porsche AG as of Oct. 1, the company announced. He will be responsible for the worldwide GT motor racing activities as well as for GT production sports cars. Walliser will succede Hartmut Kristen, who will then work alongside the Research and Development Board in an advisory role. Walliser will remain project manager for the 918 Spyder project.

Hartmut Kristen is a longstanding authority at Porsche. Born in Berlin, Kristen joined the company in 1983, and from 1994 was responsible for customer racing activities and GT vehicles. In 2004, he took over as Vice President of Porsche Motorsport. In this role he made his mark in top motorsport, for instance with the RS Spyder sports prototype in the American Le Mans Series and with the innovative 911 GT3 R Hybrid. Another winning model was the 911 GT3 RSR, with which customer squads scored many class victories most notably at the Le Mans 24 Hours.

In addition to expanding Porsche's customer racing activities worldwide, which he regarded as the "backbone of Porsche motorsport," the promotion of talented young race drivers was also something very close to his heart. Under his direction, arguably the most comprehensive youth development program in motor racing emerged. Today, five former Porsche juniors bolster the current works driver lineup. In 2013, Hartmut Kristen led the new Porsche 911 RSR works-campaign to a victory and second-place at Le Mans. For him and his team, the 2014 season began with the successfully modified 911 RSR clinching wins in the USA at the long distance classics of Daytona and Sebring.

Porsche motorsport is familiar terrain for Walliser. With a doctoral degree in mechanical engineering specialising in combustion engines and technology management, he held the position of General Manager of Motorsport Strategies from 2003 to '08. As the overall project manager of the 918 Spyder from November 2010, the native of Stuttgart was responsible for the development of Porsche's ground-breaking super sports car that holds the lap record of six minutes and 57 seconds on the Nurburgring Nordschleife for road-homologated production sports cars.

As the Vice President of Porsche Motorsport, Dr. Walliser will be responsible for the company's worldwide motorsport activities in the GT field as well as for GT production sports cars. Fritz Enzinger will continue at the helm of the LMP1 campaign and the running of the Porsche 919 Hybrid in the World Endurance Championship and the 24 Hours of Le Mans.