Proton aiming to buy four 2017 911 RSRs

FIA WEC and ELMS GTE team Proton Competition is set to try and order four new 2017-spec Porsche 911 RSRs for use in the two series in 2018.

However, the team, which has been a Porsche customer for over two decades, is yet to find out whether Porsche can fulfill the demand. This is due to the fact that in the first year of the 911 RSR becoming a customer car, RACER understands that Porsche is unlikely to make more than six customer cars available, despite the demand globally exceeding that number.

"We have programs in development that will require four cars, but this only makes sense if all four are the same car," team principal Christian Ried told RACER.

"We will not though be splitting an order. I'd like to have four new Porsches (understood to be two cars bound for the FIA WEC and two for ELMS) but if that cannot be accommodated then the numbers do not make sense with just two. If we are offered just two, then I won't buy any."

This year, Proton has opted to race with two 2015-spec Porsche RSRs in the FIA WEC's GTE Am division, and a single 2015 Porsche in the ELMS, rather than upgrade the trio to 2016-spec. Its 2016-spec Porsche, which it campaigned in the 2016 FIA WEC's GTE Pro class, was parked.

For the team, when running multiple cars in multiple series, it makes much more sense to consolidate its spares package to just one specification of car.