Porsche 963 takes Apple Music’s colours to Long Beach

Porsche and Apple Music have maintained a close partnership in the automotive sector since 2019. With the launch of the Porsche Taycan, the German manufacturer became the first to offer Apple Music “built-in,” delivering a fully integrated music streaming experience. Through the Porsche Advanced Cockpit, customers enjoy seamless access to a catalogue of over 100 million tracks.

Porsche’s factory squad heads into round three at Long Beach as the championship leader in IMSA. The iconic temporary street circuit near Los Angeles has proven to be a strong venue for Porsche Penske Motorsport: the Porsche 963 claimed its maiden race victory there in 2023, followed by another triumph at the Long Beach Grand Prix in 2025. The event attracts more than 200,000 spectators annually. Alongside IMSA, the IndyCar Series will also race in Long Beach this weekend, with Porsche partner Team Penske fielding three entries.

“We are extremely proud of our collaboration with Apple Music,” says Thomas Laudenbach, Vice President Porsche Motorsport. “The livery on our two Porsche 963 cars looks fantastic. After our successful Mobil 1-themed appearance at Sebring, this is another highlight as we celebrate 75 years of Porsche Motorsport. I’m very excited to see how fans respond to this design.”

The 3.167-kilometre street circuit features eleven corners and is often considered the American counterpart to Monaco’s legendary Formula 1 Grand Prix track. The Long Beach Street Course runs clockwise around the Convention Center and includes several distinctive features: a curved start/finish straight along the Pacific shoreline, a tight right-hand hairpin at the end of the lap, and the historic “Queen Mary” ocean liner as a backdrop. The 100-minute sprint race, together with the Detroit Grand Prix in May, represents the shortest rounds of the season.

The No. 6 Porsche 963 will be driven by France’s Kévin Estre and Belgium’s Laurens Vanthoor. The sister car, No. 7 – victorious at both Daytona and Sebring – will be piloted by Frenchman Julien Andlauer and Brazil’s Felipe Nasr. “We’re naturally in high spirits after winning the opening two rounds of the season,” explains Urs Kuratle, Director Factory Motorsport LMDh. “However, Long Beach will be a tough fight. Due to our recent success, we’ll be running with a significantly increased vehicle weight.”

Factory driver Laurin Heinrich with JDC-Miller MotorSports

Following the endurance classics at Daytona and Sebring, the first sprint race of the season sees two drivers sharing each car. For Laurin Heinrich, the IMSA campaign continues after overall victories in both Florida races at the wheel of the No. 7 works entry: the German will contest upcoming IMSA rounds alongside Tijmen van der Helm (Netherlands) in the Porsche 963 fielded by customer team JDC-Miller MotorSports.

The GTD Pro class will not compete in Long Beach. Nevertheless, the fan-favorite “Roxy” Porsche 911 GT3 R from AO Racing will be on track, entering as a guest in the GTD category, as it did last year. In 2025, AO Racing’s “Rexy” 911 claimed a class victory at Long Beach. This weekend, Britain’s Harry King and Denmark’s Mikkel Pedersen will share driving duties in the No. 177 car. Customer outfit Wright Motorsports will field another 911 GT3 R in the third round of the season.

Porsche race cars at the Long Beach Grand Prix

GTP class (Porsche 963):
#6 Porsche Penske Motorsport: Kévin Estre (FRA), Laurens Vanthoor (BEL)
#7 Porsche Penske Motorsport: Julien Andlauer (FRA), Felipe Nasr (BRA)
#5 JDC-Miller MotorSports: Laurin Heinrich (DEU), Tijmen van der Helm (NLD)

GTD class (Porsche 911 GT3 R):
#120 Wright Motorsports: Adam Adelson (USA), Callum Ilott (GBR)
#177 AO Racing: Harry King (GBR), Mikkel Pedersen (DNK)