About Earl
PORSCHE WORKS DRIVER / 2 x 24 HOURS OF LE MANS WINNER / WORLD ENDURANCE CHAMPION / PORSCHE SUPERCUP CHAMPION /2 x PORSCHE CARRERA CUP ASIA CHAMPION / IMSA GTLM CHAMPION
Earl Bamber is an elite athlete and accomplished professional race car driver. From 2013-2015 he climbed the Porsche Motorsport youth and professional development pyramid, culminating with victory in the world’s most prestigious sports car race – The 24 Hours of Le Mans.
Off the back of his maiden Le Mans performance and victory, Earl’s journey with Porsche has continued – piloting the #2 919 LMP1 Hybrid for the outright World Endurance Championship title and legendary 24 Hours of Le Mans.
With multiple Porsche Carrera Cup titles to his name, the fairy tale continued to the pinnacle of sports car racing – winning both the World Endurance Championship and 24 Hours of Le Mans in 2017, in what would be Porsche’s final season of the top flight prototype racing.
FORMULA
Earl Bamber began his journey into motorsport in go-karting at the young age of eight winning numerous championships in New Zealand and having placed third at the Rotax Max World Finals, he then progressed through to single seater series culminating in a championship win in the 2006 Formula BMW Asia.
Following that, Earl achieved pole positions, fastest laps and podium results in Formula Renault V6 and the Australian Formula 3. He then won the 2007-2008 Toyota Racing Series international championship en route to finishing runner-up in the overall championship. Bamber also won the coveted Lady Wigram Trophy and the Steel Trophy for his outstanding achievements as a junior driver in New Zealand in 2008. The young Kiwi capped off a stellar season as the runner-up of the Formula V6 Asia Championship.
PREMIER | GT SHIFT | WORKS DRIVER
Following a very successful year as Team New Zealand’s A1GP junior driver Earl was promoted to the leading driver seat for 2009 and was a regular podium finisher. He also stood on the podium in GP2 Asia, at the age of 19. In 2010, Earl fulfilled a childhood dream in winning the New Zealand Grand Prix and went on to repeat his earlier success by once again being crowned the runner-up in the New Zealand Toyota Racing Series.
Earl then transitioned to GT racing with an opportunity race the Porsche Carrera Cup Asia. He was crowned champion in his debut season in 2013, and was then was nominated and chosen as the winner of the prestigious Porsche MotorsportInternational Cup Scholarship.As a Porsche Cup Scholar, Earl was afforded the financial impetus to compete in the Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup in 2014. He finished the season as the first ever rookie to win the Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup whilst concurrently defending his Porsche Carrera Cup Asia title.
Earl was subsequently signed onto the Porsche factory team competing in the 2015 Tudor United Sportscar and World Endurance Championships. With immediate strong performances, Earl was prompted into the Porsche LMP team, to race at the pinnacle of endurance racing – the 24 Hours of Le Mans. In his first attempt, he and the team claimed the overall victory and in the process, became a part of history by helping Porsche secure their first win at Le Mans in 17 years.
LMP1 | LE MANS
In 2017, Earl was elevated to a leading works driver role, as a full-time pilot of the #2 Porsche LMP1 919 Hybrid for the outright Would Endurance Championship tilt. In what became Porsche’s final year of the LMP1 project, Earl and his team mates cemented the legacy of the 919 by winning the World Endurance Championship and for Earl, his second Le Mans 24 Hours victory in as many attempts in the premier sports car category.
“It was an overwhelming feeling, holding that cup in my hands and being applauded by so many people,” says the New Zealander.
“If you were dreaming about winning Le Mans, that would normally be the moment when you’d wake up. I was amazed that in real life the dream kept going.”
IMSA GTLM
2019 saw Earl contest and take out the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship. Scoring fifth at the final race of the 2019 season, two-time overall Le Mans winner Earl took out the drivers’ title of the GTLM class. Sharing the cockpit of the No. 92 Porsche 911 RSR, with co driver Laurens Vanthoor the successful duo celebrated victories at Long Beach, Mid-Ohio (both USA) as well as Bowmanville, Canada, and also finished on the podium at Daytona, Lime Rock, Road America and on the Virginia International Raceway.
Earl will continue his journey with Porsche into a new year, now as the marq’s most successful driver of the last decade. A World Champion and two time Le Mans Champion, Bamber’s rise to Porsche icon in only 4 years is unparalleled in modern motorsport history.