Selection process for the 2025 Porsche Junior enters the hot phase

The 2025 Porsche Junior: Nine candidates are competing for the youth development initiative this year. All twelve Carrera Cups worldwide and selective challenge series were eligible to nominate their rising star drivers. There are a total of 35 national and regional Porsche one-make cups. Next season’s Junior will be announced at the Porsche Night of Champions on 7 December. The current Porsche Junior, Frenchman Alessandro Ghiretti, heads into his second year of sponsorship.

The Porsche Junior programme is one of the central components of the Stuttgart-based sportscar manufacturer’s motorsport pyramid. Since 1997, Porsche Motorsport has been supporting exceptional young drivers and guiding them to the top echelons with a support package of up to 225,000 euros each. The programme consists of extensive coaching and training in the areas of vehicle dynamics, mental work, nutrition, fitness and media relations.

This has yielded huge success, as proven recently by Frenchman Julian Andlauer. The 2018 and 2019 Porsche Junior will be promoted to the works driver squad next year, stepping into the cockpit of the Porsche 963 in the top class of the FIA World Endurance Championship WEC. Andlauer’s future colleagues Michael Christensen from Denmark (2012 – 2013), Mathieu Jaminet from France (2016) and Australian Matt Campbell (2017) also owe their professional careers to the Porsche development programme. Alessandro Ghiretti, the current Porsche Junior, will commence his second year in the junior initiative in 2025. The 22-year-old Frenchman won the Porsche Carrera Cup France and the Porsche Carrera Cup Asia in the current season.

The Porsche Sixt Carrera Cup Deutschland and the Porsche Carrera Cup Middle East are sending Theo Oeverhaus to the final selection process. The 19-year-old from Osnabrück followed up his rookie title in 2023 with third place overall in the German one-make cup and the title in the Middle East this season. The German, who already has experience competing in the DTM, finished eleventh in his debut season in the Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup.

The Porsche Sixt Carrera Cup Deutschland which, as a part of its own talent pool programme, offers targeted training for promising young drivers at an early stage, is also sending 17-year-old Janne Stiak into the contest as a wildcard entry. In the 2024 season, he contested the German one-make cup in the 375 kW (510 PS) Porsche 911 GT3 Cup and finished eleventh. The driver from Lower Saxony, Germany, achieved sixth place in the Porsche Carrera Cup Italia. Ten days ago, Stiak underlined his potential once again by winning the Porsche Carrera Cup Middle East season opener in Bahrain.

Another wildcard candidate comes from the Porsche Carrera Cup Italia: 19-year-old Francesco Braschi finished the national one-make cup in seventh place. The Italian also gained his first taste of the fiercely competitive Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup, which is held as part of the Formula 1 supporting programme, while the Carrera Cup France and Carrera Cup Asia have both nominated Frenchman Mathys Jaubert for the selection process. The 19-year-old has impressed this year with second place overall (France) and third place overall (Asia). Jaubert was the third-best rookie in this year’s Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup season.

The Porsche Carrera Cup Benelux sends its overall winner to the final elimination round: Dirk Schouten. The 23-year-old Dutchman secured three race wins and four additional podium finishes in the 2024 season. In the shootout for next year’s Porsche Junior, Schouten will pit himself against a fellow countryman: Loek Hartog representing the Porsche Carrera Cup North America (PCCNA). The youngster, who finished second overall in the Porsche Sixt Carrera Cup Deutschland in 2023, won the one-make cup in North America as well as the new Michelin 992 Endurance Cup this season. In the US series, the 22-year-old received extensive support from former Porsche works driver Patrick Long. The American acts as a coach in the PCCNA’s programme to promote up-and-coming talent.

Hugo Ellis represents the historically strong Porsche Carrera Cup Great Britain. The 23-year-old from Bournemouth finished his national one-make cup in third place overall this season. The Porsche Carrera Cup Australia is sending Jackson Walls (21) to the qualification round, while the Porsche Carrera Cup Scandinavia has nominated Robin Knutsson. The 22-year-old Swede won the overall classification of the 24 Hours of Zolder 2024 at the wheel of a Porsche 911 GT3 Cup.

The extensive promotion and training of talented young drivers at Porsche begins at a national and regional level. Numerous one-make cups from the sports car brand have established successful programmes in recent years. In the Porsche Sixt Carrera Cup Deutschland, for example, eight selected youngsters receive comprehensive support as part of the Talent Pool. The Porsche Sports Cup Deutschland has also established a talent pool with six young participants in 2024. Former Porsche works driver Wolf Henzler offers his vast experience to the young guns. On top of that, they benefit from media training, nutritional counselling, fitness plans and psychological support.

Former Porsche works drivers Patrick Pilet and Patrick Long are also committed to helping young talent. The Frenchman contributes his extensive expertise to the Junior Programme of the Porsche Carrera Cup France. In addition, numerous Porsche Centres support the candidates in France. In the USA, the measures of the Junior Programme already start on the way to the Porsche Sprint Challenge North America. At the two North American Porsche Experience Centres in Atlanta and Los Angeles, ‘Pat’ Long also organises special driver training sessions and screens young drivers in the Porsche Talent Identification Programme. In addition to the Junior Programme, the Porsche Carrera Cup Great Britain also offers the Young Driver Development Programme.

In contrast to previous years, the Porsche Junior for the 2025 season will not be determined in a shootout on a racetrack. Extensive performance checks have already taken place on a national level, and Porsche Motorsport will carry out further analyses. During subsequent interviews, experts will gain a precise understanding of the candidates’ character traits and approaches. In the coming weeks, a committee will decide on the allocation of the extensive support package for the 2025 Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup season. Porsche Motorsport will announce the new Porsche Junior on 7 December as part of the Night of Champions.

The candidates at a glance:
Francesco Braschi (Italy, 19 years old) – PCC Italia (Wildcard)
Hugo Ellis (Great Britain, 23 years old) – PCC Great Britain
Loek Hartog (Netherlands, 22 years old) – PCC North America
Mathys Jaubert (France, 19 years old) – PCC Asia / PCC France
Robin Knutsson (Sweden, 22 years old) – PCC Scandinavia
Theo Oeverhaus (Germany, 19 years old) – PSCC Deutschland / PCC Middle East
Dirk Schouten (Netherlands, 23 years old) – PCC Benelux
Janne Stiak (Germany, 17 years old) – PSCC Deutschland (Wildcard)
Jackson Walls (Australia, 21 years old) – PCC Australia