Laurin Heinrich Confident in JDC-Miller Porsche Ahead of Long Beach

The German driver will contest sprint rounds and Road America with the privateer team this season.

Apr. 18, 2026 at 12:05am

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A vibrant, expressionist painting in neon colors depicts the dynamic movement and energy of a Porsche 963 race car on a street circuit, conveying the excitement and potential of Laurin Heinrich's surprise performance.An explosive, neon-hued painting captures the raw power and energy of Laurin Heinrich's Porsche 963 as it navigates the tight turns of the Long Beach street circuit.Long Beach Today

Laurin Heinrich, the 24-year-old German driver, is adjusting quickly to a new change of scenery at this weekend's Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach. After contesting and winning the opening two endurance rounds in IMSA with Porsche Penske Motorsport (PPM), Heinrich was 'loaned out' to privateer JDC-Miller MotorSports to co-drive the #5 Porsche 963 with Tijmen van der Heim. Despite only making two starts in IMSA's top flight GTP category, along with a Hypercar appearance last year, several drivers have expressed their attention is on Heinrich and JCD-Miller MotorSports as a major contender this weekend.

Why it matters

Heinrich's quick adaptation to the JDC-Miller Porsche and the team's strong performance in practice have surprised many in the paddock, given the team's customer status compared to the factory-backed PPM squad. This highlights the versatility of the Porsche 963 and the potential for privateer teams to challenge the established factory efforts.

The details

Heinrich set the fastest pace in opening practice at Long Beach, his first-ever trial at the 1.968-mile, 11-turn temporary street circuit. The other reason several competitors have highlighted Heinrich and JDC-Miller's Porsche is because of adjustments to the Balance of Performance (BoP) made prior to the race weekend. With JDC-Miller opting to not run the new Evo update and stay with last year's package, they were not hit as hard as PPM's factory squad that finished a dominant 1-2 in last month's Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring.

  • Heinrich will contest all the sprint rounds and the Road America endurance race with JDC-Miller MotorSports.
  • He will miss the Watkins Glen round due to a clash with the 24 Hours of Spa, but is set to return to the #7 PPM entry for the season finale at Road Atlanta.

The players

Laurin Heinrich

A 24-year-old German driver who is co-leading the IMSA points standings with Porsche Penske Motorsport teammates Julien Andlauer and Felipe Nasr.

JDC-Miller MotorSports

A privateer IMSA team that Heinrich is 'loaned out' to for the sprint rounds and Road America race this season.

Porsche Penske Motorsport

The factory-backed Porsche team that Heinrich drives for in the endurance races.

Tijmen van der Heim

Heinrich's co-driver in the #5 Porsche 963 for JDC-Miller MotorSports.

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What they’re saying

“'It's a compliment that everyone is afraid of me because in the end I did only three races, never been to this place and working obviously with the customer team.'”

— Laurin Heinrich, Driver

“'I think the Porsche 963 has proven that it's a very versatile car and even despite us having the previous generation or the 2025 package, I'm still confident that in the end this is a race where it doesn't only come down to pure pace but also more about execution.'”

— Laurin Heinrich, Driver

What’s next

Heinrich will return to the #7 PPM entry for the season finale at Road Atlanta after missing the Watkins Glen round due to a clash with the 24 Hours of Spa.

The takeaway

Heinrich's strong performance with the privateer JDC-Miller team highlights the potential for customer Porsche teams to challenge the factory efforts, showcasing the versatility of the Porsche 963 and the importance of execution over pure pace in IMSA competition.