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Porsche names new motorsport chief

Though it may have expanded into crossovers and sedans, Porsche is still a company with racing at its heart. You might even argue that Cayenne and Panamera sales only serve to fund the company's motorsports activities. Competition-spec 911 coupes still make up a large portion of the grid in any GT racing series, and those activities are presided over by the Porsche GT division (separate from its LMP1 program), which has just announced a changing of the guard.
Porsche's GT unit - which is responsible both for racing models like the 911 RSR and road-going models like the 911 GT3 - has until now been steered by Hartmut Kristen (pictured above, left) in his capacity as Vice President of Motorsport at Porsche AG. During his ten-year tenure, Kristen gave birth to the RS Spyder that competed in the American Le Mans Series and the pioneering 911 GT3 R Hybrid. He also fostered what Porsche characterizes as "arguably the most comprehensive youth development program in motor racing" and saw the marque return to Le Mans last year with a dominant 1-2 class victory.
Kristen, now 59 years old, is leaving the German automaker, but will remain an advisor to the company's R&D department. Taking over as VP of Motorsport will be Dr. Frank-Steffen Walliser, who has until now been head of the 918 Spyder project (a responsibility he will continue). Walliser (pictured above, right) was previously Porsche's general manager for motorsport strategies and will now be responsible for Porsche's GT projects on and off the track, while Fritz Enzinger continues at the helm of the LMP1 program in pursuit of better results next year than the 919 Hybrid achieved at Le Mans last month.

Buy a McLaren P1 GTR, Porsche 918 Spyder, and a Ferrari LaFerrari all in one place

The McLaren P1, Porsche 918 Spyder, and Ferrari LaFerrari, are arguably the three greatest hypercars yet. Of course, their extremely limited production meant that some ultra-wealthy individuals may have missed out on picking one up. In fact, to get a LaFerrari, you needed to have owned a certain number of Ferraris, and be in good graces with the company. However, if there are any super-rich car enthusiasts reading this right now, your chance to buy one or all of these three supercars is coming up next month at the RM Sotheby's Villa Erba auction in Italy. It will occur on May 27, and feature a McLaren P1 GTR, Porsche 918 Spyder Weissach, and Ferrari LaFerrari. 2016 McLaren P1 GTR McLaren fans, will RM Sotheby's won't offering just any McLaren P1, but rather the hardcore, track-prepped GTR variant. In fact, the GTR is so hardcore that it isn't legal for the street. This particular version went to specialist Lanzante to be converted for road use. Take note that it's only road legal in the UK, and it may not meet laws for other countries. However, that's still more than most GTRs can boast, and if you have the money for this, you shouldn't have any issue taking it to the UK to unleash the P1 GTR's 986 horsepower on public roads. This car could use some driving, too, as it only has about 223 miles on it, some of which included just one track event. RM Sotheby's expects this McLaren to go for between $3.4 million and $3.85 million. 2015 Porsche 918 Spyder Weissach View 31 Photos The Porsche 918 Spyder going up for auction is a special one as well. The first difference you'll notice is that it has been painted a custom color called "Arrow Blue," a hue specially mixed up as part of Porsche's custom paint service. It also features the lightweight Weissach package, which loses a few extra pounds by replacing an assortment of parts for lighter components. Among them are magnesium wheels and wheel bearings, carbon fiber roof, windshield frame, rear fenders, and rear view mirrors, and even titanium-backed brake pads. According to RM Sotheby's those pads have been replaced with fresh 918-spec pieces. The previous owner clearly enjoyed his or her 918, as it has just over 6,800 miles. In case you're interested in a well-loved 918, the auction house expects it to sell for just under $1.3 million to about $1.5 million.

Porsche 911 RSR stops just long enough to have its photo taken

When it comes to Porsche and its rapidly escalating endurance racing program, all eyes may be on the new 919 Hybrid - and with good reason: that's the vehicle with which Porsche will be challenging the likes of Audi and Toyota for wins in the top-tier LMP1 class of the FIA World Endurance Championship and at Le Mans. But it's the 911 RSR that does and will continue to form the backbone of the factory's effort.
The 470-horsepower racing version of the road-going 911 took a one-two finish in its class at Le Mans last year, and also won its class at the Daytona 24 this past January as well. This year Porsche will field two of them in the WEC, another two in the United SportsCar Championship here in the US and will sell countless more to customer racing teams that will undoubtedly continue to rack up trophies in racing series around the world. This, then, might be a unique chance to see one standing still. Check it out in our gallery of live images above from the Geneva Motor Show.