Experienced and winning sports car driver Emmanuel Collard returns to Team Penske in 2022 to compete in the team’s initial World Endurance Championship (WEC) season. Collard joins former IMSA champion drivers Dane Cameron and Felipe Nasr for the Team Penske ORECA 07-Gibson entry competing in the WEC LMP2 class this season.
A two-time class winner in the legendary 24 Hours of Le Mans race in his career, Collard reconnects with the Team Penske sports car program in 2022 as he enjoyed solid success with the team during selected starts over the course of three seasons in the American Le Mans Series (ALMS) between 2006-2008.
Collard began his racing career by winning karting championships in his native France. He focused on open-wheel racing early on in his career as he joined the French Formula Renault program when he was 18 years old. In his first Formula Renault season, Collard finished as series runner up before he captured the 1990 series title in his second season. Collard transitioned to the French Formula 3 series for the 1991 season and then on to Formula 3000 in 1992, as he claimed eighth in the series championship.
After two seasons competing in Formula 3000, Collard shifted gears to sports car competition as he entered the Porsche Supercup series in 1994 and finished second in his rookie season. He produced three Porsche Supercup victories in 1995 to finish third in the Driver’s championship while helping earn the overall Team title. Collard also raced in the famed 24 Hours of Le Mans for the first time in his career during the 1995 season, beginning a streak of 23 consecutive years competing at the historic endurance race. In 1996, Collard won five of the nine series races, including four in a row, to claim the 1996 Porsche Supercup Driver’s championship.
Biography
Experienced and winning sports car driver Emmanuel Collard returns to Team Penske in 2022 to compete in the team’s initial World Endurance Championship (WEC) season. Collard joins former IMSA champion drivers Dane Cameron and Felipe Nasr for the Team Penske ORECA 07-Gibson entry competing in the WEC LMP2 class this season.
A two-time class winner in the legendary 24 Hours of Le Mans race in his career, Collard reconnects with the Team Penske sports car program in 2022 as he enjoyed solid success with the team during selected starts over the course of three seasons in the American Le Mans Series (ALMS) between 2006-2008.
Collard began his racing career by winning karting championships in his native France. He focused on open-wheel racing early on in his career as he joined the French Formula Renault program when he was 18 years old. In his first Formula Renault season, Collard finished as series runner up before he captured the 1990 series title in his second season. Collard transitioned to the French Formula 3 series for the 1991 season and then on to Formula 3000 in 1992, as he claimed eighth in the series championship.
After two seasons competing in Formula 3000, Collard shifted gears to sports car competition as he entered the Porsche Supercup series in 1994 and finished second in his rookie season. He produced three Porsche Supercup victories in 1995 to finish third in the Driver’s championship while helping earn the overall Team title. Collard also raced in the famed 24 Hours of Le Mans for the first time in his career during the 1995 season, beginning a streak of 23 consecutive years competing at the historic endurance race. In 1996, Collard won five of the nine series races, including four in a row, to claim the 1996 Porsche Supercup Driver’s championship.
As he continued to excel in sports car competition, Collard also pursued his goals in open-wheel racing. He served as a Formula One test driver for several teams throughout the 1990s as he looked for an opportunity to compete in F1. Collard was a test driver for the Ligier F1 team in 1990 and 1991 before he joined the Benetton team as a test driver in 1995. In his final season serving as a test driver, Collard worked with the Arrows team for the 1998 Formula One season.
As he began to focus more on sports car racing, Collard posted victories at some of the discipline’s most iconic races, both in Europe and in the United States. In 2001, Collard and his team captured an ALMS GT class victory at the 12 Hours of Sebring. He earned his first class victory at the 2003 24 Hours of Le Mans with a win in the GT class.
Collard joined Team Penske for the 2006 ALMS season and he helped the No. 6 Porsche RS Spyder team win the LMP2 pole at Sebring and produce a class victory at the season-ending Petit Le Mans at Road Atlanta. Collard continued to compete for Team Penske at ALMS endurance races through the 2008 season. He was part of one of the team’s most significant sports car victories as the No. 7 RS Spyder captured the overall win at the 12 Hours of Sebring in 2008, with Collard racing alongside co-drivers Timo Bernhard and Romain Dumas.
In 2009, Collard scored his second 24 Hours of Le Mans class victory as his team finished 10th overall and captured the top position in the LMP2 class. Over the course of his career, Collard has competed in 24 races at the 24 Hours of Le Mans and he looks forward to returning to legendary race this season with Team Penske.
The seasoned sports car standout will also help Team Penske adapt in its first year competing in WEC as he has raced in the series over the course of seven previous seasons. Collard also finished first in points for the LMGTE AM WEC class in both the 2016 and the 2019-20 seasons.
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