Origine Motorsport confirms Buus, Heinrich and Picariello for Suzuka 1000km

Porsche Motorsport Asia Pacific customer team, Origine Motorsport, has named an excellent line-up of Porsche drivers Bastian Buus, Laurin Heinrich and Alessio Picariello for its debut appearance at the iconic Suzuka 1000km next month.

2024 GTD Pro IMSA champion Laurin Heinrich will join the squad again after competing in Asian Le Mans Series with the outfit and claiming a trio of podiums during the 2024 GT World Challenge Asia season. The German is also competing in Thailand Super Series, where he currently sits top of the standings, with three victories and two further podiums in 2025.

Since winning the 2023 Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup title, Bastian Buus has competed in Asian Le Mans Series as well as GT World Challenge events in both Europe and Asia. The highlight of his 2025 campaign to date is the overall podium that he clinched at the Nürburgring 24 Hours.

Former Porsche Motorsport Asia Pacific Selected Driver Alessio Picariello completes the trio, fresh from his brilliant second overall at Spa 24 Hours towards the end of June. The Belgian racer, who is no stranger to racing in Asia Pacific, has also been competing for the Chinese outfit in GT World Challenge Asia this year, taking victory alongside Lu Wei at Mandalika. 

For this event, selected Porsche cars will be running special liveries to mark the return of Suzuka 1000km on the calendar for the first time since 2019. Origine Motorsport’s entry draws inspiration from the 1981 winning duo of racing legends Henri Pescarolo and Bob Wollek, who became the first-ever foreign team and driver combination to win the prestigious race in their Kremer Racing Porsche 935 K3. The #6 Porsche 911 GT3 R is set to race in a striking recreation of this unique-to-the-race livery. 

Origine Motorsport has enjoyed success across multiple championships in recent years, securing the Porsche Carrera Cup Asia title in 2021, in the team’s year of inception. The squad then impressively took back-to-back GT World Challenge Asia Teams’ Championships in 2023 and 2024, as well as earning the drivers’ crown in the latter.

In addition to these achievements, the Chinese outfit has taken victories at the 2024 editions of Sepang 12 Hours and Shanghai 8 Hours, also winning the Silver Cup on the famous streets of Macau in the last two editions of the FIA GT World Cup. 

11 Porsche entries will tackle the Suzuka 1000km on 12-14 September at Suzuka International Racing Course as Porsche aims to add to its record-breaking 11 victories at the iconic event.

Bastian Buus, Origine Motorsport: “I’m really excited to join the squad for the Suzuka 1000km! It’s great to be competing in another Intercontinental GT Challenge round in the Asia-Pacific region, after taking on Bathurst 12 Hour in 2024. We’ve got a strong line up, a stunning livery and we’re more than ready for the challenge. I can’t wait to work with Alessio, Laurin and the whole team at this incredible event, where we’ll aim for a strong result.”

Laurin Heinrich, Origine Motorsport: “It’s great to be back with Origine Motorsport, who gave me my Asian debut last year. It feels special to join them again for such an iconic event and to be teaming up with two excellent teammates from the Porsche Motorsport family in such a legendary livery. Suzuka was a successful circuit for us during the 2024 GT World Challenge Asia season, so we’re confident of achieving our goal.”

Alessio Picariello, Origine Motorsport: “I’m delighted to be taking part in such a famous race like the Suzuka 1000km with Origine Motorsport and two top teammates. It’s a legendary event, and we’ve got the privilege of tackling it with the 1981 winning livery. I can’t wait to get out on track and deliver a strong performance.”

Alexandre Gibot, Managing Director Porsche Motorsport Asia Pacific Ltd.: “It’s brilliant to see Origine Motorsport competing in such an iconic race like Suzuka 1000km. We have closely worked with the team to support its development from its start in Porsche Carrera Cup Asia in 2021. What the squad has managed to achieve since then is nothing short of remarkable, with wins in endurance races like the Sepang 12 Hour and Shanghai 8 Hour, as well as back-to-back GT World Challenge Asia Championships. The team has also identified a very special livery to be inspired by for this year’s running – we can’t wait to see it on track in a few weeks! It’s an impressive Pro driver line-up for the Chinese outfit and we look forward to supporting them on-track during this gruelling enduro.”