For its return to the head class of endurance racing, Ferrari delivered a stunningly memorable victory at the Centenary on Sunday.
The 499P proved fast and reliable in its first participation, and certainly the same can be said for its drivers Alessandro Pier Guidi, James Calado and Antonio Giovinazzi.
Per tradition, the church bells rang in Maranello, the historic home of Ferrari’s headquarters, to signal the #51 499P Hypercar’s victory at Le Mans.
After 24 hours of intense battles, the Italian marque triumphed over Toyota, Cadillac, Peugeot, Glickenhaus, Vanwall and Porsche.
The drivers were faced with deplorable weather conditions on Saturday as engineers in the garage constantly finessed a winning strategy.
The entire team held its breath 25 minutes from the chequered-flag hoping the 499P would restart during a pit stop after problems earlier.
Ferrari AF Corse pulled off a true masterstroke at the 24 Hours Centenary by clinching the Hyperpole AND the win. The 499P finally reached the top step on the podium at the fourth round of the 2023 FIA World Endurance Championship.
We’d shown we have a fast car at previous races with pole position at Sebring and qualifying at Spa-Francorchamps. We need to gain experience like Toyota has done, especially in terms of tire wear.
With this result in the fourth round of the 2023 FIA World Endurance Championship, Ferrari remains second in the Manufacturers classification, trailing Toyota now by only 19 points.
24h Le Mans / Shoco Sports 2023.
Las time Ferrari participated was in 1973?