The Ferrari 499P is a sports prototype built by Scuderia Ferrari to compete in the FIA World Endurance Championship in the Le Mans Hypercar category since 2023.[5] The introduction of the 499P marks 50 years since Ferrari last fielded a factory-backed sports prototype that contested for the overall win at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, and one of the 499Ps raced with the number 50 as a tribute.[6]
The car was unveiled in October 2022 at the Ferrari Finali Mondiali, Ferrari's annual finale for their one-make series, Ferrari Challenge.[7] The car made its competitive debut at the season-opening round of the 2023 FIA World Endurance Championship, the 2023 1000 Miles of Sebring.[8] On its first outing at the 2023 24 Hours of Le Mans, the 499P driven by Antonio Giovinazzi, Alessandro Pier Guidi, and James Calado won the race.[9] It was Ferrari's first overall victory at Le Mans since the 1965 24 Hours of Le Mans, ending the streak of five victories by Toyota Gazoo Racing. At the 2024 24 Hours of Le Mans, Ferrari achieved its eleventh victory, second consecutive at Le Mans since 1965 with the No. 50 499P driven by Antonio Fuoco, Miguel Molina and Nicklas Nielsen. While the Ferrari No. 51 499P driven by Alessandro Pier Guidi, James Calado, and Antonio Giovinazzi, winner of the last edition, came in third place.[10]
Specifications
The 499P was designed under the Le Mans Hypercar regulations, therefore it does not feature the standardised parts such as the ones found in cars designed to the Le Mans Daytona h regulations, which the 499P races against.[11] The aerodynamics of the 499P were developed in conjunction with Ferrari's Styling Centre, headed by Flavio Manzoni, under Ferdinando Cannizzo, head of Ferrari's sports car engineering department.[12]
The car's 2,992 cc (182.6 cu in) twin-turbocharged V6 engine architecture is shared with the Ferrari 296 and its Group GT3 counterpart, the 296 GT3.[13] However, instead of being mounted to the subframe as in the road-going vehicle, the engine is a fully stressed member in the 499P, and has had various modifications to accommodate its new role as a stress-bearing member.[12] The 499P has semi-permanent all-wheel drive, with an electric motor situated at the front axle, providing 200 kW (272 PS; 268 hp) above 190 km/h (118 mph) (as stipulated by the regulations), and is connected to a bespoke 900 V battery pack, with the ability to be recharged by Ferrari's own Energy Recovery System (ERS).[12][14][15]
499P Modificata
The 499P Modificata was unveiled during the 2023 Ferrari Finali Mondiali. It is a non-competitive, unrestricted, track-only version of the 499P, made to celebrate Ferrari's victory at Le Mans that year.[16][17] On 18 March 2024, the first event of the Sport Prototipi Clienti program took place at the Mugello Circuit in which the 499P Modificata took part.[18][19]
Competition history
2023
The driver lineups for both cars consisted of drivers from AF Corse's programmes, the Ferrari Driver Academy junior team, and a reserve from Scuderia Ferrari. Antonio Fuoco, Miguel Molina, and Nicklas Nielsen formed the #50 crew, and James Calado, Antonio Giovinazzi, and Alessandro Pier Guidi completed the #51 crew.[20]
The 499P was immediately competitive in its first race, with Antonio Fuoco behind the wheel of the #50 car scoring pole position ahead of both GR010 Hybrid entries from defending champions Toyota.[21] Mistakes in the race caused the #50 to fall from the lead however it would manage to take home a podium in 3rd two laps down on the leading Toyotas, whereas the #51 finished 11 laps down.[22] Its first major race victory came at the 2023 24 Hours of Le Mans, winning with Calado, Giovinazzi, and Pier Guidi, marking Ferrari's first win at Le Mans since 1965.[23] The 499P would podium in every race except at Fuji, resulting in Ferrari finishing second in the Manufacturers' Championship.
2024
Ferrari maintained their lineup for both cars in 2024.[24] AF Corse also entered a non-factory car that year, bringing in Robert Kubica, Robert Shwartzman, and Yifei Ye to drive the #83 car.[25]
The 499P took home two wins that year, going back to back at the 2024 24 Hours of Le Mans with Antonio Fuoco, Miguel Molina, and Nicklas Nielsen in the #50 car, and at the 2024 Lone Star Le Mans with the non-factory #83 car.[26] In both races, the winning 499P narrowly scored its wins holding off Toyota's chasing #7 car.[26][27] Despite taking home more wins, the car scored less podiums overall, as Porsche became a title contender and fought at the front with their 963. Ferrari finished the season third in the Manufacturers' Championship, behind Porsche and Toyota.
Racing results
Complete World Endurance Championship results
(key) Races in bold indicates pole position. Races in italics indicates fastest lap. ↓ penalized from 2nd to 14th position.
| Year | Entrants | Class | Drivers | No. | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | Points | Pos |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | Ferrari AF Corse | Hypercar | — | — | SEB | POR | SPA | LMN | MON | FUJ | BHR | 161 | 2nd | |
 Antonio Fuoco
|
50 | 3 | 2 | Ret | 5 | 2 | 4 | 3 | ||||||
 Miguel Molina
|
3 | 2 | Ret | 5 | 2 | 4 | 3 | |||||||
 Nicklas Nielsen
|
3 | 2 | Ret | 5 | 2 | 4 | 3 | |||||||
 James Calado
|
51 | 7 | 6 | 3 | 1 | 5 | 5 | 6 | ||||||
| Antonio Giovinazzi
|
7 | 6 | 3 | 1 | 5 | 5 | 6 | |||||||
| Alessandro Pier Guidi
|
7 | 6 | 3 | 1 | 5 | 5 | 6 | |||||||
| 2024 | Ferrari AF Corse | Hypercar | — | — | QAT | IMO | SPA | LMN | SAP | COA | FUJ | BHR | 137 | 3rd |
| Antonio Fuoco
|
50 | 6 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 6 | 3 | 9 | 11 | |||||
| Miguel Molina
|
6 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 6 | 3 | 9 | 11 | ||||||
| Nicklas Nielsen
|
6 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 6 | 3 | 9 | 11 | ||||||
| James Calado
|
51 | 12 | 7 | 4 | 3 | 4 | Ret | Ret | ↓14 | |||||
| Antonio Giovinazzi
|
12 | 7 | 4 | 3 | 4 | Ret | Ret | ↓14 | ||||||
| Alessandro Pier Guidi
|
12 | 7 | 4 | 3 | 4 | Ret | Ret | ↓14 | ||||||
| AF Corse |  Robert Kubica
|
83 | 4 | 8 | 8 | Ret | 11 | 1 | 12 | 8 | ||||
 Robert Shwartzman
|
4 | 8 | 8 | Ret | 11 | 1 | 12 | 8 | ||||||
 Yifei Ye
|
4 | 8 | 8 | Ret | 11 | 1 | 12 | 8 | ||||||
| 2025 | Ferrari AF Corse | Hypercar | — | — | QAT | IMO | SPA | LMN | SAP | COA | FUJ | BHR | 66 | 1st |
| Antonio Fuoco
|
50 | 1 | ||||||||||||
| Miguel Molina
|
1 | |||||||||||||
| Nicklas Nielsen
|
1 | |||||||||||||
| James Calado
|
51 | 3 | ||||||||||||
| Antonio Giovinazzi
|
3 | |||||||||||||
| Alessandro Pier Guidi
|
3 | |||||||||||||
| AF Corse | Phil Hanson
|
83 | 2 | |||||||||||
| Robert Kubica
|
2 | |||||||||||||
| Yifei Ye
|
2 | |||||||||||||
| Source:[28] | ||||||||||||||
Gallery
-
Ferrari 499P No.50 at Spa-Francorchamps -
Ferrari 499P No.83 at Spa-Francorchamps -
A Ferrari 1-2-3 at the start of the Lone Star Le Mans in Austin, Texas, 2024. -
-
-
-
-
References
- ^ "Ferrari 499P, the development of the Maranello Hypercar's Aerodynamics". Ferrari. 21 April 2023. Archived from the original on 7 November 2023. Retrieved 1 October 2023.
- ^ a b c Ferrari (28 October 2023). "Ferrari Hypercar | The Design of the Hypercar". Archived from the original on 28 October 2023. Retrieved 28 October 2023 – via YouTube.
- ^ "Entry List 2023" (PDF). 24 Hours of Le Mans (in French). Archived (PDF) from the original on 11 June 2023. Retrieved 3 July 2023.
- ^ a b c Pund, Daniel (29 October 2022). "The Ferrari 499P Is a Le Mans Racer 50 Years in the Making". Road & Track. Archived from the original on 27 November 2022. Retrieved 13 November 2022.
- ^ Jenkins, Sam (30 October 2022). "Ferrari 499P revealed as 2023 Le Mans Hypercar contender". evo. Archived from the original on 28 November 2022. Retrieved 30 October 2022.
- ^ James, Richard S. (30 October 2022). "Ferrari introduces its 499P Hypercar". Racer. Archived from the original on 20 January 2023. Retrieved 29 October 2022.
- ^ Watkins, Gary (30 October 2022). "Ferrari unveils Le Mans Hypercar, the 499P, in full race livery". motorsport.com. Archived from the original on 19 March 2023. Retrieved 30 October 2022.
- ^ Watkins, Gary (30 October 2022). "Ferrari launches new 499P Le Mans Hypercar for 2023 WEC". autosport. Archived from the original on 7 November 2022. Retrieved 30 October 2022.
- ^ "Le Mans 24 Hours: Ferrari beats Toyota in race of attrition". 11 June 2023. Archived from the original on 11 June 2023. Retrieved 11 June 2023.
- ^ "Ferrari si conferma a Le Mans: la 499P vince la 24 Ore 2024". ferrari.com. Retrieved 30 June 2024.
- ^ Smith, Damien (29 October 2022). "Ferrari 499P is 670bhp racer built to attack Le Mans". autocar. Archived from the original on 31 October 2022. Retrieved 30 October 2022.
- ^ a b c James, Richard S. (29 October 2022). "ANALYSIS: Ferrari 499P tech dive". Racer. Archived from the original on 8 February 2023. Retrieved 30 October 2022.
- ^ Tate, James (30 October 2022). "Ferrari 499P Le Mans Hypercar Revealed". Car & Driver. Archived from the original on 29 October 2023. Retrieved 30 October 2022.
- ^ Padeanu, Adrian (29 October 2022). "Ferrari 499P Le Mans Hypercar Breaks Cover With Twin-Turbo V6". motor1. Archived from the original on 7 July 2023. Retrieved 30 October 2022.
- ^ "Hypercar's Balance Of Performance Set For Sebring | dailysportscar.com". www.dailysportscar.com. Archived from the original on 17 August 2023. Retrieved 17 August 2023.
- ^ "Ferrari 499P Modificata: limited-series sports prototype for non-competitive use unveiled". www.ferrari.com. Archived from the original on 29 October 2023. Retrieved 29 October 2023.
- ^ "Ferrari 499P Modificata: gioiello da pista per rivivere il sogno di Le Mans". gazzetta.it. gazzetta.it. 28 October 2023. Retrieved 30 March 2024.
- ^ "Esordio positivo per la 499P Modificata". ferrari.com. Ferrari S.p.A. Retrieved 30 March 2024.
- ^ "Ferrari Sport Prototipi Clienti". ferrari.com/. Ferrari S.p.A. Retrieved 30 March 2024.
- ^ "Ferrari names 6 drivers for 499P campaign, including ex-F1 driver". Motor Authority. 11 January 2023. Retrieved 12 March 2025.
- ^ Lloyd, Daniel (16 March 2023). "Ferrari Beats Toyota to Shock 1000M Sebring Pole – Sportscar365". sportscar365.com. Retrieved 12 March 2025.
- ^ Goodwin, Graham (22 March 2023). "What Did We Learn From Super Sebring?". www.dailysportscar.com. Retrieved 12 March 2025.
- ^ "Ferrari takes historic 2023 24 Hours of Le Mans victory". Motor Authority. 12 June 2023. Retrieved 12 March 2025.
- ^ Euwema, Davey (10 January 2024). "Ferrari Sets Unchanged Hypercar Lineup for Second Season – Sportscar365". sportscar365.com. Retrieved 12 March 2025.
- ^ Euwema, Davey (1 February 2024). "AF Corse: Third 499P Effort 'Separate Entity' to Factory Cars – Sportscar365". sportscar365.com. Retrieved 12 March 2025.
- ^ a b "Ferrari defends crown at 24 Hours of Le Mans". ESPN.com. 16 June 2024. Retrieved 12 March 2025.
- ^ "Ferrari AF Corse Wins WEC Lone Star Le Mans With Dramatic Finish at COTA". Autoweek. 2 September 2024. Archived from the original on 19 September 2024. Retrieved 12 March 2025.
- ^ "Season 2023 Results". FIA World Endurance Championship. Archived from the original on 18 January 2024. Retrieved 17 June 2024.
External links
|