Ferrari – AF Corse team is poised to make its debut in the 2024 FIA World Endurance Championship. The season will kick off at the Lusail International Circuit in Qatar, which hosts its first-ever World Endurance Championship round. Following the Prologue on 24-25 February, the Ferrari 499Ps will vie for supremacy in the 1812 km of Qatar on Saturday, 2 March.
Like last season, the crews of the Maranello manufacturer’s Hypercars are Antonio Fuoco, Miguel Molina and Nicklas Nielsen in the number 50 car, while the winners of the Centenary 24 Hours of Le Mans, Alessandro Pier Guidi, James Calado and Antonio Giovinazzi, are again at the wheel of the number 51.
Despite not utilising development tokens since 2023, the team harbours ambitious goals for the forthcoming season. They devoted their winter testing and simulator work to deepening their understanding and enhancing the performance of last year’s technical package, recognising its potential.
Antonio Fuoco, Ferrari 499P number 50: “2023 was an excellent season culminating in third place in the Drivers’ standings. We are eagerly anticipating the upcoming start of the new championship, aiming to do our best, which means trying to win the championship title and returning to Le Mans, determined to compete for victory in the world’s most famous 24 Hours”.
Miguel Molina, Ferrari 499P number 50: “Expectations are high for 2024 because we start again after our 2023 debut season when we achieved excellent results. During the winter, we prepared as best we could with everyone working together to improve our areas of expertise and analyse the weaknesses encountered last year”.
Nicklas Nielsen, Ferrari 499P number 50: “Our aim for the 2024 season is to take a step forward from last year. Obviously, we know it won’t be a simple task, also given the entry of new manufacturers in the Hypercar class. It will therefore be a massive challenge for all of us and, at the same time, we’ll have plenty of motivation to do our best”.
Alessandro Pier Guidi, Ferrari 499P number 51: “This year sees the addition of an extra race compared to 2023, bringing the total number of world championship events to eight. This is good because it gives you a few more chances to overcome misfortune in competition. The calendar features two circuits (Imola and Sao Paulo, Ed.) where we have yet to compete with the Hypercars, presenting numerous uncertainties, particularly due to the lack of definitive performance benchmarks either for us or our competitors”.
James Calado, Ferrari 499P number 51: “We won the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 2023, so our target for the upcoming season is to struggle for victory in the World Endurance Championship. Achieving these results requires hard work, dedication, and a collective desire among the team to meticulously prepare every aspect down to the smallest detail, consistently striving for the best possible performance”.
Antonio Giovinazzi, Ferrari 499P number 51: “We should certainly remember the achievements of 2023, but now is the time to focus on the future. We have ambitious goals for the 2024 season: I want to win the 24 Hours of Le Mans again and try for the world title, which would be an extraordinary achievement for Ferrari. Last year, we achieved an extraordinary feat at the 24 Hours; now, we aim to surpass that by contending for the world championship”.
Antonello Coletta, Global Head of Endurance and Corse Clienti: “In 2024, our goal is to repeat last year’s positive results, not only by trying to win the 24 Hours of Le Mans again, but by striving for additional wins throughout the year. This won’t be easy, but we’ll exert ourselves to the full to accomplish it. In this respect, the third 499P at the start will significantly enhance our ability to collect and analyse information more rapidly. We expect great things from this car, both in terms of results and contribution to development”.
Ferdinando Cannizzo, Head of Endurance Race Cars: “The 2024 season will be more challenging than the previous one, facing nearly triple the number of competitors as last year. Compared to last year, we’ll turn up at the start with more experience and similar ambitions. Our goal hasn’t changed: we approach the season with humility and an awareness of our capabilities, vying for victory in every race”.