Ferrari Returns To The Top Of Sports Car Racing With The Hybrid 499P Hypercar

Ferrari is returning to the top category of professional sports car racing for the first time in a half-century with the gas-electric hybrid 499P, which will contest the new Le Mans Hypercar (LMH) category of the Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile’s (FIA) World Endurance Championship in 2023.

Hypercars retain the best qualities of the outgoing gas-electric hybrid Le Mans Prototype 1 cars (LMP1) while the FIA has taken measures to dramatically lower costs and equalize competition by imposing strict and measurable limits on horsepower and development budgets. Ferrari will not be alone, as several manufacturers plan a return to Le Mans and international sports car racing with Hypercars in 2023.

Because the FIA and the Automobile Club de l’Ouest (ACO, the regional organization that manages the Le Mans 24 Hour race) have harmonized regulations with those of the American organization IMSA (International Motor Sports Association, which is owned by NASCAR), the 499P will debut here in North America at the 1000 Miles of Sebring on March 17, 2023. In tribute to the Ferrari 312 PB that Jackie Ickx and Mario Andretti drove to victory in the 12 Hours of Sebring in 1972, the 499P will wear a similar livery of yellow stripes over red.

The return of European sports-prototype cars to America heralds a return to the golden era of the American Le Mans Series (1999-2013), which saw the exotic European prototype sports cars competing on North American tracks.

It’s important to note that the fortunes of sports car racing typically run on a decade-long boom-and-bust cycle, golden eras often followed by several years of dull racing due to limited participation by major manufacturers. Hypercars and Ferrari’s star power should bring a new golden era.

Evolved out of the architecture of the twin-turbo V6 engine fitted to the Ferrari 296 GT3 race car and more distantly related to the 296 road car engine, the 499P’s version is load-bearing, meaning it is a stressed structural component in the overall architecture. This differs from the GT3 competition cars, where the engine is mounted onto the car’s rear sub-chassis. In short, it means the engine’s fundamental piece, the cast block, is very robust.

The electric motor is mounted out front and equipped with a differential, carefully metering power to each front wheel. The 900 Volt battery pack is recharged during deceleration and braking, “regen” or recuperative braking just like on roadgoing hybrids. It’s important to note that the Energy Recovery System (ERS) was developed specifically for 499P, though Ferrari knows much about recuperative braking from its Formula One hybrid powertrains, and the roadgoing Stradale.

Following Hypercar rules meant to equalize performance, tighten competition, and place more emphasis on the driver’s ability, the electric front axle only delivers torque to the front wheels at higher speeds. It will have less impact when accelerating out of low-speed tight corners.

The FIA and ACO have capped maximum power at 500 kW (about 670 horsepower), and the Hypercars must weigh a minimum 1030 kilograms (about 2270 pounds, comparable to top-level Le Mans prototypes of the past 20+ years).

Ferrari sports cars achieved nine overall wins at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. The brand’s sports car glory days ran from the 166MM “barchetta” winning the first post-war Le Mans 24 Hour in 1949, with victories throughout the 1950s and into the mid 1960s. By the early 1970s, the Scuderia chose to focus on Formula One.

Ferrari 499Ps will be managed on-track by Maranello technicians and engineers working in collaboration of AF Corse, a longstanding partnership that began in the 2006 FIA GT series with the F430 GT2 that secured Team, Driver, and Constructor titles in its debut season. Ferrari has placed program management with Attività Sportive GT, under the direction of Antonello Coletta. Ferdinando Cannizzo leads engineering and development of Ferrari’s sports and GT racing cars. Architecture of 499P was guided by the racers at Maranello, but Flavio Manzoni, who leads design of Ferrari road cars, was involved, too, ensuring that this race weapon reflects current design themes of Ferrari production cars. Ferrari has not yet released the names of drivers.