Ferrari dived into the new season of the FIA World Endurance Championship starting again with the 499P which had made enormous progress throughout 2023.
At its debut, the Maranello Hypercar managed to take home the 24h of Le Mans and it is clear that for 2024 expectations have grown in terms of results, as already stated by the leaders of the Prancing Horse.
The 1812 Km of Qatar will take place on Saturday and the official Reds #50 and #51 will have an added little sister, the private #83 of AF Corse, with which Ferrari aims to achieve great goals against very fierce rivals, as explained by the team manager emiliana, Antonello Coletta, speaking with the journalists present at Lusail, including Motorsport.com.
Antonello Coletta, Global Head of Endurance and Corse Clienti
Photo by: Federico Basile | AG Photo
How do you start 2024?
“We present ourselves here after the first debut season in which we won the 24h of Le Mans and obtained second place among the Constructors, a year which showed the great reliability of the 499P which we are very happy with, because none of our drivers have I've never had a serious problem.”
What goals have you set for yourself?
“The objective for 2024 is to confirm ourselves, we are convinced that the car project is good, so much so that at the moment we have not used any 'Evo Joker' for updates. The configuration is the same as in 2023 and we want to win the World Championship , as well as perhaps triumphing again at Le Mans.”
It will be a tougher challenge…
“We know the situation very well: there are 9 manufacturers on the grid and 19 very competitive cars, so this championship is very tough and complicated. We need to get maximum points in every race, reliability is very important, but the Different configurations between the various tracks on the calendar will likely be another important factor that will test the consistency of the cars.”
#50 Ferrari Af Corse Ferrari 499P: Antonio Fuoco, Miguel Molina, Nicklas Nielsen
Photo by: Erik Junius
Have you identified the most fearsome rivals?
“There are cars that go better on one circuit than another, we have to be consistent in all events; for this reason it is essential to take the maximum possible points in each race. We have three cars to count on, others have five , so it will be a great fight, but we are ready.”
Have you thought about spending jokers on evolutions?
“At the moment we haven't used any, but there is the possibility of using one in the second part of the season or next year. Frankly, we are studying what we can do in the future, but I'm not sure that we will spend wild cards in the second part of the season. 2024, but it's not impossible. Of course, for 2025 I can imagine that we will implement some innovations, because it is normal that we improve our research in terms of aerodynamics and mechanical issues. At the moment, however, we are in the study phase, but we have not decided yet”.
Would you rather win the 24 Hours of Le Mans or the World Championship, if you had to choose only one?
“Last year they asked me the same question and I said that Le Mans would have gone well for me, so repeating the success in 2024 wouldn't be bad. But the World title is not a second choice.”
#83 AF Corse Ferrari 499P: Robert Kubica, Robert Shwartzman, Yifei Ye
Photo by: Erik Junius
Will we see more 499P customers in the near future?
“For the moment it is difficult to add another car to the grid because the basis of an LMH is much more complicated than an LMDh. Which is why, in the second half of 2023, we started thinking about deploying a third 499P. At the moment, I think we will remain with three cars, but it is not impossible to expand or reduce the number. Also because this is a program for customers and AF Corse must confirm the possibility of racing with a third 499P in 2025. We hope it does so and stays on the grid, because for us it is an important basis for obtaining more and more data.”
The third car gave you the opportunity to try new drivers…
“We have two new guys, Yifei Ye and Robert Shwartzman, this is a good opportunity for the young guys to improve. And in the future we will be able to include them in the current lineup, because they are both Ferrari drivers and every year we have the possibility to change the line-up. Having an extra car is certainly a good opportunity from this point of view.”
Have you already thought about any changes in the crews for 2025?
“At the moment we don't have any ideas, we usually prefer to confirm the lineup and team, therefore mechanics, engineers and so on. It's also true that every season we try to improve and solve the problems that arise. It's not impossible to see changes, but If the current line-up continues to work with the same attitude as in 2023 we won't have problems of this kind, because our drivers worked really well last year during the development of the car.”
#51 Ferrari Af Corse Ferrari 499P: Alessandro Pier Guidi, James Calado, Antonio Giovinazzi
Photo by: Erik Junius
Last year the customer Porsches were also ahead of the official ones; Is there a possibility that it will also happen to the #83 of AF Corse?
“I don't know the situation at Porsche, but ours does and very well too. The three 499Ps are exactly the same, managed by the same people because the base of the #83 is AF Corse, but the electronics and engine technicians are Ferrari. drivers are consistent, so why not. For us it wouldn't be a problem, the objective is to have a Ferrari ahead of everyone on the grid, whether it's yellow or red is a secondary aspect. For me the important thing is that a 499P wins the races And ours are all the same.”
Is this an opportunity for Shwartzman to make a career change?
“Shwartzman was our third F1 driver last year and I think this is a good opportunity for us and for him. But honestly all the drivers we have are professionals, each of them gives us very consistent guidance and I think it's important to share everything, combining the experience of those who, like Robert, come from single-seaters. In the end, experience is the fundamental aspect for obtaining results and I believe that Robert will need the first races to accumulate as much as possible, in order to be even more important in his contribution to the cause”.
If you were to add a 499P in the future, could we see Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton behind the wheel?
“Nothing is impossible, but at the moment Lewis is a Mercedes driver and Charles has his commitment in F1 with us, which is what he needs to focus on first and foremost. We know that his dream is to race at Le Mans one day and we are pleased , but it's best for everyone to stay focused on their work.”
#WEC #Coletta #Evo #Joker #499P #mid2024
