WEC | Ferrari, Qatar immediately archived: “Difficult from the start”

Ferrari returns home from the first round of the FIA ​​World Endurance Championship with a 7th and 13th place at the end of the 1812 Km of Qatar.

In Lusail the official 499Ps of Antonio Fuoco/Miguel Molina/Nicklas Nielsen (#50) and Antonio Giovinazzi/Alessandro Pier Guidi/James Calado (#51) did not have an easy weekend and from the first tests of the Prologue it emerged that it would be It was very hard to fight against a Porsche that had grown so much and was deservedly victorious in the end.

The Reds did what they could in Qualifying, going to battle for the Hyperpole with Fuoco and Giovinazzi, who however finished in 4th and 7th place with gaps of more than half a second from poleman Matt Campbell on the official 963 #5.

“Qualifying and Hyperpole were not easy sessions for us during which we gave our all. I'm happy because we were able to push, taking advantage of all the minutes on the track, and improving our lap times”, comments the Calabrian.

“The starting position was good, but we knew that the race would be complicated and that we would have to approach it with great care, also considering that in Lusail the temperatures would be hot in the first four-five hours, dropping by several degrees in the final phase” .

The Apulian echoes him: “We gained access to the Hyperpole which was not at all a given, considering that many cars ran very close times. We started from the fourth row aware that the race would be long and, I thought, very close due to the top positions”.

At the start a great Molina took the lead, keeping the decidedly faster Porsche and Peugeot behind him for a while, then the Spaniard himself created the first problem when, due to a misunderstanding with the wall, he veered sharply towards the lane parking box by crossing the white entrance line and taking a Drive-Through.

From there the very black day began for the official Reds managed by AF Corse because shortly afterwards Pier Guidi was unlucky in contact with a McLaren during a lapping and the collision tore off his rear wing.

Added to this were a couple of other penalties received for infringements of the Track Limits and during stops which kept the 499P behind without being able to go beyond 7th place with the #50 (thanks to a Peugeot disqualification), while the #51 she was left empty-handed.

“The first test of the year was not positive and we must first of all work on ourselves because today we made too many mistakes – adds Fuoco – Now the objective must be to start again even stronger, already thinking about the next race in Imola in which I will I hope we can return to demonstrate our value.”

Disappointment also for Molina: “The 1812 km was very long and many things happened over the ten hours. We started well, even though we knew that our pace wouldn't give us much chance of fighting for the podium.”

“In the end we managed to score some points which will be precious throughout the season, but in view of Imola I hope we will be able to do better to achieve a great result in front of our fans.”

Nielsen was also disappointed: “We cannot be satisfied with 7th place, even if in the end we managed to move up a few positions, gaining some important points for the team and, perhaps, we finished in the best possible position given the circumstances.”

“It's a shame because Miguel had made an excellent start, but during the course of the race we were unable to aspire to a top position.”

#51 Ferrari Af Corse Ferrari 499P: Alessandro Pier Guidi, James Calado, Antonio Giovinazzi

Photo by: Erik Junius

On the other side of the garage the air is even heavier, as Pier Guidi underlines: “Before the start we knew we didn't have the pace to compete with the cars vying for the top positions and the race confirmed this. We still hoped to be able to finish in the points, but given how the race developed, it wasn't possible.”

Calado is equally bitter: “We ended a difficult race in which we made some mistakes and were a bit unlucky to be honest, but we were aware, after the test sessions and qualifying, that on this track we wouldn't have had much chance. to make a great result. Now we look to the future hoping to get back on track in Imola with other ambitions.”

Giovinazzi comments: “From the beginning the race was complicated and when we lost the rear wing following a contact, one hour and twenty minutes before the start, everything became even more difficult.”

“Here in Lusail we lacked speed and pace, but we also made some mistakes, so in the weeks that separate us from the 6h of Imola the objective will be to work hard to get back on track with greater ambitions.”

#50 Ferrari Af Corse Ferrari 499P: Antonio Fuoco, Miguel Molina, Nicklas Nielsen

Photo by: JEP / Motorsport Images

Ferrari's Endurance Manager, Antonello Coletta, analyzes the race underlining the Top5 centered by the third 499P entered with the #83 by AF Corse: “Within a complicated weekend and not free from episodes which we will carefully analyze upon our return to Maranello, the test of the AF Corse 499P makes the outcome of the race in Qatar less bitter.”

“Second place in the independent team classification is an excellent starting point for the season and will give the right motivation to the team.”

“As regards the test of the official 499P, we saw the fears of the day before confirmed, i.e. the high impact on competitiveness of the weight-power ratio which placed us in a condition of inferiority which effectively precluded any chance to fight for the podium”.

“Looking at the positive aspects, in this case too we brought all three cars to the finish line, accumulating further data and kilometers which will be useful starting from Imola.”

#51 Ferrari Af Corse Ferrari 499P: Alessandro Pier Guidi, James Calado, Antonio Giovinazzi

Photo by: JEP / Motorsport Images

Engineer Ferdinando Cannizzo instead stopped to talk to the journalists present in Lusail, including Motorsport.com, describing with great honesty his vision of the race in which he also found positive aspects.

“It was a very tough day, unfortunately the result reflected what we expected from the pre-race simulations, i.e. suffering on the straights. We looked for every solution to optimize what we could and from this point of view we are quite happy”, admits the Head of the Endurance cars of the Prancing Horse.

“Step by step we found a set-up that gave us the opportunity to avoid tire degradation, even doing two or three stints in a row with the same tire and also changing the compound, given that we mounted the medium on the #50, controlling very well usury”.

“The asphalt of this track is very demanding on the tires and many other cars suffered, while we worked well and found no graining, with consistent performances in the various stints.”

“If from this point of view we are very satisfied, on the other hand the difference in performance was really large and there was no strategy, even an aggressive one, that could close the gap. All of this is very difficult and frustrating for us.”

#50 Ferrari AF Corse Ferrari 499P: Antonio Fuoco, Miguel Molina, Nicklas Nielsen

Photo by: Shameem Fahath

Very justified frustration, given that the average pace of the Ferraris was 0.6″ or more worse than that of the Porsches, so in view of the next match in Imola we will have to work hard to try to obtain something more.

“There were no particular or serious reliability problems, we managed to bring three cars to the finish line and this must make us happy. But I can't say that the race was perfect because we certainly could have done better.”

“Unfortunately the day remains a bit bitter and I'm not trying to make it sweeter in some way, but I think we managed to have a really special race considering the situation. When you're behind you have to try to invent something, being ready to react if they jump out of opportunity”.

“But here there was no Safety Car or other neutralizations that could have given us a way to move up, so the negative result was amplified. It is true that we were the best of the LMHs, but given that we are also racing against the LMDhs we would like have the same potential.”

“We need to put this weekend behind us quickly and look ahead. Imola is a completely different circuit, narrower and with very few overtaking opportunities. It will be difficult and ballast will once again play a leading role.”

“We will have to try to be aggressive in the corners so as not to waste too much time, now we are ready to work in view of that race because first we concentrated 90% on Qatar. We will do a test to train, we hope that the conditions can be a little different and have greater potential.”

Cannizzo then preferred to deflect questions regarding a possible change in Balance of Performance, which from this year will also be assigned with a different data collection method to try to have more balance.

“I believe that this race has given indications of what to do to those who manage the championship. As I have already said several times even before this event, I do not want to talk about the topic for various reasons, including the regulation that we respect, just as we respect the work that is done by others.”

“The result wasn't good for us, but that's not why we start shouting. We have to stay focused on our work and do every operation in the right way on the car without making mistakes, trying to improve. With the hope of being able to race in a fair against others”.

#50 Ferrari AF Corse Ferrari 499P: Antonio Fuoco, Miguel Molina, Nicklas Nielsen

Photo by: JEP / Motorsport Images

Finally, a comment on the debut of the new LMGT3 Class cars and also the good result achieved by the 499P #83 of AF Corse (which we will talk about soon, ed.).

“Probably the GT3s at Imola will be less of a hindrance, but I would say that most of the lapping at Lusail didn't cause any problems, so I think their drivers did a good job. It's true that with the #51 there was contact, but it was a sporadic episode.”

“The #83 was similar to the other two in terms of pace and simply had a race free of problems related to particular situations like the #50 and #51, which incurred penalties and accidents.”

“If they hadn't had these problems, all three would probably have finished close. The result was conditioned by race situations, but we are pleased that the #83 finished ahead of Toyota and other rivals.”

Additional information by Rachit Thukral