Ferrari overcame all the odds to take victory at the centenary of the first running of the 24-hours of Le Mans. James Calado, Alessandro Pier Guidi and Antonio Giovinazzi took a narrow win over Toyota, crossing the line just over a minute ahead of the chasing GR010.
It was a win that was unexpected, given Toyota’s dominance of the first three races of the FIA World Endurance Championship, taking victory at each. The Japanese brand came to Le Mans on the back of five successive wins, and was perfectly prepared.
However, the team was hit with a Balance of Performance change, with 37kg added to the GR010, and 4MJ of power added per stint. In the end, that proved telling. Ferrari, which also had a BoP change that was less severe, ran close to the race performance of the Toyota, and hardly put a foot wrong all race.
There is no doubt the decision to balance the cars brought about a closer race, but the promises made to competitors at the start of the year were broken
A time loss due to a spin into the gravel on Saturday night was negated by a safety car event when Pier Guidi was on board, and two slow pit stops due to the Italian needing to re-set the power system to fire up the V6 engine delayed the car. However, the Ferrari team also benefited from a large slice of luck when the chasing Toyota, driven by Ryo Hirakawa, crashed while in pursuit during a phase of the race the Japanese manufacturer believed would be favourable to the GR010.
The Japanese driver had been given the instruction to drive flat out, but was caught out by a locking rear axle, an issue that co-driver, Brendon Hartley, had successfully managed during his previous stint. Hirakawa consequently hit the barriers front and rear, damaging the car at both ends.
It was the unfortunate Japanese driver who was also behind the wheel earlier on Sunday morning when he hit a squirrel, damaging the underside of the nose, and causing understeer. That, too, came at a time when the Toyota team believed its car to be faster than the Ferrari.
Triumphant return
Ifs and buts don’t win races, though, and at the chequered flag it was Ferrari celebrating a triumphant return to top-level prototype racing after a 50-year hiatus from the race.
The 499P received everything it needed to compete against Toyota, including tyre warmers that helped it to make strategic options during the night and in transitional phases between wet and dry weather.
At the chequered flag it was Ferrari celebrating a triumphant return to top-level prototype racing after a 50-year hiatus
There’s no doubt it benefited from that last minute Balance of Performance change that brought it closer to Toyota, but the car proved to be lighter on its tyres than expected, and was more reliable, too.
Battle of attrition
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