Interview – Ferdinando Cannizzo, head of GT racing car design and development, Ferrari
Ferrari’s 499P turned its first laps at Fiorano in July 2022, and, within 12 months, the car was a Le Mans winner.
It had a helping hand in several areas. Tyre warmers were re-introduced to the championship for this race only, on the grounds of safety. This allowed Ferrari to be able to select harder compound tyres in cooler temperatures. There was also a Balance of Performance shift in favour of Ferrari (and against Toyota), which put the two cars on a more even footing.
However, it cannot be argued that the Italian team still needed to execute the race. The drivers, engineers, mechanics and strategists had to perform to the highest level, and even then Toyota came close to winning with its GR010. A crash on Sunday afternoon while chasing the Ferrari down ultimately cost the Japanese their coveted fifth successive win as the 499P struggled to re-start at its final pit stop.
The fact that Ferrari was able to complete the 24-hour race reliably was something that even the team itself didn’t consider likely. A stone made its way through the smallest of gaps in the bodywork to damage the radiator cooling the hybrid system in the quicker of the two Ferraris, an extraordinary feat that Nicklas Nielsen considered ‘almost impossible’.
Alessandro Pier Guidi spun into the gravel on Saturday night, but the new safety car regulations played into their hands.
Our target was to make the perfect car for the regulations in place
Marcus Schurig: You managed to win LM outright on your first attempt. How was this
