Ferrari marks the anniversary of the
birth of Enzo Ferrari on 18 February 1898 with the unveiling of the livery of
the 499P that will compete in the Hypercar class of the FIA WEC 2024. The
spotlight is now on the second world championship season, which will kick off
on 2 March in Qatar and feature car numbers 50 and 51 fielded by the Ferrari –
AF Corse team.
Tradition and innovation intertwine in
the new livery of the Ferrari Hypercar. While closely recalling that of last
season, when the Italian team won the Centenary 24 Hours of Le Mans and
finished runner-up in the Manufacturers’ standings, the new racing colours look
to the future and introduce innovative elements.
Ferrari’s red, synonymous worldwide
with the Italian sporting spirit, is coupled with the company’s traditional
Giallo Modena yellow already seen on the 2023 livery, and together they
emphasise the car’s sculptural and dynamic lines.
The colour scheme celebrates the
Ferrari 312 PB, the last prototype to compete in the World Championship in 1973
before a half-century interlude broken last year when the Prancing Horse
returned to the top endurance class. A racing red specifically designed for the
new season dominates the 499P and is combined with the Giallo Modena yellow
highlights. The deep, intense red of the bodywork takes inspiration from the
F2007 single-seater with which Scuderia Ferrari competed in Formula 1 in 2007,
but with the addition of new elements: these produce a glossier version of the
Hypercar that boosts the car’s visibility at night and in conditions with poor
visibility.
The composition of the livery designed
for the two 499P numbers 50 and 51, driven by the six official Ferrari drivers,
is also a departure from the previous year. The main objective is to accentuate
the car’s body and cockpit with two staggered colour blocks, creating a fluid,
compositional rhythm and with a design that, by blending the two hues, enhances
the lines and three-dimensional quality of the surface geometry.
These aspects are apparent when
viewing the Hypercar side-on: the Giallo Modena surrounds the entire cockpit,
underlining its physical and symbolic importance. New graphic features, lines
and horizontal bands in the same colour further accentuate the concept of
dynamism and speed by expanding in the lower part of the bodywork near the rear
wheelarches, on the upper part of the tail fin and inside the rear-wing end
plates.
The Team. Like last year, the Ferrari
– AF Corse team lines up for the 2024 season with the 499P number 50 and 51
crewed respectively by Antonio Fuoco, Miguel Molina, and Nicklas Nielsen, and
Alessandro Pier Guidi, James Calado, and Antonio Giovinazzi.
The Calendar. The Lusail International
Circuit in Qatar hosts the FIA World Endurance Championship for the first time.
The Persian Gulf state hosts the Prologue (24-25 February) ahead of the 1812 km
of Qatar, the year’s debut race over the ten-hour distance (2 March). The 6
Hours of Imola (Italy) is next on the FIA WEC calendar (21 April), followed by
the 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps (Belgium; 11 May), the 24 Hours of Le Mans
(France; 15-16 June), the 6 Hours of São Paulo (Brazil: 14 July), the Lone Star
Le Mans at the Circuit of the Americas – COTA (USA; 1 September), the 6 Hours
of Fuji (Japan; 15 September) and lastly the 8 Hours of Bahrain (2 November).