The team moved the front of the grid around mid-distance, after Pier Guidi had spun into the gravel in avoidance of an accident in front of him on Saturday evening. High rear tyre wear at each of the hot races were also a feature of the car that was expected to take it out of the running for the win, but ultimately those fears proved to be unfounded. However, there were questions about the reliability of the new car after the failure of the hybrid system at Portimao in April. Ferrari silence reliability questionsįerrari knew that they had the pace over one lap and it was no surprise to see the two 499Ps on the front row after qualifying in France. Ferrari took a conservative approach to the first 12 hours, preferring to protect the car in difficult driving conditions, and then attacked in the second half of the race.

Several drivers were caught out by sudden showers that swept only part of the circuit, leading to accidents that took out some of the front runners in each of the classes. Yet after basketball star LeBron James waved the French Tricolor to send the cars on their way 100 years after the first running of the Le Mans 24 hours, Ferrari hardly put a foot - or a wheel - out of place despite changeable weather conditions on Saturday night causing havoc for many competitors. It was an unexpected result for the team given that the car only tested for the first time last July, that this was the first time that Ferrari had raced at Le Mans as a factory in the top prototype class since 1973, and that Toyota, which had won every Le Mans since 2018, arrived at Le Mans having also dominated the first three races of the FIA World Endurance Championship with its GR010.

Sharing his No 51 Ferrari 499P with his long-time team-mate Alessandro Pier Guidi and former Grand Prix driver Antonio Giovanizzi, the crew held off the pre-race favourites Toyota to take Ferrari’s first win at the race since 1965. Ferrari made a triumphant return to Le Mans as Britain’s James Calado led the team to victory in the Centenary edition of the 24 Hours.

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