FerrariTeam·Ferrari fell short of a fourth consecutive victory in the 24 Hours of Le MansCompetition·24 Hours of Le Mans, with the pace of the leading cars proving out of reach from the opening test day onward. The Italian team’s best finish came from car No. 51, which placed fifth more than two minutes behind the winning ToyotaTeam·Toyota No. 7.
The result marked a sharp drop-off for FerrariTeam·Ferrari in a race where expectations were shaped by its recent Le Mans dominance. Instead, the Scuderia spent the week searching for a workable setup and never found a combination that could close the gap to the front-runners.
After the race, FerrariTeam·Ferrari’s comments amounted to an indirect criticism of the Balance of Performance system used in the Hypercar class. According to the report, the team believed its cars were not among the better-performing machines from the test day onward and could not recover the deficit through setup changes alone.
FerrariTeam·Ferrari tried multiple approaches during the event, including different configurations and tire strategies such as double and triple stints, but the performance gap remained too large. Mauro BarbieriCoach·Mauro Barbieri said the team had explored everything available over the week without finding a solution that could erase the difference to the leaders.
The pressure was not limited to outright pace. FerrariTeam·Ferrari’s drivers pushed aggressively throughout the race, and the team also endured early contacts with cars from other categories. Even so, Barbieri said the squad could leave Le Mans with its heads held high after a competitive effort in difficult conditions.
The No. 51 entry, driven by Antonio GiovinazziPlayer·Antonio Giovinazzi, James CaladoPlayer·James Calado and Alessandro Pier GuidiPlayer·Alessandro Pier Guidi, was the strongest of FerrariTeam·Ferrari’s three crews. But the finishing position underlined how far the manufacturer had slipped from the pace required to fight for victory on this occasion.
The focus now turns to whether FerrariTeam·Ferrari’s concerns about BoP will feed into the wider endurance-racing debate over balance, parity and regulations in the Hypercar class. For a team that arrived chasing another landmark result, Le Mans instead exposed the limits of its package on a weekend when ToyotaTeam·Toyota set the standard.
The #51 Ferrari 499P Hypercar on track during the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Photo: PsnewZ/IMAGO
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