Ferrari head of endurance Antonello Coletta highlights key aspect for 24 Hours of Le Mans. Antonello Coletta pinpoints a key aspect and difference for this year's 24 Hours of Le Mans.

Ferrari tries again one year later
The first Free Practice session officially kicked off the 101st edition of the 24 Hours of Le Mans, a year after the historic triumph of the Ferrari 499P #51 driven by Alessandro Pier Guidi, Antonio Giovinazzi, and James Calado. Now, 365 days after that success, the goal for the Maranello team is to repeat their performance at the Circuit de la Sarthe. However, on the eve of the first practice sessions, there were some statements made by Antonio Coletta, Head of Ferrari Endurance and Corse Clienti.

From the Spa appeal to the tires
One of these statements relates to the case of the last 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps, particularly regarding the official appeal against the FIA’s decision to extend the race by nearly two hours, which had denied a near-certain Ferrari one-two finish. The other aspect, focusing on the event in France, involves another specific request from Ferrari, this time concerning the control of tire temperatures.

Checks above all
From this season onwards, the regulations no longer allow the use of pre-heated tires. In this regard, Antonello Coletta demands guarantees on the verification of tire temperatures in order to ensure fair conditions for all teams: “The tire issue will be crucial at Le Mans this year, both for performance and safety,” he explained in a press conference, as reported by p300.it. “On the second topic, we are all somewhat concerned because when temperatures drop, significant risks will arise. The situation is the same for everyone; I don’t see why this choice would benefit anyone. The control by the sporting authorities will be crucial since we have already seen races where some teams were very good at mounting warmer tires.” – the Italian engineer pointed out.

“I believe that on a track like this, where you lose more than 15 seconds with cold tires, it would be unacceptable not to have absolute control over the temperatures. We need to be certain that the rules are followed; otherwise, creating rules without enforcing them would be counterproductive. This rule determines performance and a significant difference in lap times. I wouldn’t want the 24 Hours of Le Mans to be decided by tire warm-up during the night. That said, we hope that all drivers can manage cold tires without issues because with very long straights, temperatures drop even more. I think it’s too late now to return to tire warmers; the pits are already set up and would need to be re-equipped, which would be a complicated exercise. Moreover, I don’t think there is a desire to discuss this rule. From our side, there will be an effort to endure laps with cold tires, while race direction will have the task of enforcing the rules.” – the Ferrari Global Head of Endurance and Corse Clienti concluded ahead of this year’s 24 Hours of Le Mans.