A crucial weekend for Ferrari. While Formula 1 heads to Canada for the tenth round of the season, the World Endurance Championship will host its most iconic race: the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Since returning to the top category of closed-wheel racing, the Prancing Horse has surprisingly won the last two editions at the legendary Circuit de la Sarthe, an achievement that clearly deserves praise.
And comparison is still necessary. The 2023 victory was also helped by a favorable Balance of Performance, which allowed the 499P to benefit from reduced weight compared to Toyota and an energy advantage per stint, more specifically 901 Megajoule in 2023. Ferrari’s endurance program, now in its third season, had a stunning start: the first three races of 2025, namely Qatar, Imola, and Spa-Francorchamps, were dominated by the AF Corse team.
Such dominance, by regulation, will lead to a stricter BoP precisely for the most anticipated race of the season. Like it or not, those are the rules, and naturally all competitors accepted them, benefiting or losing out depending on the moment and their campaigns. Within this scenario, though, a fundamental point must be clarified.
Placing an FIA World Endurance Championship prototype and a Formula 1 car on the same level is a conceptual mistake. Formula 1 cars remain the absolute pinnacle of motorsport, in terms of investment, technology, and engineering complexity. The aim of this comparison is thus to spark reflection on the ability to lead a technical-sporting project to success, not on technical differences per se.
Ferrari is going through a season of waiting and uncertainty. The 2025 Formula 1 season has just entered its central phase, but the Italian team is already practically out of the title fight. In previous years, the Maranello squad used to freeze development to focus resources on the following season. Now, however, doubts remain about the real objective of Frederic Vasseur’s team—assuming there still is a concrete one.
Updates to the SF-25 single-seater keep getting delayed, as if the championship had no end. The real issue is the lack of transparent communication, which risks creating illusions among fans constantly awaiting new parts and miracle upgrades. To be clear: no updates are expected for the car in Montreal, neither for Charles Leclerc nor for Lewis Hamilton.
The Maranello team will continue to get the most out of the current package, seeking the best compromise to mask the structural shortcomings of Project 677 without significantly compromising performance. Starting from the Austrian Grand Prix, Ferrari will try to introduce a new floor, a prerequisite for further aerodynamic updates. The Maranello team hopes to at least partially close the gap with McLaren before the summer break.
By curious coincidence, the figure of Antonello Coletta, born in Rome in 1967 and currently head of Ferrari’s GT Racing Activities, has gained prominence precisely in the months following Frederic Vasseur’s arrival at the helm of Racing Division. Formula 1 and the World Endurance Championship are radically different projects, but for both, 2023 marked a clear new beginning.
In endurance racing, growth has been steady, fast, and without setbacks. In Formula 1, however, Frederic Vasseur’s approach, which initially seemed very promising, has experienced a sharp slowdown at the start of this season, a development that has clearly surprised and disappointed many. After two years of internal reorganization, this Ferrari team is now a direct expression of the French manager’s vision.
During shareholder meetings, Ferrari’s World Endurance Championship success is proudly cited as a highlight of the company’s sporting efforts, while both chief executive officer Benedetto Vigna and chairman John Elkann maintain a diplomatic tone when commenting on the Formula 1 results. Should Ferrari win again at the 24 Hours of Le Mans this coming Sunday, it is reasonable to imagine that Antonello Coletta’s shadow of success could strongly eclipse those in F1 who continue to chase their rivals.
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