Ferrari unveil first works Le Mans car for 50 years
- Published
Ferrari 499P is the first elite class sportscar since the 312 P model 50 years ago
Ferrari have unveiled their first works sportscar to compete at Le Mans for more than 50 years.
The 499P was launched on Saturday for next year's Le Mans 24 Hours race and World Endurance Championship.
The sport introduced a new 'hypercar' class last year attracting several big manufacturers back to endurance racing.
Ferrari chairman John Elkann said: "The 499 P sees us embark on a path of innovation and development faithful to our tradition."
The new class also sees Peugeot, Porsche, Cadillac and others return in 2023 to join Toyota, after organisers promised more design freedom for the cars, most of which will be hybrid power.
The 2023 season also coincides with Le Mans' 100th anniversary.
Ferrari's 499P - classified as LMH (Le Mans Hypercar) - will be four-wheel drive, with a twin-turbo-charged V6 engine and an electric power unit delivering 500kW of power.
Elkann added: "We return to compete for outright victory in the WEC series. We see the track as the ideal terrain to push the boundaries of cutting-edge technological solutions that in time will be transferred to our road cars."
Ferrari regularly compete in several global sportscar series, but last entered as a works team 50 years ago during the seventies, when sportscar racing was featured in Steve McQueen's film Le Mans.
World Endurance Championship CEO Frederic Lequien told BBC Sport: "Never in history has endurance racing been so bright.
"These new regulations permit car manufacturers to have freedom of design and now we have fantastic cars. It's a return to the history of Ferrari competing against Peugeot, Porsche and Cadillac - we have best car manufacturers in the world and we are very happy about that."
Along with many of the other manufacturers set for involvement in the hypercar class, it is not yet known who will drive the 499P next year.
The seven-race World Endurance Championship series has also introduced a renewable bio-fuel, 65% of which is made from renewable sources.