Ferrari 499P
Three 499Ps enter the Hyperpole
In the Hyperpole held on June 12th, the Ferrari 499P No. 50 secured the team’s highest grid position of 7th.
The top 15 cars from Wednesday’s qualifying took part in Hyperpole 1, held at the Circuit de la Sarthe on June 12th. In dry conditions with an air temperature of 26°C and a track temperature of 33°C, the hypercars competed in an intense time attack.
Hyperpole 1 began at 9:05 PM, with the top 10 cars advancing to Hyperpole 2, which began at 9:40 PM. In the 15-minute Hyperpole 2, the Cadillac Hertz Team Jota’s #12 Cadillac V Series.R (Alex Lynn, Norman Nato, Will Stevens) recorded a time of 3 minutes 24.213 seconds to take pole position. Cadillac’s #38 car followed with the second-fastest time of 3 minutes 23.333 seconds, dominating the front row.
The only Ferrari team to advance to Hyperpole 2 is the Ferrari AF Corse Ferrari 499P No. 50, which will start in 7th place on the grid. Car No. 51 (Alessandro Pier Guidi, James Calado, Antonio Giovinazzi) will start in 11th place with a time of 3 minutes 24.143 seconds, while AF Corse’s No. 83 (Robert Kubica, Ye Yifei, Philip Hansson) will start in 13th place with a time of 3 minutes 24.327 seconds.
Four consecutive wins this season, with a third consecutive victory at Le Mans as the target
Ferrari has won three straight races since the start of the season. They have also won the 24 Hours of Le Mans twice in a row, in 2023 and 2024, and are aiming for a fourth straight win this season and a third straight victory at Le Mans.
Miguel Molina, who won last year’s 24 Hours of Le Mans in the No. 50 car, reflected on the Hyperpole as follows:
“Today, I’m taking part in Hyperpole 1 for the first time in two years, filling in for Nicklas (Nielsen), and handing the wheel over to Antonio (Fuoco). Seventh on the grid is a solid starting position for what will be a long and difficult race. From now until the start of the final on Saturday, we will be analysing the car and making fine adjustments, focusing in particular on improving our race pace.”
Antonio Giovinazzi, who is driving the No. 51 car and has won two consecutive races this season at Imola and Spa, is now competing in the 24 Hours of Le Mans. He spoke of his enthusiasm for the race as follows:
“It’s disappointing not to have finished in the top ten in Hyperpole, but the 24 Heures Motos is a long race where anything can happen, so to be honest, grid position isn’t that important. We need to be careful at the start and avoid collisions. From there, we’ll do our best to bring home the best result in the most anticipated race of the season.”
The 24-hour final race will start at 4:00 pm on June 14th (11:00 pm Japan time).
