Ferrari 296 GT3
Eight 296 GT3s lined up for the IMSA season opener
In the 2025 Daytona 24 Hours, one Ferrari 296 GT3 will compete in the GTD Pro class and seven in the GTD class. The No. 81 296 GT3, which competed in the GTD Pro class, suffered various accidents.
One year after its historic victory in the GTD Pro class in the 2024 season, Ferrari, aiming to win back-to-back titles, entered eight Ferrari 296 GT3s in the 24 Hours of Daytona held at Daytona International Speedway in Florida. However, the Balance of Performance (BoP) imposed on the 296 GT3s meant they faced an uphill battle.
In the final race held from January 25th to 26th, DragonSpeed’s 296 GT3 No. 81 (Miguel Molina, Alberto Costa, Thomas Neubauer, Davide Rigon), which was entered in the GTD Pro Class, a class contested by professional racing drivers, was unable to demonstrate the speed required to aim for the top positions right from the start.
With 10 hours to go, Neubauer went off the track on cold tyres after a pit stop, forcing the car to return to the pits for a door change, and then just after dawn, Molina was hit by another car and given a drive-through penalty, losing a precious 20 seconds.
However, after the 15th full course yellow, they moved up one position in the sprint race with 40 minutes remaining, finishing in 6th place in their class, 28 seconds behind the winning No. 65 Ford Mustang GT3 (Christopher Mies, Dennis Olsen, Frederick Vervisch).
The 296 GT3 in the GTD class suffered many problems
In the GTD class, many Ferrari 296 GT3 crews also suffered technical issues, but AF Corse’s #50 296 GT3 managed to finish in 7th place.
In the GTD class, which combines professional and gentleman drivers, expectations were high for victory for the AF Corse 296 GT3 No. 50 (Riccardo Agostini, Konrad Laursen, Arthur Leclerc, Custodio Toledo). Arthur Leclerc, whose brother is F1 driver Charles Leclerc, competed in his first 24-hour race, but with the dedicated support of his teammates he finished in 7th place.
Triarsi Competizione’s #021 car (James Calado, Stevan McAlair, Sheena Monk, Mike Skeen) suffered damage to its right front suspension in an accident caused by a rival vehicle. The team was forced to spend a long time repairing the car and finished 11th in class. Conquest Racing’s #34 car (Giacomo Alto, Manny Franco, Cedric Zubirazzoli, Daniel Serra) lost time due to several issues throughout the night and morning, as well as a drive-through during the race, finishing in 12th place. Triarsi Competizione’s #023 car, Inception Racing’s #70 car, and AF Corse’s #50 car all retired due to technical issues.
