Cetilar to Run New Ferrari 296 GT3 Full-Time Next Year

Cetilar Racing is set to enter the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship on a full-time basis next year with the in-development Ferrari 296 GT3.

Team owner Roberto Lacorte told Sportscar365 shortly after his Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring class win on Saturday that the Italian organization is working to increase its North American program in 2023.

Cetilar is committed to the four IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup races this year with the Ferrari 488 GT3 Evo 2020 but is poised to enter all GTD class rounds next season with the brand-new 296, which was teased last week in a series of preliminary sketches.

Ferrari has already indicated that it does not plan to field the 296 GT3 in races this year as part of its pre-homologation track time, meaning Cetilar could be among the first teams to race the product at Daytona next January.

“The plan is to prepare the 296 for next year, to race in a full season of IMSA,” Lacorte said.

“We will be the first team to use the new car in Daytona, so we are excited to bring the car to the track for the race of the 296. The car is unbelievable, very aggressive.

“I spoke with Jim France: we are very happy to be here, for the competition, the organization and the feeling. For this reason, we want to stay in IMSA for a full-season program.

“We want to stay here and bring the new car here. We want to invest for the future in America.”

Cetilar will continue to receive technical support from AF Corse, which is increasing its U.S activities with the establishment of a new permanent facility in Florida.

“In parallel, AF Corse is increasing its structure in the USA,” said Lacorte.

“For this reason, we want to stay with AF Corse because they are investing a lot into a structure in Miami, to follow the races in the best way. We will be a strong part of this program: the sponsor Cetilar and the program of Cetilar Racing.”

Lacorte is interested in returning to the FIA World Endurance Championship at some point, but only after the series replaces GTE with a GT3-based formula starting in 2024.

The Italian said that he has “a lot of plans for the future” with Cetilar, which has risen from being an independent LMP2 team to aligning with Ferrari and sponsoring the manufacturer’s GTE-Pro cars.

Cetilar is a joint cream product sold by PharmaNutra, a company co-founded by Lacorte who also holds the role of CEO.

Asked about his future targets in motorsport, he said: “In two years, I will race with my son, Nicola, in Daytona.

“I am preparing for this important stage. He is driving in Italian Formula 4. This is one part of my program, to go in IMSA… I don’t know which car, if we scale up, but to come back for sure in the Ferrari house and come back to the WEC in the future.”

Ferrari is aiming to give the 296 GT3 its first rollout within the next month, while the car is due to be officially presented later this year.

It replaces the 488 GT3 model, which will retire as the most successful racing Ferrari to date with 107 titles and more than 400 wins to its name since its debut in 2016.