Giovinazzi Included in Ferrari Hypercar Driver Lineup

Formula 1 reserve Antonio Giovinazzi is among the six confirmed drivers in Ferrari’s factory Hypercar lineup for the 2023 FIA World Endurance Championship season.

Giovanizzi will team up with reigning GTE-Pro world champions James Calado and Alessandro Pier Guidi in the No. 51 AF Corse Ferrari 499P for the seven-round campaign, which kicks off at the 1000 Miles of Sebring in March.

The No. 50 car will be driven by Antonio Fuoco, Nicklas Nielsen and Miguel Molina.

The entries signify Ferrari’s return to the top class of sports car racing for the first time in half a century with its factory-developed, hybrid-powered LMH prototype.

While Giovinazzi is the only member of the six-driver crew who has not recently represented Ferrari in GT racing, he is linked to the manufacturer through his F1 reserve role.

The 29-year-old Italian, who has already tested the 499P multiple times, raced for Alfa Romeo in F1 for three seasons until 2021 before joining fellow Ferrari engine customer Haas as one of its reserves last year. He also raced in Formula E for Dragon/Penske Autosport.

Giovinazzi’s prior sports car experience includes a single 24 Hours of Le Mans outing in the GTE-Pro class with AF Corse in 2018 and a handful of LMP2 appearances with different teams.

“The debut of the 499P will be a moment destined to enter the history of the Prancing Horse and it will be a great honor for me to be part of this extraordinary moment,” Giovinazzi said.

“We know we have a great responsibility that we will face with great humility, but aware of our strength and ready for this great challenge.”

The other members of the factory AF Corse Ferrari Hypercar lineup have all recently been heavily involved in the manufacturer’s factory-supported GT racing efforts.

Since the early stages of the program, Ferrari’s sports car racing director Antonello Coletta maintained that its WEC lineup would consist entirely of existing driver talent.

“With the choice of crews we complete the last piece of the program that separates us from our debut at Sebring,” Coletta said following confirmation of the crews.

“Since the first shakedown of the 499P last July, we have worked tirelessly involving the drivers of the Ferrari family.

“The decision regarding the names is not only functional to the races we will compete in, but also to the growth that will continue during the championship. We have very clear what we can ask of them in terms of development and consistency, not just speed.”

All six Ferrari Hypercar drivers are set for their first appearances in the WEC’s top class.

Two-time Le Mans GTE-Pro winners Calado and Pier Guidi will continue their successful driving partnership after winning their third WEC class title together last year.

Fuoco, meanwhile, finished second in Fanatec GT World Challenge Europe powered by AWS Endurance Cup and had also a strong maiden campaign in GTE-Pro.

The 26-year-old Italian teamed up with former DTM driver Molina in the WEC and won the season-ending 8 Hours of Bahrain.

The only driver to have previously completed a full season in prototype racing is Nielsen, who at 25 years is the youngest member of the Hypercar squad.

The Danish ace drove an AF Corse Oreca 07 Gibson in the LMP2 class of the WEC and European Le Mans Series last year, following on from a WEC GTE-Am title in 2021.

“I contested my first race with Ferrari in 2017 and am now part of the Hypercar program,” said Nielsen, who started his Ferrari career in the single-make Challenge series.

“It’s incredible to be one of the first six drivers to drive the 499P in its debut season in the World Endurance Championship.”

Notable Ferrari GT factory drivers who are not involved in the Hypercar lineup include Davide Rigon, Daniel Serra and Alessio Rovera.

Rigon was one of the first drivers to test the 499P, while Serra ruled out his chances of a Hypercar seat in November when he revealed that he has been focusing on the new Ferrari 296 GT3.

According to Ferrari, the 499P test cars completed 16,000 km (just under 10,000 miles) last year following the car’s initial rollout at Fiorano in July. The final test of 2022 occurred at Vallelunga in December.