Merhi Targets Title in Second LeMans Ferrari Season

Roberto Merhi says he feels Team LeMans is ready to target GT300 title honors as he effectively confirmed his return to the Ferrari squad for the new SUPER GT season.

The Spanish ex-Formula 1 driver is set to partner Yoshiaki Katayama aboard the Yokohama-shod No. 6 Ferrari 296 GT3 again after the pair finished 10th in the GT300 standings last year in the team’s first year with its new car.

A team representative confirmed to Sportscar365 that it intends to go into the 2025 campaign with an unchanged driver lineup and no change to its car or tire supplier.

Merhi told Sportscar365 that his participation in SUPER GT for a fourth straight season was close to being finalized and expressed his enthusiasm for the year ahead.

“I am very happy with the team, we are improving a lot,” he said. “It’s like a family now.

“I believe they have the tools to win the championship, although we have to be perfect with the tire selection, have a good Balance of Performance, all these things.

“Last year we struggled with the BoP, especially at Fuji we were missing a lot. We just want the BoP to be the same as the other GT3 cars; we don’t want an advantage.

“Also Yokohama changed their tire compounds and sometimes we didn’t have the best tire choice. There is a lot of lap time to be found there also.  

“It was easier to choose the right tire compound with the Audi [that Merhi raced in 2022-23], but it was harder with the Ferrari. It should be easier in year two. We learned a lot from our mistakes and we should be more competitive.”

Merhi and Katayama scored a best finish of third last year in the third round of the season at Suzuka, also claiming a top-five on the return visit to the track at the end of the season, while Merhi also claimed a pole position at Autopolis.

Asked if he felt the team was ready to challenge for the title as soon as 2025, Merhi replied: “I think so, yes.

“‘Yoshi’ [Katayama] did a good job last year, which is important – he took a bit of time to get used to the Ferrari, but his performance at Suzuka in the final round was very good.

“We had an issue with the pit stop, but otherwise the performance was quite good with no success ballast, even if the [JLOC] Lamborghinis were very fast.

“You could see the difference clearly at Suzuka. But they won the title with a GT3 car and Yokohama tires, so we have to try and do the same.”

Chief engineer Mattia Oselladore is also set to continue with Team LeMans for a third season, having been brought in by Merhi for the 2023 season in a bid to improve the former Toyota GT500 outfit’s performance.

However, further additions to the engineering team are likely, with Oselladore unable to attend every race in SUPER GT alongside his Formula 2 duties for MP Motorsport.