Ferrari secured a historic victory at the Qatar 1812km, marking their first-ever podium sweep in the FIA World Endurance Championship. The No. 50 car led the race, with drivers Fuoco, Nielsen, and Molina celebrating their second win together. Despite struggles from rivals like Porsche and Alpine, the race showcased competitive performances from GTE teams. The next round will be the 6 Hours of Imola in April.
The No. 50 Ferrari 499P secured a historic victory at the Qatar 1812km, marking Ferrari’s fourth win in the FIA World Endurance Championship and their first outside the 24 Hours of Le Mans. This triumph represented the second victory for drivers Antonio Fuoco, Nicklas Nielsen, and Miguel Molina since their 2022 victory at La Sarthe.
Ferrari achieved a podium sweep with the No. 83 AF Corse finishing second and the No. 51 works entry taking third, marking a historic first for Ferrari in an endurance race, the first since their 1972 success at the 1000km of Osterreichring. Dominating the race, Ferrari led 309 of the 318 laps, with Cadillac and Toyota contributing only seven and two laps respectively.
James Calado from the No. 51 Ferrari expressed surprise at recovering to third place amid penalties that had previously relegated them to lower positions. “It was tricky… there was not good communication,” he said, indicating confidence in their pace for future races. After securing pole position, Ferrari racked up a total of 66 points, leading the manufacturers’ standings by 31 points over BMW.
Kevin Magnussen described his fourth place on his WEC debut with BMW as satisfactory, noting the evident pace difference with the Ferraris. Porsche’s director, Urs Kuratle, admitted Ferrari was “in a different league,” after observing his team’s disappointing 10th and 11th finishes — their worst in the Hypercar era.
Alpine faced challenges, failing to score points, with Mick Schumacher noting performance drops in colder temperatures. Meanwhile, Aston Martin showed promise with their Valkyries on debut, posting competitive lap times despite expected learning curves.
TF Sport secured Corvette’s victory in the LMGT3 category, their fifth different manufacturer win. Juncadella and Edgar notched their first wins, while Keating celebrated an eighth triumph. Despite strong performances, McLaren and Lexus fell short of winning; however, they achieved their best results in WEC history with second and fourth places, respectively.
Augusto Farfus called Team WRT’s unexpected third-place finish a product of solid strategy amid the race. Aston Martin’s Racing Spirit of Leman left with two points in their first WEC outing. Iron Lynx had a disappointing race with their Mercedes, suffering multiple mechanical failures.
Sean Gelael received the Goodyear Wingfoot Award based on fan voting. The race faced interruptions with four safety cars, resulting in 17 laps short of the target distance. The next FIA World Endurance Championship event is set for 6 Hours of Imola from April 18-20.
Ferrari achieved a significant milestone with their podium sweep at the Qatar 1812km, demonstrating their dominance in the Hypercar class by leading the majority of the race. Meanwhile, other manufacturers faced varying levels of challenges, impacting their performances. The stage is now set for the upcoming event in Imola, where teams aim to further improve and challenge Ferrari’s early lead in the championship standings.
Original Source: sportscar365.com
