Ferrari 575 GTC

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Ferrari 575 GTC

The Ferrari 575 GTC is a Gran Turismo racing car of the GT1 group based on the Ferrari 575 . Ferrari manufactured 13 vehicles from 2003 to 2005.

Development history

Although Ferrari was not previously represented in sports car racing at the factory , the Ferrari 550 GTS Maranello developed by Prodrive dominated the FIA GT championship and even clinched class victory at the Le Mans 24-hour race in 2003 . This spurred Corse Clienti , Ferrari's customer sports division , to develop a racing version of its latest Gran Turismo, the Ferrari 575. The Italian motorsport team N.Technology was selected as a partner for this project . In order to adapt the vehicle to the requirements of the GT1 group, the chassis and body were heavily revised and a roll bar was installed. In addition, the track width was widened and body parts made of carbon fibers were used. The engine was enlarged to almost six liters and, equipped with the prescribed air flow limiters, now produced over 600 hp.

Racing history

In the penultimate round of the 2003 FIA GT Championship in Estoril, JMB Racing finally started two Ferrari 575 GTCs for the first time. Philipp Peter and Fabio Babini were able to leave the strong competition of BMS Scuderia Italia with the Prodrive-Ferrari behind them at the debut race of the new vehicle and achieved the race victory. The last race of the season in Monza was followed by fourth and fifth places for the two JMB-Ferraris.

Barron Connor Racing also acquired two Ferrari 575 GTCs for the 2004 season . The team entered the Sebring 12-hour race , in which the drivers Danny Sullivan , John Bosch and Thomas Biagi achieved 15th place overall and second class. In the further course of the season, Barron Connor Racing used his vehicle in the Le Mans Endurance Series , in which two podium finishes within the class were achieved, but there was no chance against Larbre Compétition with a Prodrive Ferrari. In the team ranking, positions two and three were achieved. Barron Connor Racing also started their cars at the 24 Hours of Le Mans , but both cars did not see the checkered flag. JMB Racing continued to compete in the FIA ​​GT Championship in 2004. GPC Giesse Squadra Corse joined them as the second team, each with two Ferrari 575 GTC . Their Ferrari 575 GTC were able to achieve regular podium positions, but they were inferior to the Ferrari 550 GTS of Scuderia Italia here too. Thus, the victory of JMB drivers Jaime Melo and Karl Wendlinger at the Donington race was the only racing success of a Ferrari 575 GTC in the 2004 FIA GT Championship. GPC and JMB finished second and third in the team classification at the end of the season. From the second half of the season, JMB Racing also fielded a Ferrari 575 GTC in the Italian GT Championship. Lorenzo Case and Matteo Malucelli were able to win the two races in Misano .

In the FIA ​​GT Championship, JMB Racing switched to two Maserati MC12 GT1s in 2005 . GPC Sport was the only team remaining with the Ferrari 575 GTC in this racing series. However, the team struggled against increasing competition and so this time only a podium place jumped out, which was achieved by Jaime Melo and Jean-Philippe Belloc in Brno . In the team standings, GPC Sport slipped to fifth place. JMB Racing now field a Ferrari 575 GTC in the Le Mans Endurance Series. However, the team had to complain about several failures and ended up only finishing seventh in the team ranking. JMB was also the only team that brought a Ferrari 575 GTC to the start in the 2005 Le Mans 24-hour race , when the vehicle failed early. The Ferrari 575 GTC, however, was much more popular in the Italian GT Championship. This season, four teams - JMB, GPC, Kessel Racing and Rock Media Motors - were involved with such a vehicle. Although some podium finishes were achieved in this racing series, the racing teams that competed with this vehicle remained without a win.

Since the Ferrari 575 GTC lacked reliability, it could not build on the successes of the Ferrari 550 GTS and it was no longer up to the competition, almost all vehicles were withdrawn from motorsport after the 2005 season. It was not until 2007 that Kessel Racing put a Ferrari 575 GTC back to the start in some races of the FIA ​​GT Championship. However, the team had to struggle with technical problems on their vehicle and never saw the checkered flag in any of the four races. For the 2008 season, Kessel Racing switched to a Ferrari F430 GTC in the smaller GT2 class. The Ferrari 575 GTC was only registered for the second run in Monza. Loris Kessel and Andrea Chiesa completed a few training laps there, but did not participate in qualification and therefore did not take part in the race. This was the last appearance of a Ferrari 575 GTC in motorsport.

Web links

Commons : Ferrari 575 GTC  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Ferrari 575 Maranello GTC chassis numbers