According to Motorsport.com Deutschland, the legendary Ferrari 499P has completed its final race under that exact banner in the World Endurance Championship. While an evo model based on the current Le Mans Hypercar has already seen testing, it is expected to adopt a completely new name moving forward.
An official press release from the manufacturer framed the weekend in Monza as a definitive farewell. Looking back at its four-year run since debuting at Sebring in 2023—which kicked off immediately with a pole position by Antonio Fuoco and a podium for the number 50 crew—the machine secured an astonishing eight WEC victories, including three triumphs at Le Mans, alongside eleven pole positions and 27 total podium finishes. "The journey of the 499P has been incredible," said Antonello Coletta, head of endurance at Ferrari. "This car is undoubtedly one of the most successful Ferraris of all times, so we can only be happy with the achievements we have achieved together."
We had very little data regarding the conditions here, especially with regard to the race and these temperatures,
Earlier in July, a heavily revised 499P featuring striking visual updates was spotted at Monza. Ferdinando Cannizzo, Ferrari's head of endurance race cars, revealed that the impending update utilizes fewer than four and more than two evo jokers, following a previous brake-ventilation tweak introduced in 2024.
Unfortunately, the season finale itself proved to be a chaotic affair for the Prancing Horse. Antonio Fuoco had rocketed the #50 Ferrari—shared alongside Miguel Molina and Nicklas Nielsen—to pole position in qualifying, but the race unravelled due to a pair of twenty-second penalties for running below minimum tire pressures. The infringement forced an extra pit stop, tumbling the #50 car down to ninth position. Ferrari's race operations manager Giuliano Salvi pointed to temperatures running cooler than anticipated as the culprit behind the miscalculation. The customer #83 AF Corse entry, driven by Yifei Ye, Robert Kubica, and Philip Hanson, also ran into tire pressure troubles and finished sixth after dropping time when a wheel detached during a safety car phase.
Nicklas Nielsen cut a frustrated figure at the finish. "That was of course a shame, as we were penalized because of the tire pressure," he said. "It was basically a double penalty: we had to change the tires and then also serve a time penalty."
Brighter fortunes arrived via the #51 car, as Antonio Giovinazzi, Alessandro Pier Guidi, and James Calado salvaged a third-place finish. "We had very little data regarding the conditions here, especially with regard to the race and these temperatures," Antonio Giovinazzi explained after rain disrupted all three practice sessions. Salvi reflected on a 2026 campaign where Ferrari ultimately failed to defend their crown, citing struggles at Fuji mixed with competitive pace at Imola and Brazil before shifting absolute focus to the major 2027 upgrade.
Yet the 499P machinery is not vanishing entirely just yet. This very weekend marks the start of the Asian Le Mans Series—relocated exclusively to Southern Europe due to geopolitical tensions in the Middle East—where two Ferrari 499P cars entered by Cetilar and AF Corse will compete in the newly formed Hypercar class under mandatory bronze-driver regulations.
