As FormulaUno.it reports, Maranello is locking down its endurance lineup with multi-year contract extensions for both Nicklas Nielsen and Ye Yifei. It is a massive statement of intent from the Prancing Horse as they secure two pivotal figures for their top-tier prototype campaigns.
Nicklas Nielsen's journey with Ferrari stretches back to 2018 when he took the Ferrari Challenge Trofeo Pirelli Europe crown. Born in 1997, the Danish driver has steadily climbed through the ranks into the FIA WEC Hypercar class. Since the 499P hit the track in 2023, he has been a permanent fixture in the #50 machine alongside Antonio Fuoco and Miguel Molina. Together, that trio conquered the 2024 24 Hours of Le Mans and recently grabbed a victory at the Lone Star Le Mans, breaking a dry spell that had lasted since March 2025. Nielsen also played a vital role in Ferrari's 2025 FIA WEC Manufacturers' title while finishing third in the Drivers' standings that same year.
Beyond the Hypercar program, Nielsen has amassed 110 total races with Ferrari machinery since 2018, bagging five overall wins, 17 class victories, 22 overall podiums, and 42 class podiums while also competing in various international championships with the 296 GT3 Evo. His impressive GT resume features FIA WEC Endurance Trophy LMGTE Am titles in 2019-20 and 2021, an European Le Mans Series LMGTE crown in 2019, and a GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup title in 2021 after winning the 24 Hours of Spa in a 488 GT3 Evo Iron Lynx alongside Alessandro Pier Guidi and Come Ledogar. Antonello Coletta, Global Head of Endurance and Corse Clienti, praised the Dane as a young, reliable, and professional pillar of their endurance project. Nielsen, who recently became a father, expressed his pride in continuing a path that feels like a natural extension of his career, with the upcoming 6 Ore del Fuji on the weekend of September 25-27 offering a chance to hunt down the championship lead currently held by BMW and Toyota with three races remaining.
Meanwhile, Ye Yifei is also staying put after etching his name into the history books of the Prancing Horse. The 26-year-old Chinese driver joined the FIA World Endurance Championship in 2024 at the wheel of AF Corse's #83 entry, securing two overall victories along the way. His first win came at the 2024 Lone Star Le Mans at the Circuit of The Americas, followed by an even bigger triumph at the 2025 24 Hours of Le Mans where he teamed up with Phil Hanson and Robert Kubica to guide the #83 Ferrari to overall glory, becoming the first Chinese driver to win the world's most prestigious endurance race outright. Before joining Ferrari, Ye captured titles in French F4 in 2016, Euroformula Open in 2020, and the European and Asian Le Mans Series in the LMP2 class in 2021.
Reflecting on his extension, Ye noted how quickly a dream of winning Le Mans with the 499P turned into reality following their 2025 success. Coletta echoed that enthusiasm, highlighting the significance of retaining the first Chinese official driver in Ferrari's endurance program and expressing absolute confidence in the milestones still ahead for both men as the team fights for more silverware.
