Ferrari Outduels Toyota to Win the 24 Hours of Le Mans 2023
Italian team takes the overall title in its return to the top class after a 50-year absence.
Ferrari race cars have been a mainstay at the 24 Hours of Le Mans for decades, but it's been 50 years since a machine produced by the Scuderia has been entered to do battle at the highest level of Le Mans competition. That absence ended at the 2023 Le Mans in emphatic fashion, with Ferrari scoring its first overall victory since the 1960s at the legendary endurance racing event.
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It was also fitting that Ferrari, who has been a dominant force in motorsports since the brand's inception and was a mainstay in the winners circle at Le Mans during the 1950s and '60s, returned to form during the centenary celebration of the event, which was first held in 1923. (This year was the actual 91st running of the race.) The win marked Ferrari's 10th overall title at Le Mans.
After all the pageantry of the centenary, which featured NBA superstar LeBron James as the official starter, gave way to the race, Ferrari's No. 51 499P Hypercar class entrant, driven by Alessandro Pier Guidi, James Calado, and Antonio Giovinazzi, outdueled the No. 8 Toyota GR010 with Sébastien Buemi, Brendon Hartley, and Ryo Hirakawa at the wheel in a race filled with drama. A crash took out the other Toyota GR010 for good, which had been in contention for the win, and the No. 50 Ferrari that had scored the Hyperpole was hobbled after a rock put a hole in one of its radiators. It was the first time a Toyota hadn't won the top class at Le Mans since 2018 and the first time a Toyota had retired since 2017. Cadillac Racing's No. 2 V-Series R car scored the third step on the podium, piloted by Earl Bamber, Alex Lynn, Richard Westbrook.
As for the other classes, in LMP2 the Oreca 07-Gibson No. 34 Inter Europol Competition car driven by Jakub Smiechowski, Albert Costa, Fabio Scherer took top honors. And in LMGTE Am, the Corvette Racing No. 33 Corvette C8.R with Nicky Catsburg, American Ben Keating, and Nicolas Varrone battled back from mechanical issues to take the class title.
Another car of note was the Garage 56, or "Innovative Car" class entrant from American team Hendrick Motorsports. Its Chevrolet Camaro ZL1, driven by NASCAR legend Jimmie Johnson, Mike Rockenfeller, and former Formula One star Jenson Button, were able to finish the race in 39th place despite significant gearbox issues.
