Photo : LAURENT CARTALADE / VSA

 

In 2009, Giancarlo Fisichella joined Ferrari during the season to supplement Felipe Massa, involved in an accident in Hungary, and with them competed in the five last Grand Prix in a career of 229, with three victories and four pole positions. In 2010, the Italian driver became one of the spearheads for the AF Corse team, an official Ferrari representative, preparing for the Ferrari 458 Italia's arrival in the LM GTE class at the 24 Hours of Le Mans the following year.

With the inception of the FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC) in 2012, Fisichella's experience in Formula1 was precious: outside the 24 Hours of Le Mans, he was familiar with all the other ciruits visited, having rolled on them for quite some time already in F1. In three seasons, he won six victories in the LM GTE Pro class, including two in La Sarthe in 2012 and 2014, each time along with his fellow countryman Gianmaria Bruni and Finnish driver Toni Vilander. With a special mention in the 2012 edition: after a huge accident for Fisichella in the Porsche turns, Vilander grabbed his spot at the back of the pack in the final minutes of qualifying…and won after a fantastic climb during the race. Fisichella was never forced to retire during his five participations in Le Mans: and other than his two victories, in the LM GTE Pro he achieved a second, a fourth and a sixth place finish. An exemplary reliability for a great transition from Formula 1 to GT, under the banner of legendary Ferrari and the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

The 83rd edition of the 24 Hours of Le Mans will take place Saturday and Sunday, June 13-14, 2015.

Jean-Philippe Doret / ACO - Translation by Nikki Ehrhardt / ACO

Photo: LE MANS (SARTHE, FRANCE), CIRCUIT DES 24 HEURES, 24 HOURS OF LE MANS, THURSDAY JUNE 12 2014, QUALIFYING. Together Giancarlo Fisichella, Gianmaria Bruni and Toni Vilander (from left to right) won two LM GTE Pro class victories at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 2012 and 2014 at the wheel of the Ferrari 458 Italia.