24h Le Mans
After three 24 Hours of Le Mans wins on the bounce since 2023 and a Hypercar world title in 2025, Ferrari is firmly in the driving seat of modern endurance. But a look forward to 2027 is enough to set the pulse racing and the spine tingling! Ford will be returning to the top class, reawakening one of the most famous confrontations in the history of Le Mans. Fans of the American giant and the Italian firm’s ‘tifosi’ are already excited by the prospect of a new duel.
Since Ferrari entered the Hypercar fray in 2023, it has notched up one success after another: three 24 Hours of Le Mans victories with three different 499Ps, nine winning drivers, and the 2025 Hypercar World Endurance Manufacturers’ and Drivers’ titles. While the Prancing Horse continues to gallop ahead, fans are beginning to look forward to 2027 and the return of Ford. The embers of a battle between the two carmakers that raged in the 1960s could well be reignited.
It is impossible to discuss 2027 and Ford’s quest to conquer Ferrari without stirring memories of the decade that forged the legend. In the early sixties, Ferrari dominated the French endurance classic with six consecutive wins between 1960 and 1965. In response, Ford developed the iconic GT40 to put an end to Ferrari’s reign. In 1966, the American manufacturer broke the Prancing Horse’s winning run with the GT40 Mk II, lighting the touchpaper of a historic confrontation. This emblematic chapter in the annals of Le Mans is about to re-emerge with the prospect of Ford returning to the summit of endurance.
At the premiere of the official film retracing the 2025 24 Hours of Le Mans, Antonello Coletti was asked about the future showdown with Ford. The head of Ferrari’s endurance programme, however, refused to budge from his line, but did acknowledge how much the fans were looking forward to it. “We treat all our rivals the same,” he said. “We have to respect them all. In 2027, Ford will join the manufacturers involved in Hypercar. It’s true, nonetheless, that the tifosi are really looking forward to this head-to-head.”
First things first, however, and for Ferrari, that means a challenging 2026 campaign. The Italian giant came out on top in 2025, but the competition promises to be even more fierce next season. Coletta warned: “It won’t be easy in 2026. We need to stay focused as the competition will again be very tough. We shall have to do our utmost to stay at the same level.”
Ferrari will have to show technical stability, maintain its performance levels and manage the pressure that comes with its role as the leading Hypercar outfit before turning its thoughts to locking horns with Ford.
