Ferrari’s 296 GT3 reached a historic milestone today in Malaysia when Kessel Racing’s Car Guy example claimed the model’s 100th global victory in the Asian Le Mans Series season opener at Sepang.
This achievement for Ferrari’s flagship customer car comes less than two years into its life cycle and on a day in which the 296 GT3 claimed a 1-2 finish in the hotly-contested Asian Le Mans GT class.
The Car Guy Ferrari – which will compete again tomorrow in the second round of the Asian Le Mans Series season at the same circuit – was driven by Yudai Uchida, Esteban Masson, and official Ferrari driver Daniel Serra en route to victory. An additional 296 GT3 operated by AF Corse took second.
Since its debut in January 2023, the 296 GT3 has claimed a number of significant victories, including an overall win at the 2023 Nürburgring 24 Hours with Frikadelli Racing.
It also claimed a GTD Pro win at the 24 Hours of Daytona a year on from its debut this January with Risi Competizione and official drivers Alessandro Pier Guidi, Davide Rigon, James Calado, and Daniel Serra.
In addition, this year the 296 has amassed two victories in the FIA World Endurance Championship’s LMGT3 class with Vista AF Corse, plus eight drivers’ titles and five team championships across various series in which it competes. That brings the tally to 12 and 8 respectively when including its debut year.
Among its 100 victories, which includes those in LMGT3 configuration, 24 were overall wins and 76 were class victories.
“The result achieved at Sepang fills us with pride and confirms the excellence of this project,” said Antonello Coletta, global head of Ferrari Endurance and Corse Clienti.
“We have reached the milestone of 100 race victories with the 296 GT3, including the car in LMGT3 specification, in less than two years since its competitive debut. In this period, we have achieved extraordinary results such as this year’s victory at the 24 Hours of Daytona and, for the first time in Ferrari’s history, success at the 24 Hours of Nürburgring in 2023.
“I congratulate the drivers, including our official driver Daniel Serra, and the Car Guy team for contributing to this 100th success in the highly competitive context of the ALMS, making an already brilliant conclusion to the 2024 season even more memorable.
“This is further underscored by the recent titles won in Jeddah in the GT World Challenge Europe and the two victories in the FIA WEC at Fuji and Bahrain during the season that saw this car debut on the world stage.”
Images courtesy of Ferrari
