After more than half a century, Ferrari returned to the top of the world by winning the Constructors’ title and the Drivers’ title of the 2025 FIA WEC championship (FIA World Endurance Championship). The feat was sealed in the last race of the season, the 8 Hours of Bahrain, where the 499P number 51 of the Ferrari – AF Corse team, driven by Alessandro Pier Guidi, James Calado and Antonio Giovinazzi, placed fourth at the finish line, ensuring them the Drivers’ title and confirming the Constructors’ title for Maranello. Ferrari’s last world endurance triumph in the premier endurance category (Hypercar) dates back to 1972, with the 312 P.
Less known than Leclerc and Hamilton’s Formula 1, the WEC represents a totally different philosophy. Here the challenge is not (just) pure speed, but the resistencethe strategy and the teamwork. The cars, divided into two categories Hypercars And LMGT3face 6, 8 or even 24 hour races (like Le Mans), driven by a team of two or three alternating drivers. The cars are designed to withstand extreme stress for thousands of kilometers, requiring engineering solutions ad hoc to ensure maximum reliability.
What is the FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC)
The FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC)established in 2012, is the flagship world championship for endurance racing, with very long races ranging from 6 to 24 hours. In the 2025 edition, 13 manufacturers (such as Ferrari, Porsche, Toyota and BMW) participated. For manufacturers, the WEC is a growth laboratory to accelerate technological development and safety, and then transfer innovations from racing cars to road cars.
Two car categories participate in the endurance championship, the hypercars and the LMGT3. There Hypercar category it is the premier class of the FIA World Endurance Championship, where cutting-edge prototypes driven by professional drivers compete. Participants compete for three main titles: the World Drivers’ Championship, the World Constructors’ Championship and the World Cup for private teams. Ferrari dominated the championship with the 499P, a hybrid Hypercar covered in a carbon fiber monocoque chassis that combines a V6 engine with an electrical system placed on the front axle.
The category LMGT3however, debuted in the WEC in 2024 and is based on the global technical platform GT3 of the FIA, but with a specific focus on private teams and crews made up of a mix of young talents and gentlemen driversamateurs or less experienced pilots who compete for passion. The cars are racing versions of recognizable road models (such as Ferrari, Porsche, Aston Martin, etc.). Participants compete for the FIA Endurance Trophies for Teams and Drivers, as well as for the “Goodyear Wingfoot Award”, which rewards the driver with the fastest average lap. For the second consecutive year this recognition went to Alessio Rovera, an official Ferrari driver who ended the season in second place in the standings.
The 2025 WEC championship: the stages and how the races work
The championship is global, with 8 stages in different continents from February to November, with the main event of the season represented by the legendary 24 Hours of Le Mansone of the most difficult and iconic tests in all of motorsport.
Each WEC race weekend begins with the free practiceessential for testing the car and finding the right set-up based on track conditions. Then follows the crucial phase of qualifications where both the Hypercar and LMGT3 classes have a 12 minute first qualifying. The best 10 of this session access the Hyperpolea 10-minute “super-qualifier” that determines the final ranking and assigns the pole positionfirst place on the starting grid goes to the driver who achieved the fastest time.
During the race, the various teams must manage driving shifts, in which the three drivers of a car alternate at the wheel. There are also pit stops for biofuel refueling (Excellium Racing 100) and tire changes. In this context, the strategy implemented by the team becomes of crucial importance and must include the most suitable moments to make stops and changes, always taking into account the unknown weather which in such long races can vary easily.
Who are the WEC drivers: classification and points
To ensure balance and competitiveness, the FIA classifies each driver based on their experience (age) and results obtained, dividing them into four categories: Platinum, Gold, Silver and Bronze. Platinum and Gold represent the world’s elite, they are professional drivers of the highest level, often with careers in Formula 1 or victories at Le Mans. Silver drivers have considerable experience but are still considered to be in the growth phase, or are young emerging talents. Finally, the pilots Bronze they are generally i gentlemen drivers. The three Ferrari athletes who won the 2025 WEC Drivers’ title – Giovinazzi, Calado, Pier Guidi – are all Platinum category.
In endurance not all races have the same weight for the ranking. The scoring system is scaled based on the duration and prestige of the event. For “standard” races from 6 hoursvictory awards 25 pointsfollowing a similar scale to that of F1. This score is increased for longer races: events from 8 or 10 hours (like the 1812 km of Qatar or the race in Bahrain) are more demanding and guarantee 38 points to the winner.
The race that can define an entire season, however, is the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Given its legendary difficulty, it is worth almost double that of a normal race: 50 points for first place. Ferrari triumphed in this race this year with the 499P number 83 driven by Philip Hanson, Robert Kubica and Yifei Ye. Furthermore, in each race it is awarded 1 bonus point to the team (and all the pilots on the crew) who get the pole position in its own category.
