In the world of Ferrari, settling for second place means essentially that there’s more work to do. The 2025 FIA World Endurance Championship season closed with a trophy cabinet that is slightly more crowded but perhaps not as heavy as Maranello had hoped.
While the LMGT3 title in the FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC) slipped through their fingers at the very last race in Bahrain, the Prancing Horse still found reason to spray champagne. Antonio Fuoco’s massive triumph at the FIA GT World Cup in Macau proved that the Ferrari 296 GT3 is a formidable weapon, even if the World Championship ended with a bittersweet silver medal.
The AF Corse team, running two Vista-branded machines, showed impressive grit throughout the year. The #21 car, piloted by Simon Mann and François Hériau, benefitted immensely from the presence of Alessio Rovera. According to Antonello Coletta, the head of Ferrari’s GT sporting activities, Rovera has had a “truly sensational year”, evolving into a category leader while simultaneously pulling double duty as a development driver.
Coletta remains optimistic, noting that the competitiveness of the 296 GT3 has sparked significant interest from new clients, proving that people still love a winner, or even a very fast runner-up. “We fought for the title until the last race”, Coletta remarked, emphasizing that second place in a field this tough is no small feat.
However, Ferrari is well aware that the original 296 had its quirks, specifically some nagging drivability issues when stuck in heavy traffic. Enter the 296 GT3 Evo, the updated version set to debut in 2026. With less than a month until the 24h of Daytona, the pressure is on.
This Evo kit isn’t just for show. It was specifically designed to improve reliability and performance while finally smoothing out those traffic-induced headaches that have haunted the car since its 2023 debut. As Coletta puts it, “success is never enough”. Daytona will be the ultimate litmus test to see if Maranello’s latest refinements can turn last year’s silver into 2026’s gold.
