Cars
LE MANS WINNERS FLAT OUT IN THE F80
Almost three years ago, Nicklas Nielsen drove the Le Mans-winning 499P at its first roll out at the Fiorano test track. Today the Dane returns with fellow official driver Alessandro Pier Guidi to test the next best thing for the road: the new Ferrari F80 supercar. The new supercar borrows directly from the 499P with its 3.0-litre twin-turbo V6 engine, up to 800V hybrid system and MGU-K electric motor developed, tested and manufactured entirely by Ferrari.
To say the Le Mans winners are race-ready is an understatement. Both are fresh from a historic Ferrari 1-2-3 at the opening round of the FIA World Endurance Championship in Qatar – Nielsen taking the win in the number 50 499P he shares with Antonio Fuoco and Miguel Molina, while Pier Guidi and teammates James Calado and Antonio Giovinazzi rounded out the podium in number 51.
Click to see Ferrari Le Mans winners' first impressions of the F80
But today the two drivers share the same car. Pier Guidi takes the first stint in the driving seat as Nielsen climbs over the F80’s carbonfibre sill and buckles up alongside him. The Fiorano test track is slick with rain as the pair head out to explore the 1200 cv, e-4WD supercar – a figure that makes the F80 not only the most powerful Ferrari road car in history but some 520 cv more potent than their rules-restricted 499P.
Pier Guidi quickly builds a rhythm. Straights are demolished in the blink of an eye thanks to awesome traction and vast reserves of performance, while active suspension and active aerodynamics keep the F80 balanced through Fiorano’s most challenging changes of direction. Come the big stops, brakes wipe away speed in an instant.
Yet Pier Guidi still works the F80’s wheel hard to correct slides as he pushes to the limit. ‘Mamma mia!’ gasps Nielsen from the passenger seat.
Pier Guidi and Nielsen usually battle each other on track but shared the F80's "1+" cockpit at Fiorano
Rolling back into the Fiorano pits and swinging open the F80’s butterfly door, Pier Guidi grins broadly. ‘It’s a rocket, not a car,’ enthuses the Italian. ‘The V6 is so amazing, the noise is nice, the torque is huge and there’s zero turbo lag because the electric turbo helps a lot.’
‘Still alive!’ jokes Nielsen, clearly relieved to turn the tables and take Pier Guidi’s place behind the wheel. A heartbeat later and the two are back pounding the famous test track, as Nielsen flicks through the gears and the F80’s 120° V6 rises to an evocative 9000rpm crescendo time and again.
Like Pier Guidi, Nielsen pushes as though on a qualifying lap despite such sub-optimal conditions, and often jabs in corrective steering lock as the F80 dances and reacts beneath him.
Mastering 1200 cv on a wet Fiorano track certainly got Nielsen and Pier Guidi's attention
‘This one was on the limit for sure,’ exclaims a wide-eyed Pier Guidi from the passenger side. Nielsen laughs before adding ‘no, but you know what, it didn’t feel on the limit’. Naturally e-4WD plays a big role in such composure but the new SSC 9.0 (Side Slip Control) system also works its magic behind the scenes.
Energetically swapping notes with Ferrari engineers in the pits a few minutes later, both works drivers comment how the F80’s chassis is reactive and yet trustworthy, the power from its V6 staggering. Nielsen’s feedback is particularly definitive. ‘This is the coolest car I’ve ever driven, for sure,’ he enthuses, nodding at the F80 as it pings and ticks in the pits.
Coming from a Le Mans winner, that’s high praise indeed.