Ferrari is a brand that embodies excellence in craftsmanship, performance, endurance, luxury and tradition. It represents passion and ingenuity and sets the precedent for quality that other brands strive to match. Not only are its street cars the cars to own, turning the heads of other drivers religiously, but the Formula One cars take artistry and performance precision to a whole new level. Enzo Ferrari’s passion for racing fueled him to create Ferrari, which became not only a staple luxury car brand, but also the world’s greatest and oldest Formula One racing team winning 16 Formula One World Constructors’ Championships, more than any other team.
“Enzo started Ferrari by building racing cars, and street cars came along to help support the cost of racing,” Gary Simon, Ferrari’s brand manager, says. “Racing has been the company’s focus since the very beginning.”
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Strict Formula One car regulations require all cars to have similar body styles and parts. Four manufacturers supply engines for racing teams, and Ferrari is one of them.
The V6 hybrid turbo power units with 1.6-litre engines produce up to 1,000 horsepower, a maximum speed of 233 miles per hour and can put up to five or six G forces on the racers handling these exquisite machines.
A Formula One car’s unmatched performance and sleek design, based on maximizing aerodynamic efficiency, make it a living work of art. Intricate parts and details of the car are modified and perfected after every race in hopes of securing a podium position and potential championship title.
“A Formula One car is basically an upside-down airplane wing,” Simon explains. “In airplanes, wings create lift, and when you turn that concept upside down, it creates downforce that grounds the car onto the track, allowing it to go around faster than any other race car.”
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According to Simon, turning a Formula One car into a winning vehicle takes a village. “An average Formula One team now has two cars and two drivers, but it takes about 600 people to engineer and support a Formula One car,” he says. “It’s no small process. To put things in perspective, almost one-third of people who work for the Ferrari company are involved in racing. It’s a huge part of Ferrari’s identity.”
So, what is it about the ICONIC red Ferrari Formula One team that produces so many champions? Some might attribute it to Ferrari’s long history of racing, as that was the brand’s original focus when it was created in 1947, and it was the first team to join Formula One. Others might say it’s because of Ferrari’s meticulous craftsmanship and advanced technology to produce the best aerodynamic results, but for Simon, it’s the team’s and racers’ passion. The same love that fueled Enzo to create the empire Ferrari is today.
“Ferrari is the most famous racing team. It is the dream of every driver to end up in a Formula One car racing for Ferrari,” Simon says. “Lewis Hamilton, a seven-time Formula One world championship winner for Mercedes, has decided he wants to spend his last years racing with Ferrari. Why would a guy who has been with Mercedes for 11 years and has won several championships make a change like that? It’s because he wants to race for the most renowned team in Formula One. He wants to end his career wearing a red suit and driving a red car.”
Enzo Ferrari’s legacy continues to live on, and his passion for exhilaration and perfection is reflected in every street car, every Formula One car, every team member, every racer and every Ferrari fan.
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