Neither GT derived from street nor Formula 1. The other golden chapter of Ferrari on the circuit has these two-seater competition as protagonists. Swipe and remember the one who took the legacy of those great consecrated prototypes of the brand. Look at the end of our image gallery.
At the same time that Ferrari launched street models such as the F355 Berlinetta, F355 GTS and the F512 M -the one that put an end to the Testarossa saga-, another of its vehicles marked Maranello’s return to Sport Prototypes They had not seen each other for more than twenty years. The last of its category had been the 512 M, the 312 P and the 712 Can Am from the early seventies.
How can we also forget that Testa Rossa series from the late fifties that made history in the Constructors’ World Championships, obtaining three world titles (1958, 1960 and 1961) and three victories in four years in the 24 Hours of Le Mans: 1958, 1960 and 1961. In 1994, from Modena the Ferrari F333 SP.
This was the Ferrari F333 SP
The F333 was built by Ferrari in collaboration with Michelotto and Dallara, and the premise for its creation was the IMSA World Sports Car, the iconic American IMSA Championship. The prototype was nourished by the knowledge and development accumulated by Ferrari in Formula 1 at that time, whose main characteristics were the carbon monocoque bodywork and the push-rod suspension.
It was an open-air body model for two occupants and its wheelbase registered a total of 2740mm. It was 4569mm long, 2 meters wide and 1025mm high.
Engine, power and performance
Was a V12 4.0 engine the one that equipment the F333 SP. It was not an F1 3.5 block with increased displacement, but a decreased variant of the beastly 4.7 that the Ferrari F50 would carry. Like the 1995 supercar, it was mounted at the rear, running longitudinally at 65 degrees. Its power was 650 horsepower at 11,000 revolutions per minute and its torque was 441 Nm.
Together with what the engine offered, its sophisticated aluminum and carbon fiber chassis, its aerodynamic components and through its five-speed transmission, the F333 developed a top speed of 368 km/h and an acceleration of 0 to 100 km/h in just 3.3 seconds.
The F333 that never got to run
In 2017, one of the 40 copies created of the F333 SP became known for having appeared at auction. It was not just any unit, that was a pristine F333, which had never touched the circuit since its manufacture in ’94, although with more than one owner and eventual entry into restorations. Did you know this facet of Ferrari competition?
