New one-make Ferrari series to start at Bathurst

Ferrari its bringing its one-make series to region for the first time next year with a five-round schedule on Australian soil.

The Ferrari Challenge Australasia will be underpinned by the new Ferrari 296 Challenge model, while the 488 Challenge Evo will also be eligible.

That means the series will effectively be split in three with the Trofeo Pirelli and Coppa Shell classes for the 296-shod drivers and a seperate class for 488 competitors.

The Australian version will run alongside Ferrari Challenge series in Europe, North America, the UK and Japan.

The inaugural season will kick off on the undercard at the Bathurst 12 Hour in late January/early February, before appearances on the new SRO-run version of the SpeedSeries at Phillip Island (April) and Sydney Motorsport Park (May).

There is then a Ferrari-run event back at SMP in late June before the season finale back with SRO at The Bend Motorsport Park in September.

Before the first round there will be a two-day test at SMP on December 16 and 17.

“We are delighted to announce this championship, a project our team has been working on for a long time ,” said Antonello Coletta, Global Head of Ferrari Endurance and Corse Clienti.

“The introduction of the Australasia series is part of a clear strategy that began with the UK regional series and continued with the Japan series, which has been a great success in terms of participation.”

Ferrari will adopt the same race formats as used in the other regions with most race weekends to feature two practice sessions, two qualifying sessions and two 30-minute races.

One exception to that is the Bathurst 12 Hour, which will only feature one practice session given the track activities have to be concluded by Saturday.

The SRO tie-up is particularly interesting, given there is already a squeeze on which categories will feature on what will become the replacement for the SpeedSeries.

Ferrari Challenge has been promised top billing for its three appearances with SRO including space in the main garage building.

As for the hardware, the 296 is the latest in the line of one-make Challenge cars from Maranello – and the first to feature a V6 turbo engine.

It doesn’t feature the hybrid system from the road-going version, but still makes 700 horsepower in racing trim.

The cars will be ordered through participating Ferrari dealerships and then run with the technical support of Ferrari’s primary GT partner, AF Corse from Italy.

Other overseas support will include driver coach certification from Scuderia De Adamich with Motokinetic to oversee the program from a local perspective.

2025 Ferrari Challenge Australasia calendar