The thirtieth season of the Ferrari Challenge Trofeo Pirelli will officially kick off this weekend when more than sixty 488 Challenge Evo cars of the North America series will compete in the opening race of 2022 at the Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas.
This is a historic milestone for the Prancing Horse one-make series championship, whose story began in the autumn of 1992 at Mugello when the Ferrari Challenge was officially presented alongside the car that would become the star of the series, the 348 Challenge, in the TB and TS versions. Scuderia Ferrari F1 driver Jean Alesi was a special guest for the occasion. The 348 Challenge models stand out through the return to the tradition of transforming a road-going Ferrari into a racing car with a simple kit.
The Italian series was first to kick off, with Monza hosting its maiden round on 28 March. Paolo Rossi was the overall winner of the Ferrari Challenge Trofeo Pirelli, while Roberto Ragazzi triumphed in Race-2. At the end of that season, he became the first Ferrari Challenge champion. After the European series in 1993 and the North American one in 1994, the Japanese series began in 1995 before expanding in 2012 to become the Asia Pacific. Finally, in 2019, the UK national series for British drivers was launched.
Since then, the world’s most spectacular and famous circuits have hosted more than 1,000 drivers in almost 900 races. The drivers took turns at the wheel of the other models that have made the one-make series’ fortune. These models include the F355 Challenge (1995), the 360 Challenge (2000), the F430 Challenge (2006), the 458 Challenge (2010), followed by its Evo version (2014), down to the 488 Challenge (2016) and the current 488 Challenge Evo, presented at the 2019 Finali Mondiali at Mugello.
Today, the Ferrari Challenge Trofeo Pirelli consists of three continental series (Europe, North America, Asia Pacific) and one national series (United Kingdom). Participating drivers compete in four categories – Trofeo Pirelli and Trofeo Pirelli Am, Coppa Shell and Coppa Shell Am – into which they are divided according to their driving performance and skills to ensure maximum entertainment and fun on the track. All this without forgetting the environmental and sustainability aspects that have made the Ferrari Challenge Europe the first European one-make event certified under the ISO 20121 sustainable event management system.
The championship, endorsed by the Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA), continues its relationship with its partner Pirelli. Over the last 30 years, Pirelli has exclusively equipped the participating cars and developed special racing tyres for each model.
International broadcasters, including the Sky network, a series partner, usually televise the Ferrari Challenge races in the most important countries. The first leg of the Ferrari Challenge North America will take place this weekend at COTA. It will be followed by the Ferrari Challenge Europe round in Portimão from 1 to 3 April, the Ferrari Challenge UK at Oulton Park over the weekend of 6 and 7 May, and the Ferrari Challenge Asia Pacific will take to the track from 20 to 22 May at Fuji.
A special logo has been designed to celebrate this anniversary, appearing on the cars and communication materials.