Ferrari is set to run a one-off livery from their 1950 cars as part of their celebrations for the team’s 1000th Formula 1 race this weekend at Mugello.
As the only constructor to compete in every world championship over the past 70 years, the Scuderia will reach the quadruple-digit mark for the number of entries in just the 1027th F1 Grand Prix.
In that time Ferrari has won a remarkable 237 races with 16 Constructors’ and 15 Drivers’ Championships to their name, the most of any team.
To commemorate the milestone, the company will host a one-off event at the Mugello Circuit, known as the Tuscan Grand Prix Ferrari 1000.
And though the performance on the track means expectations are low, team boss Mattia Binotto acknowledges the significance of the race.
“It’s something which we worked hard together with F1 to make it happen,” he said when it was confirmed back in July.
“It’s special because it’s a double race in Italy and because it could be our 1000th Grand Prix.
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“You can see in the name of the Grand Prix itself officially, the ‘Grand Prix of Toscana Ferrari 1000’. Which is something very important as first because we are the only team celebrating the 1000th – after us, we’ll need to wait a long time before another team may do that.
“So simply to celebrate it in Italy and in Mugello which is our own circuit, Ferrari circuit, I think that’s something special.
“I have to thank certainly Chase [Carey, F1 CEO and chairman] for the opportunity. I have to thank certainly the circuit and the region Tuscany to make it happen because at the end it’s something of which we are very happy.”
MotoGP fans will of course know the venue well as it hosts the Italian GP each year, but for F1 it will be the first time a race has taken place, with a two-day test back in 2012 the only previous event there.
“Mugello is a great circuit,” Binotto continued. “It’s very demanding, very exciting.
“I’ve been there myself [for the first time in] 1996, obviously as an engineer, but it was a great period, we were staying there many days so I know it very well, and I think that for me I’ve been there so many times, finally doing a single race there it’s something exciting.
“It’s a very quick track, high-speed corners, it will be demanding for tyres on the cars, on the drivers.
“There is a long straight, but there is just fast corners before the main straight.
“But it would be very demanding because of the fast corners. I think there is not a single slow corner. They are all fast corners, so it’s quite interesting to see all the Formula 1 cars of today of going through there.
“We are used to seeing MotoGP there but I think that Formula 1 is at least 20 seconds faster than a MotoGP in such a circuit. I think it will be amazing.”
The unofficial lap record is 1m18.704s from Ruben Barrichello in a 2004 Ferrari, and Binotto revealed the 2018 car, which ran there back in June, was almost matching that on full tanks during the two-day test.