Ferrari eyeing Le Mans comeback

Speculation is rife that Ferrari is contemplating a comeback to the French endurance event following a report from German publication Auto Motor und Sport.

According to reports, the Italian manufacturer may further develop its new turbocharged 1.6-litre V6 Formula One engine built for the 2015 season and use it to power a future LMP1 car to race at Le Mans.

Rumours have been helped along by comments from Scuderia Ferrari CEO Stefano Domenicali who last month said that the new F1 unit could also be used for "some interesting projects”.

Ferrari’s last Le Mans victory came in 1965 when Jochen Rindt and Masten Gregory drove a 250 LM to the marque’s sixth consecutive win, a streak broken by the Ford GT40 that took top honours from 1966 to 1969.

If the Prancing Horse does indeed return to the home of Le Mans racing at the Circuit de la Sarthe, it will need to contend with the likes of Audi who has dominated the sport in recent times, winning 12 of the last 14 years.

Ferrari has also released its financial results for the first six months of 2013, revealing the first positive effects of its exclusivity-oriented volume reduction strategy.

According the brand’s own figures, trading profit was up 22 per cent to 176 million euros, while net profits reached 116.2 million euro, up 20 per cent. Revenues rose 7.1 per cent to 1177 million euro with a total of 3767 homologated cars delivered to its dealership network – an increase of 2.8 per cent but at a slower growth rate compared to Q1.

While Ferrari is actively trying to slow global sales to below 7000 units in 2013, sales grew 39 per cent in the Middle East, 28 per cent in Japan, nine per cent in the US and Canada combined, six per cent in the UK, one per cent in Germany. Though 50 fewer cars than last year were shifted in Greater China (includes the People's Republic of China, Hong Kong and Taiwan), Ferrari claims the reduction was mainly due to its decision to decrease deliveries to Hong Kong.

In its home market sales continue to fall with Italy’s 116 cars accounting for three per cent of its total volume.

The Maranello-based firm also now claims to have over 12 million Facebook fans.