Despite Ferrari’s incredible Grand Prix record, arguably its most legendary accomplishments have arrived in the arena of sportscar racing. Through to 1974, the marque amassed 15 World Sportscar Championship titles, eight victories in the 24 Hours of Le Mans, seven Mille Miglia wins, and seven more triumphs in the Targa Florio. Not to mention the three consecutive Le Mans successes secured since making its La Sarthe return in 2023.

However, a year after winning the 1972 championship with the celebrated 312 PB, a dismal 1973 campaign prompted Ferrari to withdraw from sportscar racing altogether to bolster its F1 operation. It would be two decades before, in 1993, the manufacturer signalled its long-awaited return with the unveiling of a prototype spider intended to compete in the open-cockpit World Sports Car class in the forthcoming 1994 IMSA GT season.

Development was spurred by racing privateer and loyal Ferrari customer Gianpiero Moretti—the founder of the Momo automotive accessories manufacturer—with support from Ferrari North America CEO Gianluigi Longinotti-Buitoni. The resulting car, the 333 SP, was to become Ferrari’s only modern sports racing prototype for nearly half a century. It was a spiritual descendent of the ultra-successful “P” series from the 1960s and early 1970s. including legends such as the 250 P, 275P, 330 P2, 330 P4, and 312 PB—all World Championship winners.

The 333 SP was engineered collaboratively, with Dallara Automobili spearheading aerodynamic research while Michelotto was entrusted with much of the build process. Following completion of an initial prototype by Michelotto, Dallara assumed build responsibilities for chassis numbers 002 through 014, after which Michelotto completed the balance of 40 total cars.

Engineered with F1-derived racing technologies, the 333 SP was built around a flat-bottomed carbon fibre monocoque chassis. The model utilised conventional double-wishbone suspension with pushrod-operated coil springs. WSC regulations required engines to be production based and of no more than a 4.0-litre capacity, allowing Ferrari to install its acclaimed 4.0-litre V-12 F310E, effectively a long-stroke version of the “Type 036” Formula 1 motor of 1990. A similar version of this powertrain would also be used in the F50, albeit at a slightly larger displacement.

Ferrari’s return to sportscar racing was immediately successful, resulting in five wins from seven IMSA rounds contested in 1994. In 1995, the 333 SP was victorious in the 12 Hours of Sebring and won both IMSA Drivers’ and Constructors’ titles. Although, the car’s finest outing was undoubtedly the 1998 Daytona 24 Hours: the Momo team delivered Ferrari’s first win in the event since 1967. By the time of its final official outing in 2002, the 333 SP had participated in over 350 races, winning more than 50 and taking 12 major championships in the process. Until the 2022 testing of the 499P, the 333 SP was Maranello’s only prototype sportscars of the modern era. It justifiably holds an important position in Ferrari’s long and storied racing history.

A CHAMPIONSHIP WINNER

Boasting significant competition use during a championship-winning season by a famed French privateer team and authenticated with Ferrari Classiche certification, this 333 SP is a particularly desirable example. Completed in 1998, chassis number 023 is the 22nd example built by chassis number (with superstition leading to chassis 013 being skipped) and the 8th car completed in the Michelotto production run.

Originally sold to Noël Del Bello Racing in October 1998, the 333 SP remained unused until it was acquired the following year by Jean-Pierre Jabouille. A long-time driver and development engineer who broke through with Renault in the late 1970s, Jabouille went on to manage Peugeot’s F1 team during the early 1990s before co-founding JB Racing in 1995. The team ran in the FIA GT Championship until the proliferation of factory entries prompted a shift to prototype racing in the International Sports Racing Series in 1998. JB Racing then dropped Marlboro sponsorship and struck a new partnership with Italian manufacturing firm Giesse, for which a distinctive green, white, and red livery was designed.

For its inaugural ISRS season, JB Giesse Racing adopted the 333 SP model. It paid great dividends, leading to a Teams’ championship title in 1998. A year later, the squad continued with the 333 SP, running no fewer than three different examples. Chassis 023 was the second of the three, and it started in all nine races of the 1999 season (the series renamed to the Sports Racing World Cup), driven by 1998 champions Emmanuel Collard and Vincenzo Sospiri.

The 333 SP made an auspicious debut in the first event at Barcelona, as Sospiri and Collard roared to overall victory. After repeating the feat with a win two weeks later at Monza, the pair followed up with 2nd overall at Spa-Francorchamps in May. In late-June a gearbox failure at Enna-Pergusa prompted an early retirement, but the car returned with 3rd at Donington Park in July. Snaring 2nd at Brno and 3rd at the Nürburgring kept JB Giesse in comfortable reach of a championship. After leaving the track at Magny-Cours in September, chassis 023 managed 4th at Kyalami in November, more than sufficient to retain a points advantage. Team JB Giesse had won the 1999 title, and chassis 023 played an integral role.

Following its crowning glory, the Ferrari was retired in 2000 and sold into a private collection in Belgium. Less than a year later the 333 SP passed to a world-class collector in Canada, and he presented the car initially during the Festival Ferrari at Mont Tremblant in July 2001 then again at the 2006 Cavallino Classic. In April 2010 the 333 was issued with Ferrari Classiche “Red Book” certification.

Acquired by The Tailored For Speed Collection in 2021, it went straight to Michelotto via Ferrari to benefit from a full mechanical rebuild (the invoice is on file). Then, the 333 SP was presented at the Goodwood Festival of Speed in June 2022. The next month, it was returned to Michelotto for servicing.

As an important championship-winning example of Ferrari’s sole racing prototype of the late-20th Century, chassis number 023 would make a dazzling addition to any racing collection. It offers its next caretaker the pleasure of screaming hot laps at the Ferrari Finali Mondiali, or entry into the Endurance Racing Legends series, as well as sitting as the pride of field display at major events such as Cavallino Classic or Pebble Beach.