Ferrari to deploy at least three jokers for 2027 499P WEC upgrade
Ferrari will use at least three jokers to upgrade its 499P Hypercar for the 2027 FIA World Endurance Championship, with the programme set to target multiple areas of the car rather than rely on isolated changes.
The confirmation came from Ferdinando Cannizzo during a media briefing at Le Mans, where Ferrari AF Corseâs 499P was in focus during the build-up to the 24 Hours of Le Mans. For more on the event structure around this yearâs race, see our guide to how 2026 Le Mans 24 Hours qualifying works.
Ferrari chooses an integrated upgrade approach
Cannizzo explained that Ferrari has grouped its available jokers into a broader package because changes to one area of the 499P inevitably affect others. Rather than treating the car as a set of separate systems, Ferrari is approaching the 2027 update as a connected technical project.
"Weâve put together a series of jokers. Every system is integrated with the other. Iâll give you an example, if we change the rear suspension of our car, it impacts the gear change, it impacts the connection with the engine, it impacts a lot of other things, on the aerodynamics, so it seemed correct to attack the various areas of the car in an integrated way," Cannizzo said.
That philosophy is significant. In a Hypercar built around tightly linked mechanical, powertrain and aerodynamic systems, a suspension change is not simply a suspension change. Ferrariâs decision to combine jokers suggests it wants the 2027 499P update to behave as a coherent evolution rather than a patchwork of single-area revisions.
Three or four jokers under consideration
Cannizzo indicated Ferrari would use "3 or 4" jokers, also describing the range as "between 2 and 4", with the work based on the same homologated 499P platform the team has raced since 2023.
The carâs record gives Ferrari a strong foundation. Since its 2023 debut, the 499P has taken three Le Mans wins, maintaining a 100% victory record in the French endurance classic, and added the manufacturersâ and driversâ championships last year.
Ferrari has so far used only one joker on the 499P, applying it to brake cooling in 2024. That leaves four available before the end of 2027, with a further two set to become available for 2028 and 2029.
No 2026 upgrade before major 2027 step
Unlike several rivals, Ferrari did not introduce upgrades for 2026, choosing instead to optimise what it already had before committing to the larger 2027 package.
Cannizzo summed up the strategy clearly: "Instead of playing jokers one at a time, instead we have brought them together."
Simone Scanu
Heâs a software engineer with a deep passion for Formula 1 and motorsport. He co-founded Formula Live Pulse to make live telemetry and race insights accessible, visual, and easy to follow.