- Ferrari 712P at Goodwood Festival of Speed in 2016
- Ferrari 712P front-view
- Mario Andretti's 712P on display
- Ferrari 712P at Silverstone Circuit in 2009
- 712P on display
The Ferrari 712P is a purpose-built Group 7 prototype, designed, developed and built by Scuderia Ferrari specifically designed to compete Can-Am sports car races from 1970 to 1974. The 7 refers to the displacement of the engine in liters, the 12 refers to the number of cylinders, and the P stands for Prototype. [1]
The Ferrari 712P was the successor model of the Ferrari 612P Can-Am car, and was based on the Ferrari 512S with chassis number 1010. The chassis had already had a checkered history and was given a new, open body. The 7-liter V12 engine was first used in the 612 Can-Am at the end of 1969; it developed 720 hp (540 kW) @ 8000 rpm. [2] [3] [4]
The car made its debut at the 1970 Can-Am race at Watkins Glen. It was driven by Mario Andretti, who finished fourth in the race. The Can-Am missions were handled by the North American Racing Team of Luigi Chinetti, who signed the French Jean-Pierre Jarier in 1972. Jarier contested the races at Watkins Glen and Road Atlanta in 1972. Brian Redman drove the car in 1973. [5]
Chinetti used the 712 Can-Am sporadically in races for five years until 1974, when the car was sold. In 2005, the racing car was driven at the AvD-Oldtimer-Grand-Prix at the Nürburgring in historic motorsport. [6]
The 712 was rarely used. The Scuderia itself only used the prototype once, in a sports car race in Imola, which Arturo Merzario won. [7]
The Ford GT40 is a high-performance endurance racing car commissioned by the Ford Motor Company. It grew out of the "Ford GT" project, an effort to compete in European long-distance sports car races, against Ferrari, which won the prestigious 24 Hours of Le Mans race from 1960 to 1965. Ford succeeded with the GT40, winning the 1966 through 1969 races.
Christopher Arthur Amon was a New Zealand motor racing driver. He was active in Formula One racing in the 1960s and 1970s and is widely regarded as one of the best F1 drivers never to win a championship Grand Prix. His reputation for bad luck was such that fellow driver Mario Andretti once joked that "if he became an undertaker, people would stop dying". Former Ferrari Technical Director Mauro Forghieri stated that Amon was "by far the best test driver I have ever worked with. He had all the qualities to be a World Champion but bad luck just wouldn't let him be".
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