John Surtees legend still inspires Ferrari

Ferrari’s new British signing for its Hypercar programme has spoken of how he is inspired by his hero John Surtees. James Calado, was announced as part of the Ferrari squad in January – and will compete at the Le Mans 24 Hours in the all new 499P.

“The minute I got this drive, I immediately thought of John,” said Calado. “I grew up reading stories about great Ferrari Le Mans drivers like Brian Redman and John Surtees. I raced against John’s son Henry in junior single-seaters. We were very good friends.

“When I started at Ferrari in 2014 [in GT class], I got a letter from him congratulating me on joining. He said that the world wasn’t just about Formula 1 for Ferrari, and that it had as much passion for Le Mans and sports car racing as it did for grand prix racing. I still have that letter, and I instantly thought of him and the advice he gave me and the phone calls we had about me making the move tojojohn  Ferrari.”

Calado will be hoping to become the first British Ferrari factory driver to win Le Mans at the centenary event in June.