2020 Passione Ferrari Club Challenge Australasia announced

Ferrari Australasia has announced a driver’s programme inspired by its Challenge racing series, called the ‘Passione Ferrari Club Challenge’.

Ferrari calls it “a special driving programme inspired by the Ferrari Challenge Series and is dedicated to Ferrari Challenge car owners who want to enjoy the thrill of circuit driving or wish to develop their skills and experience to eventually become involved in racing.”

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Essentially what this means is that Ferrari 458 Challenger and 488 Challenge owners are able to take their cars to five tracks around Australia and NZ with Ferrari support and training from professional instructors.

“Ferrari instructors will train each club member at their own pace, including 6 hours of track time per event, gradually improving their skills to a point where one may wish to participate in the Ferrari Challenge Asia Pacific, Europe or US.”

So, the program isn’t just a ‘drive experience’, and the pricing reflects that. Membership into ‘Club Challenge’ is $7500 plus GST for a Challenge owner, while the package for all five rounds of the programme costs $60,000 plus GST.

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With that comes not only entry into the programme but also free laps for the full day, up to six hours, plus the tutoring, driving analysis with an instructor and an engineer, access to the hospitality lounge with an open bar and catering (though we assume drinks are off the menu for drivers), and a personalised set of equipment: suit, boots, gloves, helmet, fireproof underwear, and HANS device.

The five locations on the schedule are Sydney Motorsport Park in April 2020, The Bend Motorsport Park in June, Perth’s Barbagallo Raceway in September, Phillip Island in October, and Hampton Downs Motorsport Park in New Zealand in early December.

Hopeful entrants, limited to 20 people, must have their car pass a safety inspection from an official Ferrari dealer prior to entry.