Ferrari made history as they managed to win the centenary edition of the 24 Hours of Le Mans for the first time since 1965. Following their victory, an old tweet made by Ferrari driver Antonio Giovinazzi after he lost his Formula 1 seat in 2021 has gone viral among fans.
The 24 Hours of Le Mans witnessed a thrilling battle for the lead during its final hours as the #53 Ferrari AF Corse managed to hold on to their lead and win the endurance race ahead of Toyota. The #53 Ferrari was being driven by three highly skilled drivers – James Calado, Alessandro Pier Guidi, and Antonio Giovinazzi.
FERRARI MAKE HISTORY. 🇮🇹
Champaign shower ! 🥂 #LeMansCentenary pic.twitter.com/ihUUpT81aZ— 24 Hours of Le Mans (@24hoursoflemans) June 11, 2023
Among these drivers, Antonio Giovinazzi had a short stint in Formula 1. Following his time as the reserve driver of Ferrari in 2017 and 2018, Giovinazzi used to race for Alfa Romeo from 2019 to 2021. For the 2022 season, he was dropped from the team and replaced by Chinese driver Guanyu Zhou.
The heartbreaking tweet of Antonio Giovinazzi has gone viral
After being dropped from Alfa Romeo, Giovinazzi tweeted a heartfelt message. He claimed that his time in Formula 1 is definitely not over, and he will make a grand comeback again.
@F1 is emotion, talent, cars, risk, speed. But when money rules it can be ruthless.
I believe in the surprise of an unexpected result, of big or small victories achieved thanks to one’s commitment.
If this was my first picture on a F1, the last still has to be taken 💪 pic.twitter.com/atAw5FwtRm— Antonio Giovinazzi (@Anto_Giovinazzi) November 16, 2021
Following his victory at the grandest endurance race of all time, this tweet has gone viral once again. Fans have started to revisit the old tweet and congratulated the Italian driver. One Twitter user exclaimed that Giovinazzi deserved every bit of the victory.
you deserved it so much Antonio https://t.co/jzDiKC9bHT pic.twitter.com/PliIBgIzLg
— Out of Context Mattia Binotto (@OfMattia) June 11, 2023
Another fan claimed that Giovinazzi had cemented his “Ferrari Legend” status by winning them the first Le Mans title in 58 years.
and now he’s a ferrari legend 😭 oh wow https://t.co/h4azCLWbnj
— iv (@farfromfilm) June 11, 2023
Another fan, Andy, also stated that Giovinazzi is a Ferrari legend now, no matter what happens in the future.
No matter what happens next Gio, you’re forever a Ferrari legend. I’m so delighted that you managed this with your boyhood team 🥳 https://t.co/lSxfNStayu
— Andy 🤠 (@AndyGraham22) June 11, 2023
Twitter user Ahmed Baokbah stated that Giovinazzi always wanted to win something for Ferrari. And now he has finally managed to do it.
You always wanted to win something with Ferrari Antonio ❤️ and you did it in style #LeMans24 https://t.co/AJ2CaZBtlH pic.twitter.com/0xOsNmWDcg
— ahmed baokbah 🇸🇦🏎✈️ (@ahmed_baokbah) June 11, 2023
Giovinazzi’s replacement in F1 has performed decently
Giovinazzi was replaced by Guanyu Zhou at Alfa Romeo. It was widely speculated that Alfa Romeo was recruiting Zhou just because of the commercial potential that a Chinese driver could give them.
A highly detailed Reddit post reveals the immense amount of financial backing that Zhou is arriving with. However, others have argued that just because Zhou has the power of wealth does not mean that he does not have merit.
Zhou had quite a difficult first season for Alfa Romeo as he finished P18 in the Driver’s Championship with just 6 points compared to his teammate Valtteri Bottas’ 49. However, it must be remembered that, in this case, a rookie driver is being compared with an F1 veteran.
As for the 2023 season, Zhou has started scoring points again. He finished P9 in the Australian Grand Prix and followed that up with another P9 finish in Spain. And this time, he is at par with his teammate Bottas who also has 4 points to his name at this stage of the season.
