“New thrills are about to come”
Last year, we reported that Ferrari was rumored to be developing a 700-hp version of the 488 that would be called the GTO. Then, last month, the rumor popped up again, this time suggesting it would be faster than a LaFerrari. But in all that time, Ferrari kept quiet, refusing to give so much as a hint that hotter version of the 488 was officially coming. Until now.
Today, Ferrari posted the below video on its Facebook page with the caption, “New thrills are about to come.” Other than that one phrase, the video contains no text. It does, however, show what appears to be a red road car with white stripes passing two race cars. The quick cuts make it difficult to get a good look, but we did manage to grab a screenshot that shows the front end. With a little help from PhotoShop, we were then able to clear up the image you see above.
Compare it to the photo below that was supposedly taken at a private preview, and they sure look a lot like the same car. Both have white racing stripes that also appear on the splitter, vent on the hood, and remarkably similar front bumpers. With enough time, we could probably find a few more details in other screenshots, as well.
So while Ferrari still has yet to give us any official information on this track-focused 488 variant, we now have reason to put a lot more faith in the information we saw in that leaked slideshow. We still can’t confirm that it will be faster than a LaFerrari or that it will even be called the 488 GTO, but as great as the regular 488 GTB is, a 700-hp version sounds absolutely incredible. If Ferrari plans to reveal it next month at the Geneva Motor Show, that would be even better.
Source: Ferrari via Facebook