100-Foot Ferrari Glides Over Water Without Using A Drop Of Fuel

Ferrari’s latest project trades roads for open water, merging aero tech with groundbreaking sailing design

Ferrari is no stranger to pushing boundaries, but this new endeavor might be its wildest yet. Meet the Hypersail, a 100-foot ocean-going monohull race yacht that literally glides over the water. Designed to balance on three points of contact, including a foil-equipped canting keel, this boat is the first of its kind. It’s not just another fast Ferrari either. It’s evidently going to run entirely on renewable energy.

Unveiled in Maranello, the Hypersail is Ferrari’s first foray into sailing yachts. More importantly, it’s not just a half-hearted licensing exercise. This is a full-blown, in-house-built ship with input from Ferrari’s hypercar program. Led by Giovanni Soldini and designed by famed naval architect Guillaume Verdier, the Hypersale is already under construction and should begin sea trials next year.

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For Soldini, it’s the culmination of decades in offshore racing: “The meeting of different cultures and advanced technologies is enabling us to build a yacht that is revolutionary in many respects,” he said. From a nautical perspective, it’s innovative in both its structure and how it will fly; on the systems front, Ferrari’s contribution is driving the development of onboard control technology that has never been seen before.” 

Verdier’s design is noteworthy because it’s the first of its kind. The canting keel, effectively a movable keel directly beneath the ship, acts as one of three foiling points. Foils naturally lift the main structure of the boat up and out of the water, allowing it to glide over the surface much faster than it could otherwise.

Onboard, a suite of control systems developed by Ferrari’s extensive knowledge of aerodynamics and simulation manages everything from pitch to energy flow. Speaking of energy, the Hypersail gets its power from solar, wind, and kinetic systems. There isn’t a single combustion engine of any type. To that end, all of this new thinking and innovation from Ferrari has led to nine patents already. Six more are in the works, and the boat isn’t even finished yet.

“Hypersail is a new challenge that pushes us to go beyond our boundaries and expand our technological horizons”, said Ferrari Chairman John Elkann. “At the same time, it perfectly aligns with Ferrari’s tradition, drawing inspiration from our Hypercar, three-time winner of the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Designing a yacht for offshore racing is perhaps the ultimate expression of endurance.”