24h Le Mans
Ferrari’s year of 70th anniversary celebrations culminates with a three-day fiesta in Maranello, home of the super car marque’s factory. The packed weekend schedule features a concours d’élégance and an auction to include two Ferraris that raced at Le Mans 24 Hours.
On 5 September, 450 Ferrari owners from all over Europe will be departing from nine cities (London, Reims, Frankfurt, Prague, Salzburg, Monaco, Geneva, Zurich and Rome) on a Maranello-bound rally. After the gala evening in Milan on 8 September, the cortege will arrive at the Fiorano track in Maranello where the auction, the concours d’élégance and an outstanding show are to take place over the weekend.
Sotheby’s auction lists 40 Ferraris dating from 1950 to the present day, including a 348 GTC LM that ran at Le Mans in 1994 and the 488 GTE entered by Scuderia Corsa in this year’s race.
The older car, fielded by Repsol Ferrari España, came fourth in GT2 and 11th overall at Le Mans, driven by Prince Alfonso de Orleans Bourbon, Tomas Saldaña and Andres Vilariño. The 348 lot (chassis 97553) comprises memorabilia such as one of the helmets worn by Saldaña and is expected to attract bids of between 390,000 and 450,000 euros.
The 488 that won the GTD class at the 2016 12 Hours of Sebring and the 6 Hours of Watkins Glen for Scuderia Corsa is valued at 500-700,000 euros. Cristina Nielsen became the first woman to win the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship in the car, with teammate Alessandro Balzan. Bret Curtis joined the pair for the 24 Hours of Le Mans this summer, where the crew finished 14th in the hotly disputed LMGTE Am class.
Photo: Scuderia Corsa’s #65 Ferrari 488 GTE to be auctioned at the 70th anniversary celebrations in Maranello this September.
