Ferrari 70th Anniversary
Concorso d’Eleganza
Words by Keith Bluemel
As part of the worldwide celebrations for their 70th Anniversary, Ferrari held a concours at their Fiorano track in Maranello over the weekend of 09-10 September. A small village was set up within the grounds of the circuit, including a large hospitality area for entrants and guests, a stage with grandstands opposite, a Ferrari Store, a new car display showroom and a feature display of the Portofino model, which had been publically announced only a couple of days earlier at the picturesque Mediterranean coastal resort bearing the same name. There was also a RM Sotheby’s auction of Ferrari cars and memorabilia held on the Saturday afternoon.
A further aspect of the gathering was a touring rally, numbering some 500 Ferraris in total, with starting points in a number of major European cities, which converged in Milan on the Friday, and then headed in convoys to Maranello through the Saturday to join the celebrations. This gave the thousands of Ferrari fans who had descended on Maranello, in the hope of seeing something of the event, without having access to the “inner sanctum”, plenty to satisfy their appetites, with a wide variety of models taking part in the rally. Many of them played to the crowds, revving their engines to play tunes to the masses, who responded with cheers and waving of flags, Ferrari of course!
They also had the opportunity to see a number of the cars entered in the concours during the Saturday morning and afternoon, when they drove from Maranello to Modena, passing through the parking area of the Museo Enzo Ferrari en route to lunch at the Palazzo Ducale, the home of the Military Academy. The cars were parked in the Piazza Roma in front of the palace during the lunch stop, before retracing their steps back to Maranello, where they drove through the factory before returning to Fiorano.
The highlight of Saturday afternoon was the RM Sotheby’s Leggenda e Pasione auction, where some 35 Ferrari models went under the hammer. They included an additional example, over and above the slated production number, of the LaFerrari Aperta, featuring a unique colour scheme, the proceeds of which were being donated to the Save the Children charity. It sold for a quite staggering €8.3 million, so a very good cause will get a substantial cash injection.
One of the most intriguing models on offer was a “barn find” 365 GTB4, which had been in storage for some 40 years, and is believed to be the only road-going example constructed with an aluminium body, which generated enormous interest, selling for a world auction record for the model €1.807 million. Another model world record price went to a 400i which had been owned by Rolling Stones founding member and guitarist Keith Richards, which achieved €345,000. The sale had a 92.5% sell-through rate and sales totalled over €63 million, with the top ten sales being as follows.
1) 2017 LaFerrari Aperta €8,300,000
2) 1959 Ferrari 250 GT LWB California Spider by Scaglietti €7,855,000
3) 1958 Ferrari 250 GT Cabriolet Series I €4,719,000
4) 1955 Ferrari 750 Monza €3,375,000
5) 1985 Ferrari 288 GTO €3,263,000
6) 1966 Ferrari 275 GTB Alloy €2,927,000
7) 1953 Ferrari 250 Europa Coupé €2,871,000
8) 1973 Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona Spider €2,479,000
9) 2004 Ferrari Enzo €2,311,000
10) 2017 Ferrari LaFerrari Prototype €2,129,560
The main element of the show focused on changes in lifestyle and in societyover the last 70 years, and Ferrari’s story and cars through the period, during which time it has become one of the most iconic brand names in the world. Kimi Räikkönen and Sebastian Vettel also took to the stage, and there was a video tribute to the company’s greates champion, Michael Schumacher, who remains in everybody’s thoughts. The “Ferrari” part of the show concluded with a virtual pit-stop featuring driver Marc Gené in a F1 car, and a display by dancers, acrobats and percussionists, before a concert by Jamiroquoi brought the evening to a close, although the thunder and lightning continued unabated!
The storm continued to rage through the night, but fortunately had all but blown itself out by Sunday morning, with the last of the rain dissipating before most people arrived at the Fiorano track for the concours, with the day remaining dry but overcast. The entry ran to nearly 120 cars in nineteen classes, with an international judging team including many eminent names from the USA Ferrari judging circles, including Chris Current, the chief Ferrari judge at Pebble Beach, and also Pebble Beach Chief Judge Emeritus Ed Gilbertson. There was also a panel of celebrity judges, who included ex-Ferrari drivers Nino Vacarella and Arturo Merzario, ex-Pininfarina designers Leonardo Fioravanti and Lorenzo Ramaciotti.
There were too many outstanding cars on the field to describe any in detail, so hopefully the class winners list will provide an idea of the diversity and quality of the cars on show. The Best of Show awards were presented by Ferrari Chairman Sergio Marchionne, accompanied by Piero Ferrari and John Elkann, Chairman of the Fiat Chrysler group. An astounded Ronald and Susie Stern took the Best of Show Road Car award with their unique ex-Agnelli Testarossa Spider, whilst the Race Car Best of Show award went to the 1953 Mille Miglia winning 340 MM Spider Vignale of Umberto Camellini, and the honorary judges made William Loughran’s 250 GT SWB Berlinetta their choice.
Class Winners
Class 1. Le Prime Granturismo – 195 Inter Ghia Coupé ch’ # 0109 S
Class 2. Le Prime 250 GT – 250 Europa GT ch’ # 0359 GT
Class 3. Le 250 GT Chiuse – Ferrari 250 GT Lusso ch’ # 5607 GT
Class 4.Le 250 GT Aperte – 250 GT LWB California Spider ch’ # 0769 GT
Class 5.Le Superamerica e le Speciali – 410 SA PF Coupé ch’ # 1449 SA
Class 6. Le 330/365 GTC, le 330 GT 2+2 – 330 GTC “Speciale” ch’ # 9439
Class 7. Le 275 GTB e GTB4 – 275 GTB ch’ # 08933
Class 8. Le 275/330/365 GTS, 365 California – 275 GTS ch’ # 08313
Class 9. Le Dino 206 GT, 246 GT e GTS – 206 GT ch’ # 00306
Class 10. Le Daytona e le 365 GTC4 – 365 GTB4 ch’ # 12981
Class 11. Le 365 GT4/BB, 512 BB e Testarossa – Testarossa Spider, ch’ # 62897
Class 12. Le 288 GTO – GTO ch’ # 58137
Class 13. Le F40 – F40 ch’ # 90020
Class 14. Le F50 e Enzo – Enzo ch’# 135894
Class 15. Le Prime Vettura da Corsa – 166 MM Touring Berlinetta ch’ # 0042 M
Class 16. Le Sport 12 Cilindri -340 MM Spider Vignale ch’ # 0280 AM
Class 17. Le 4 e 6 Cilindri – 500 TRC ch’ # 0670 MDTR
Class 18. Le Berlinette de Corsa – 250 GT Coupé Zagato ch’ # 0515 GT
Class 19. Le Sport con Motore Posteriore – F40 LM/GTE ch’ # 88779
Premio Speciale Giuria Onoraria – 250 GT SWB Berlinetta ch’ # 2009 GT
Best of Show Street Car – Testarossa Spider, ch’ # 62897
Best of Show Competition Car – 340 MM Spider Vignale, ch’ # 0280 AM
All Photos by Keith Bluemel with special thanks to Enzo Tanaka for the additional images where credited
