Author Archives: challenger24

RM Sotheby’s – The Guicas Collection – 2012 Ferrari 458 GTD

Posted on by
Reply

 

Estimate: €400,000 – €500,000 EUR | Offered Without Reserve

  • Raced in the Tudor United SportsCar Championship
  • Finished 6th in class and 23rd overall at the 2014 24 Hours of Daytona
  • Powered by a 550 horsepower Ferrari F142 4.5-litre V-8 engine with sequential gearbox
  • Offered with binders containing a Ferrari spare parts catalogue and 458 Italia GT3 technical manual

All details about the auction HERE at RM Sothebys Auction

Please note that this lot is sold on a Bill of Sale.

The IMSA Tudor SportsCar Championship was introduced for 2014, formed following a merger of the American Le Mans Series (ALMS) and Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series that both raced for the final time the previous year. The changes brought about revisions in vehicle classes for the 2014 racing season: The new Prototype (P) and Prototype Challenge (PC) classes were lightly amended; GT Le Mans (GTLM) hosted grand touring cars from ALMS; and GT Daytona (GTD) fielded GT and GX cars from Grand-Am with Porsche-based GT3 Challenge cars from ALMS.

Ferrari introduced the 458 Italia GT3 in 2011, alerting private race teams as the car was eligible for GTD-class competition. Compared to its GT2 counterpart, the model was lighter and more powerful. The car was propelled by Ferrari’s F142 4.5-litre V-8 twin cam engine, which produced an eye-watering 550 horsepower and redlined at 9,000 rpm. The model would go onto dominate its class in endurance racing and to this day, it holds the record for the number of titles won in international championships.

This example was purchased and raced in the GTD class by Level 5 Motorsports in 2014, and promptly fielded in the inaugural 2014 Tudor United SportsCar Championship series. Racing under the number 556, the Ferrari made its first appearance on 23 January 2014 at the 24 Hours of Daytona at Daytona Beach, Florida. The 458 GTD was raced on Continental tyres and completed 661 laps during the 24 hours. Driven by Scott Tucker, Mike LaMarra, Terry Borcheller, Guy Cosmo, and Emilio Valverde, the 458 GTD finished 6th in class and 23rd overall. This was only slightly down on team’s other 458, which won the GTD class and finished 18th overall (in the process securing Ferrari’s 10th victory at the 24 Hours of Daytona, the first win at Daytona for a Ferrari since 1998).

Following the results for both cars, Level 5 Motorsports announced on 26 February 2014 that it was withdrawing from the IMSA SportsCar Championship series. The Ferrari was purchased by Mr. Guikas in 2017, and today offers the opportunity to acquire a highly competitive modern racing sports car.

RM Sotheby’s – The Guicas Collection – 2005 Ferrari 575 GTC

Posted on by
Reply

Estimate €3,000,000 – €4,000,000 EUR | Offered Without Reserve

$3,450,000 – $4,600,000 USD

£2,550,000 – £3,400,000 GBP

Chassis No. F133MGT 2224
 
  • Considered to be the very last V-12 race car built by the Ferrari factory
  • The final of 12 examples of the Ferrari 575 GTC made between 2003 to 2005
  • Campaigned by Rock Media Motors in the 2005 Italian GT Championship
  • Also entered the Brno Supercar 500, part of the 2005 FIA GT Championship, finishing 10th
  • Offered in its period racing livery and accompanied by a spare engine

All details about the auction HERE at RM Sothebys Auction

Bosses at Maranello were savvy to the demand from racing drivers for their front-engine V-12 platform, as the predecessor to the 575M Maranello, the 550 Maranello, had been honed as a race-tuned machine by private teams. This earlier model proved just how clinical Ferrari’s cars could be on the racetrack. With a remit to make an “off the shelf” competitive car that Ferrari could sell direct to customers, the company briefed its Corse Clienti department to oversee development of a race version of the 575M Maranello.

The resulting 575 GTC was revealed at the 2003 Frankfurt Motor Show in Germany after close collaboration with N Technology, and 12 were made by the factory. Significantly, these would prove to be the end of Ferrari’s long and illustrious line of V-12-powered, front-engine racing cars.

While the roadgoing 575M Maranello shared many traits with its predecessor, the competition car gained a host of new features. Additional cooling vents were installed to regulate the temperature of the larger 6.0-litre V-12 engine that delivered power to a six-speed Xtrac sequential manual gearbox; an internal roll cage was fitted; and it gained carbon fibre body panels as well as aerodynamics-enhancing bodywork such as a large rear wing, front splitter, and rear diffuser. Inside the car, bucket seats were made from carbon fibre, and glass side-windows were removed in favour of split Lexan material. For all the efforts to save kilos, the 575 GTC had a dry weight of 1,148 kilograms—only just meeting the FIA’s requirements for a minimum permitted weight—and performance was rated at 600 horsepower, with a claimed top speed of 208 mph.

This example, chassis number 2224, is the last of the 12 examples of the 575 GTC constructed. In turn, it is considered to be the very last front-engine V-12 racing car ever made at the Ferrari factory. The Ferrari was built for Rock Media Motors, a private team based in Italy, for participation in the 2005 Italian GT Championship with Antonin Herbeck and Andrea Montermini taking turns behind the wheel.

That season’s Italian GT Championship began as a non-starter, with the first race of the season in Imola cancelled as it fell on the day of the death of Pope John Paul II. A few weeks later, with the car wearing the race number 12—as it would for the rest of the season—the Ferrari finished 11th in the first race in Misano, then failed to finish in the second race of that weekend. At the next race in Vallelunga, the car did not finish the first race, nor would it start the second. At Monza, the Ferrari finished 6th in race one, then 9th in race two. Two weeks later, the 575 GTC finished 10th overall and 9th in class at the Brno Supercar 500, part of the 2005 FIA GT Championship (wearing, for this event, race number 24).

For the rest of the Italian GT Championship season, the car finished 17th and 7th over two races in an isolated overseas race in Budapest, Hungary; did not finish and came 13th at Magione; then did not finish either race in Mugello. The car was entered once in the 2006 season, failing to finish either race at Imola.

The car was subsequently acquired by Mr. Guikas from its original owners, and it has remained in his care since. It is now presented in its original, dramatic racing livery and accompanied by a spare V-12 racing engine. Offered with an extensive file of race records and technical information, this 2005 Ferrari 575 GTC is a compelling high-performance offering in its own right—and one that also represents the very final chapter in the marque’s glorious history of front-engine, V-12-powered racing machines.

Please note that this lot is sold on a Bill of Sale.

RM Sotheby’s – The Guicas Collection – 2001 Ferrari 360 Challenge

Posted on by
Reply

Estimate €60,000 – €80,000 EUR | Offered Without Reserve
 
– Successfully campaigned in the Italian Pirelli Challenge from 2001 to 2003
– Minimal mileage accrued since major service in 2016
– Ferrari Classiche certified in May 2021
– An excellent track-day Ferrari with motorsport history
 
Details about the auction HERE at RM Sothebys Auction
 
Please note that this lot is sold on a Bill of Sale.

This Ferrari 360 Challenge was delivered new to its native Italy, where it was immediately thrust into competition use. Purchased by Massimo Di Risio, he used the car in Italian Pirelli Challenge. Its racing history is chronicled by an accompanying ACI passport, showing that it raced at a handful of events at circuits across Italy, including Monza, Mugello, Misano, Vallelunga, and Imola. Its most successful seasons was while it was driven by Nicola Gianniberti who won the Italian Pirelli Challenge that year. Subsequently, it finished 4th at the world finals at Misano.

Acquired by the prior owner in 2017, the 360 Challenge had undergone a major service the year before and had only been driven an additional 50 km by 2018. This service included overhauling the gearbox and fitting it with new seals, oil pump, and bearings. Furthermore, the timing belt was replaced along with the belt tensioner, and the car also received a new oil filter as well as clutch and crankshaft seals. That year, the car was acquired by Mr. Guikas through RM Sotheby’s and it has accrued minimal milage since.

In May 2021, this 360 Challenge underwent the Ferrari Classiche certification program and today is accompanied by its Red Book. Ferrari’s “Challenge” series has been a resounding success worldwide since its inception, and retired racing cars can be excellent track-day toys. This wonderful 360 Challenge is no exception.

RM Sothebys – The Guicas Collection – 2006 Ferrari F430 GTC

Posted on by
Reply

Estimate €625,000 – €725,000 EUR | Offered Without Reserve

  • Fielded on the track 36 times by JMB Racing between 2006 to 2011
  • Driven to 4th in class at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 2008
  • 4.0-litre V-8 DOHC F136GT engine with Hewland six-speed sequential gearbox
  • Last fielded at the Le Mans Classic in 2018
  • Ferrari Classiche certified
All details about the auction HERE at RM Sothebys Auction
 
Please note that this lot is sold on a Bill of Sale.

Manufactured by Ferrari Corse Clienti department alongside Michelotto Automobili from 2006 to 2010, the Ferrari F430 GTC was the most advanced racing derivative of the F430. The GTC was designed to compete in the international GT2 class in events such as the FIA GT Championship, Europe’s Le Mans Series, and the American Le Mans Series. Several F430 GTCs, including this example, competed in the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

Due to FIA GT2 requirements on weight and engine displacement, Ferrari changed the cranks on their 4.3-litre V-8 that was fitted to the F430 to create this car. This brought the displacement down to 3,994.5 cubic centimetres, allowing the F430 GTC to compete in the 3.8- to 4.0-litre class, with a minimum weight of 1,100 kilograms. This revised V-8 produced 439 horsepower and increased the minimum weight of an F430 by 50 kilograms; the weight gain was offset by the F430 GTC’s overall reduced weight, ultimately resulting in an improved power-to-weight ratio.

In general, Ferrari’s F430 GTC proved to be a highly competitive car, winning its class championships in the American Le Mans Series and the FIA GT. GTCs scored class wins at the 2007, 2009, and 2010 12 Hours of Sebring and at the 2008 and 2009 24 Hours of Le Mans.

This GTC was delivered new in 2006 to its first owner, JMB Racing, based in Monaco. Between 2006 to 2011, this example would race 36 times in the GT2 class, and also compete at the 2008 edition of 24 Hours of Le Mans, where it achieved a strong 4th in class, and the 2009 24 Hours of Spa. Other notable results included 2nd in class at Interlagos in November 2007, 2nd at the International Open GT in Barcelona in October 2010, followed by a 3rd place in race one at the International GT Open Imola in May 2011.

This car received many of the GTC revisions introduced in 2009, such as air conditioning, suspension, engine brackets, traction control, electronic power steering, launch control, removable rear fender, and a revised radiator air intake. In addition to these upgrades, this F430 GTC is currently fitted with a Step 5 engine and exhaust. The car is offered with a spare engine, exhaust, and additional spare parts. Today, the car is finished in metallic blue with 24 Hours of Le Mans 2008 livery, underwent a component crack test in 2018 and comes with Ferrari Classiche certification.