Nearly 3000 classics came close to raising $300m at this year's Scottsdale auctions, with the lion's share of top prices being paid for Ferraris.
A 1964 250 LM created headlines when it sold for $9,625,000. The most valuable car of the week was bought at RM Auctions' 16 January sale and was the ninth example of just 32 250 LMs produced.
The Ferrari was delivered new to Swiss racing team Scuderia Filipinetti in June 1964, taking victory at the Sierra-Montana Crans Hill Climb with Formula One ace Ludovico Scarfiotti at the wheel just two months later. It came first at the XV Coppa Inter-Europa at Monza the following weekend, this time driven by Nino Vaccarella.
Its success continued with another Swiss racing team, Ecurie Basilisk, until a crash at the SAR Engelbern Hill Climb in 1965, after which it was sold and underwent heavy modifications, including the addition of a Porsche 906 body and four-litre Ferrari 330P engine.
It was eventually returned to its former glory by Eric Stewart of the pop band 10CC, after which it passed through a number of collections from the United States to Japan, undergoing further restoration in the ownership of Lord Irvine Laidlaw in the mid-'90s. It returned to the track in 2000 and was awarded Ferrari Classiche certification in 2005.
Selling for a fraction less – $9,405,000 – was another Ferrari from the Filipinetti stable, this time a 1966 275GTB Competizione. The car picked up a class win at the Le Mans 24 Hours and victories at the 1000kms de Spa-Francorchamps and 500kms de Imola throughout its racing career, which began in 1967.
Just 12 examples of the 275GTB Competizione were ever built, with this the penultimate car. The Ferrari passed through the hands of a number of American collectors following the end of its racing career, with its restoration by marque specialist Brandoli prompted by a minor fire in 1985.
