Some may scoff at the thought of being the sixth-owner of a car, especially an Italian one from the 1960s. Unless the car in question is a 1960 Ferrari 250 GT SWB California Spider with coachwork by Scaglietti, incidentally the very first of its kind made, and the very same factory show car Ferrari took to the Geneva auto show at its launch. One-of-a-kind may be thrown around sometimes, but in this car’s case, there is no other like it.
As if this classic car weren’t special enough already, you’d also have the satisfaction and bragging rights of calling yourself the owner of a car once owned by a captain of Germany’s national football team, Michael Ballack. Other celebrity owners of the 100 or so Ferrari 250 GT California Spiders that were produced include actor Chris Evans, but there’s only one that can claim to being the first of its kind.
This numbers-matching classic Ferrari is expected to fetch between $16-18 million and presents very well in its original delivery colors. Of the five owners over the last 60 years, it’s had three long-term owners who have clearly treated it as the prized possession it is.
While the mileage of the car is not known, it’s safe to say this particular example would have very low miles on it. A shame; this 250 GT was specified with the competition-spec Tipo 168 engine, a 3.0-liter V12 putting out 240 horsepower, mated to a 4-speed manual gearbox.
This clearly very special Ferrari 250 GT was bought by Michael Ballack back in 2006, and after a long 16 years in his private collection, it goes under the hammer with RM Sotheby’s. It is said the footballer purchased this car when he was playing in England, after forming a close friendship with F1-legend Michael Schumacher, who drove for Ferrari at the time. Ballack is quite the star himself, a German and English league champion and cup winner, with 98 appearances for the German national team.
The next owner of this beautiful classic car may just be the last, and that’s reason enough to consider ourselves lucky to get a view of one of the most special Ferraris as it goes on sale.
