Formula 1 legend Michael Schumacher’s 2003 championship-winning Ferrari will be up for auction next week in Geneva and is estimated to fetch up to £8 million (roughly $9.5 million). “This car is one of the only four cars with more than four wins as in the Ferrari history and especially with one of the most skilled driver of his generation, Michael Schumacher, so also obviously it adds a bit to the story,” said the executive assistant to the director of RM Sotheby’s sales, Vincent Luzuy. The F1 race car – F2003-GA Chassis 229 – was driven nine times by Schumacher during the season and helped him secure his sixth world and penultimate championship of his illustrious racing career.
The official description reads: “During Schumacher’s title-winning 2003 Formula One season, he secured a remarkable five victories in chassis #229, including the Grand Prix in Spain, Austria, Canada, Italy, and the United States. Furthermore, the car secured three pole positions, three fastest laps, and a further two podium finishes in Monaco and France.”
The 2003 Ferrari F1 race car was designed by Rory Byrne and Ross Brawn and is powered by a 3.0-liter V10 engine that was capable of producing up to 845hp. The race car is said to be in ‘track ready’ condition and is described as one of the ‘most exciting Formula One propositions to ever reach the open market’ by the auctioneer. Schumacher’s Ferrari will become the second-most expensive F1 car ever sold at auction if it manages to sell for its estimated $9.5 million price. The 1954 Mercedes W196R that was sold for $29.6 million at the Goodwood Festival of Speed in 2013 still holds the auction record for F1 race cars.
