Hammer down

Racers that are going, going, gone…

The date for the Sotheby’s At Ferrari sale has been changed from Monday. May 23 to Tuesday, June 28. It will be held in the Ferrari Logistics Building in Maranello. Although a definitive list of cars expected for the factory-sanctioned sale has yet to be announced, the Scuderia itself will be parting with an F2004 and the Maserati MC12 which took the FIA GT win at Oschersleben last year. Call 020 7293 6000 for more information.

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March’s Artcurial auction of the Jean ‘Beurlys’ Blaton collection saw mixed sale results with many lots remaining unsold. Star of the event for many was the ex-Elio de Angelis Lotus 93T, complete with its Renault EF1 engine, which the Italian raced at Paul Ricard and Spa. Chassis 001 fell slightly short of the original 70,000 Euros estimate: it went for 66,716 Euros including commission as the hammer fell. In the same sale, the ex-Stefano Modena Jordan 192, minus its Yamaha OX99 V12, failed to sell, despite the lowly 30,000 Euros estimate. The same, too, for a Ligier JS43.

Of the many sportscars, the fabulous ex-Alboreto/Ghinzani Lancia LC1 barchetta in Martini livery made an impressive 110,796 Euros (including commission) although the former Team Surtees Lola T160 failed to sell, as did the March 847 Can-Am car. A McLaren M8C with period Interserie history made 89,352 Euros. More esoteric entries included the bizarre Ferrari F40-based ‘Blaton prototype’ that failed to reach its 160,000 Euros reserve, while a Ferrari 348 TB GT racer similarly remained unsold.