Bernie Ecclestone’s Multi-Million Dollar Race Car Collection Set for Sale

Former Formula 1 chief Bernie Ecclestone is putting his extensive collection of race cars up for sale. This assortment features vehicles once piloted by iconic motorsport figures such as Michael Schumacher, Niki Lauda, and Nelson Piquet. Among the notable items is the 1976 Ferrari 312 T2, which was driven by Carlos Reutemann and Clay Regazzoni. Mr. Ecclestone, who led the sport for almost four decades until 2017, amassed this compilation of 69 significant F1 and Grand Prix vehicles across more than fifty years. The collection encompasses Ferraris previously driven by world champions Schumacher, Lauda, and Mike Hawthorn, alongside Brabham cars raced by Piquet and Carlos Pace, among other notable drivers. The 94-year-old Ecclestone stated, “All the cars I have bought over the years have fantastic race histories and are rare works of art.” Also featured in the sale is Stirling Moss’ Vanwall VW10, a vehicle that made history as the first British car to secure both an F1 race victory and the Constructors’ Championship in 1958. Ecclestone further explained his decision, stating, “I love all of my cars but the time has come for me to start thinking about what will happen to them should I no longer be here, and that is why I have decided to sell them.” He continued, “After collecting and owning them for so long, I would like to know where they have gone and not leave them for my wife to deal with should I not be around.” The former head of the Brabham team has engaged Tom Hartley Jnr Ltd, a firm specializing in sports and race car sales, to oversee the transaction. Tom Hartley Jnr commented, “There are many eight-figure cars within the collection, and the value of the collection combined is well into the hundreds of millions.” He added, “The collection spans 70 years of racing, but for me the highlight has to be the Ferraris.” He specifically mentioned, “There is the famous ‘Thin Wall Special’, which was the first Ferrari to ever beat Alfa Romeo, Alberto Ascari’s Italian GP-winning 375 F1 and historically significant championship-winning Lauda and Schumacher cars.” The inventory also features the Brabham BT46B, known as the ‘fan car’ and conceived by Gordon Murray, which Niki Lauda drove to triumph at the 1978 Swedish Grand Prix. Additionally, the BT45C, the car in which the Austrian driver made his initial appearance for Ecclestone’s team in the same year, is part of the collection. Billionaire Ecclestone acquired the commercial rights of Formula 1 in the mid-1990s and was instrumental in transforming the sport into one of the globe’s most widely viewed.