Rare Ferrari 250 GTO aims to beat world-record sale of $52 million

Is it possible that the selling of an exclusive Ferrari 250 GTO, worth tens of millions of dollars, can be deemed boring? With so many fancy old Ferraris hitting the auction block over the last few years, you'd be forgiven for feeling tiresome at the news of another. But this particular 1962 Ferrari 250 GTO Berlinetta, set to hit Bonhams' blocks in August, has quite the back story and the timing to potentially set the record as the most expensive car ever sold.

From the Maranello Rosso Collection, chassis number "3851 GT" was the 19th 250 GTO Berlinetta of 39 to roll of the assembly line, and it has remained within the same family for the past 49 years. Prior to Fabrizio Violati purchasing the car in 1965, and hiding it from his parents — only driving it in the death of night when the rest of the world slept — the car was delivered to leading French racer Jo Schlesser for use in high-profile events like the Tour de France Automobile – a race that was dominated by Ferrari 250 GTs and GTOs during the 1950s and '60s.

Schlesser and his co-driver, French ski champion turned race car driver Henri Oreiller, finished second in the 1962 race to a 250 GT. Oreiller, a French sports hero who had fought for the resistance in World War II and won two gold medals in skiing at the 1948 Winter Olympics, was back behind the wheel just a few weeks later at the Coupe de Salon race in Monthlery, France. On Oct. 7, 1962, Orellier started the race on a rough track with heavily worn tires. One blew, causing the car to flip and nearly break in half. Orellier, 38, died in the wreck, .

Ferrari took the GTO back, repaired and restored it, then sold it to other racers, before Violati took ownership in 1965. Having been maintained until his death in 2010, Violati and his family continued to race the 250 GTO into the 2000s, making it one of the last of its kind to compete regularly.

When it goes on sale without reserve Aug. 15 at the Quail Lodge in Monterey, Calif., the GTO should easily pass the record for a car sold at auction, currently held by Fangio's Mercedes W196 that sold for $29.6 million. Its owners will have a higher record in mind: the 1964 250 GTO that sold privately for an outright record of $52 million last year. If any car's going to do it, history tells us it'll be a 250 GTO.