Michael Schumacher's 2006 Ferrari F1 Car Could Be Yours
Throughout their careers, most Formula 1 drivers compete in quite a few race cars — indeed, they often can use multiple chassis in a single season. That's why some of the cars that come up for sale end up being less pricey than one might expect, with "affordable" examples sometimes selling in the lower six figures.
On the other hand, a few used F1 cars are truly historic, thanks to the races they won, the drivers that used them, and the records they've set. Such as, for example, this V-8-powered 2006 Ferrari 248 F1 car piloted by none other than Michael Schumacher, which is headed to auction at RM Sotheby's next month.
Unquestionably one of the most gifted racing drivers in history, Schumacher drove this specific F1 car to five Grand Prix victories. We'll circle back to those in a moment, though. Before that, let's talk about this car's first qualifying session ever.
It happened at the San Marino GP in Italy on the weekend of April 22, and it turned out to be the 66th time that Schumacher achieved pole position — which means it happened to be the day he broke Ayrton Senna's record of 65 pole positions. The next day, Schumacher would go on to win the race in this same monster.
Two weeks later, he'd win in this car again, this time at the European Grand Prix at the Nurburgring. Schumacher would go on to win at the US GP, the French GP, and finally, the German GP before the end of the year. That last win in Germany would mark the driver's last professional grand prix victory, and was also the last weekend where he'd achieve pole position before the race. (It's believed that this is also the first Ferrari F1 car that Kimi Räikkönen drove before he became a major part of the team, should that interest you.)
After its retirement, the current owner purchased the car from Ferrari directly, and remained in that collection until now. During that time, it received a Ferrari Classiche certification, spent more time at Ferrari's Fiorano test track, and even ended up on display at the occasional museum.
That said, it's been inactive for more than a decade at this point. As such, the auction listing over at RM Sotheby's indicates that it'll need a recommissioning before anyone drives it again. It's available via auction, with the bidding opening up on November 14. The price isn't listed; we doubt it'll go cheap.