Ferrari 250 Testa Rossa

Information

1958 Ferrari 250 "Pontoon Fender" Testa Rossa

Ordered new by Venezuelan concessionaire Carlos Kauffman, the car was sold new to Brazilian racer Jean-Louis Soares, who ran Scuderia Lagartixa. It raced extensively under this banner until 1961 when it was sold to its second owner, Giorgio Moroni. Soon after, Moroni had the car shipped to Pierre Drogo in Modena, Italy, where it was rebodied as a GTO-style coupé, in an attempt to "fool" the racing authorities into letting a now-obsolete car still race.

In this guise, the car raced twice, until its sale to Claudio Klabin, who traded it a year later to mining magnate Paulo Cesar Newlands (in exchange for an Alfa Romeo 2000 Berlina!). Newlands took the car racing, claiming a win at Petropolis against a field of much-newer machinery and later sold it to an American living in Rio de Janeiro in 1969.

Said American kept the car until 1975, when he sold it to Camillo Christofaro, the driver who had scored his first race win in the car ten years earlier! He stored the car until 1986 when famous British "car hunter" Colin Crabbe brought it to the UK. It then passed through the hands of American Bob Rubin, who sold it in 1988 to notable Ferrari collector Sir Paul Vestey.

Sir Vestey had the car returned to its original specification by DK Engineering between 1989 and '90, using a new alloy body manufactured by RS Panels, and painted yellow with a green nose band as a nod to its Brazilian heritage. Sir Vestey kept the car until 1995, using it for events across Europe until he traded it to Symbolic Motor Car Company of La Jolla, California (to fund his purchase of 412 P chassis 0854).

The Testa Rossa was then shown by SMMC at multiple motorshows across the world until it was sold in 1996 to British-based Brazilian collector Carlos Monteverde. The car then became one of Monteverde's most used race cars, and he campaigned it in historic events until its sale circa 2010. The current owner subsequently had the car restored to Rosso, to match the rest of his Ferrari collection.