Ecclestone puts F1 car collection up for sale

Bernie Ecclestone has a few cars on offer. The former Formula 1 boss is parting with a total of 69 Grand Prix and Formula 1 cars from his collection, which he has built up over the last 50 years. Many of the cars he has bought over the last half century have never been seen by the public - so for the right collector, this may be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

Ecclestone is selling the Ferraris of Niki Lauda and Michael Schumacher, with whom he won championships. His collection also includes the famous Brabham BT46B, a fan car designed by Gordon Murray. It only raced once at the 1978 Swedish Grand Prix, where it won by more than 30 seconds.

Other cars up for sale include the Vanwall VW10 driven by Sir Stirling Moss, the first Ferrari to beat Alfa Romeo - the Thin Wall Special - and Mike Hawthorn's Ferrari Dino, in which he won the championship. And let's not forget Alberto Ascari's Ferrari 375 F1, in which he won the Italian Grand Prix, the very first Ferrari 312 F1 and the Maserati 250F. Whew.

Bernie Ecclestone F1 sale

Image by: Tom Hartley Jnr.

Ecclestone is now 94 years old and started in Formula 1 in the 1950s. He has decided to sell his collection now because "it's time for me to think about what happens to them when I'm no longer here."  And he didn't want to leave them to his wife, who would have to look after them when he was no longer around. Logical. He certainly couldn't take them with him. No matter how big the mausoleum might be.

Incidentally, the value of the vehicles could easily be in the hundreds of millions, so keep your eyes and ears open. We will report as soon as the cars go on sale to the public.

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