Notice to wealthy collectors: former driver Jean Alesi (61) is preparing to auction one of his 1992 Formula 1 Ferraris, a unique piece estimated at several million euros, Artcurial announced to AFP on Monday.
The red single-seater, in perfect working order with its 750 horsepower V12 engine, was offered to the Avignon driver by the Scuderia at the end of the 1992 season, where he took 7th place in a World Championship won by the Briton Nigel Mansell (Williams-Renault). It has since been enthroned in the gym of the former pilot’s villa.
“During the last Monza Grand Prix, I had the pleasure of getting back behind the wheel of my 1995 Formula 1 Ferrari, also equipped with a V12 with such characteristic musicality,” explains Jean Alesi. Coming home, seeing my 1992 F92A sitting in my gym convinced me that it belonged on a racetrack. So I decided to put it up for sale so that an enthusiast can bring it back to life and make this legendary V12 roar again! It will be replaced at home by the first Tyrrell Formula 1 of my career which I am still lucky enough to own.”
A car unique in its provenance
Jean Alesi competed in 184 Grands Prix, winning the Canadian Grand Prix in 1995 under the colors of the Scuderia, for whom he drove for five seasons (1991-1995). The former driver is today president of the Circuit Paul-Ricard.
“The car is estimated at between 3 and 4 million euros and the market will decide its price,” underlines Matthieu Lamoure, president of Artcurial Motorcars. What makes this car truly unique is its provenance: it comes directly from the factory driver, certainly the most popular of his generation, with a spectacular driving style, to whom the Scuderia offered it at the end of the 1992 season. It is extremely rare that such an emblematic driver himself puts his own F1 car up for sale. In general, these cars still belong to teams or private collectors.
Formula 1 sales are rare
The auction, during which 65 prestigious cars will be put up for auction, will take place on January 27 at the Peninsula Hotel in Paris.
Formula 1 sales on the market are rare: one or two are generally sold per year, although this year is an exception: Bernie Ecclestone, the former “big moneyman of F1”, sold his prestigious private collection of 69 old F1 cars a few months ago. They were all bought by Austrian billionaire Mark Mateschitz, heir to the Red Bull brand. And in addition, several single-seaters will also be auctioned by Artcurial Motorcars in December.
