Ex-Mike Hawthorn Ferrari set for Monaco

A Ferrari that was once driven by legends such as Mike Hawthorn and Umberto Maglioli is heading to auction. The 1953 Ferrari 625 Targa Florio two-seater spider by Carrozzeria Vignale is expected to fetch between €4.5m and €6.5m.

One of only three of the 2.5-litre, four-cylinder, twin-overhead camshaft 625 Targa Florio cars to have been built, it will be offered for sale at Bohams’ Les Grandes Marques du Monde à Monaco sale on 11 May at Villa La Vigie, Monaco Beach.

Enzo never favoured the car or showed enthusiasm for the Autodromo bodywork. Alfredo Vignale was  commissioned to rebody the chassis and this ultra-compact spider was created.

Its debut was at the final practice session for the Grand Prix dell’Autodromo at Monza, an appearance that was delayed due to the fact that its driver, Mike Hawthorn, had been held up at the Rouen Grand Prix campaigning a works 625F1 single-seater. Hawthorn, although tired from his outing at Rouen, finished fourth in both the first and second heat.

Following the race, the Vignale spider underwent some remodelling, believed to be the work of Scaglietti. The radiator grille was significantly reduced - a modification the car still retians.

The car was entered in the Coppa d’Oro delle Dolomiti with Umberto Maglioli - a participant in ten Formula One World Championship Grand Prix and winner of the Carrera Panamericana in 1954.

Following its Italian racing career, the car passed through five South American owners in Brazil and Argentina, where it competed in famously tricky races such as the 1000kms de Buenos Aires (five times) and the 500 Miles of Argentina. In the mid-1960s, the car was exchanged in part for a Ferrari 250GT and sent to Italy where it remained until 1974 when it was discovered by Franco Lombardi in a scrapyard in Naples.

The car was sent to Modena by its new owner and underwent a complete restoration in preparation for the Mille Miglia, a race that the car successfully entered four times in 1984, 1986, 1989 and 1990. In 2006, it was raced by its current owner at the Monaco Historic Grand Prix having been once again restored, this time by Carrozzeria Nova Rinascente near Padova.

This is a racing car par excellence driven by some of the most celebrated British racing drivers of all time, and fastidiously restored.