Michael Schumacher's Ferrari auctioned for $13 million, sets new record

The final price, offered by an unidentified telephone bidder after a more than 40-minute bidding war, far exceeded expectations.

The 1996 Spanish GP saw Michael Schumacher notch up his maiden win for Ferrari in treacherously rainy conditions. (Image: Twitter/@Schumacher)
By Nilavro Ghosh | Nov 9, 2022 | 1 Min Read follow icon Follow Us

On Wednesday, the Ferrari in which Formula One legend Michael Schumacher won the 2003 World Championship sold for more than $13 million at auction in Geneva. The final price, offered by an unidentified telephone bidder after a more than 40-minute bidding war, far exceeded expectations, with the auction house estimating the car would fetch up to 9.5 million Swiss francs before the sale.

“This remarkable car has achieved a world record price for a modern-era Formula One,” the Sotheby’s auctioneer said. The previous record was held by another Schumacher-driven Ferrari, an F2001 model sold for $7.5 million at Sotheby’s in New York in 2017.

Schumacher raced in the car nine times, winning five Grands Prix in 2003 and driving it when he won the championship in Japan. The F2003-GA, designed by Rory Byrne and Ross Brawn, had a longer wheelbase to improve aerodynamics, he explained. The model was introduced at the fifth race of the 2003 season, the Spanish Grand Prix. Chassis 229 has been the most successful of the six F2003-GAs built.

 “It’s one of the Ferraris with the most victories in the constructor’s history, so it’s a very important car in the history of motor racing,” Vincent Luzuy, from the Sotheby’s branch dealing with luxury car sales, told news agency AFP.