As any true car connoisseur will willingly testify, classic racing cars are the true aristocrats of the automotive world. Recognising this, this year’s Festival of Speed – Bonham’s annual car auction where classic gas-guzzlers across the globe go under the gavel – saw keen bidders battling it out to secure the vintage vehicle of their dreams.
Undoubtedly, one of the most remarkable cars up for auction was a 1932-1934 Alfa Romeo Tipo B Grand Prix Monoposto, previously owned by Richard Shuttleworth, the legendary British racing driver and aviator. Arriving just in time for the 1935 race season and coming courtesy of Italy’s Scuderia Ferrari quasi-works team, the car secured its place in the record books that very year, smashing all previous fastest lap times at the Donnington Grand Prix and easily outpacing two Type 59 Bugattis, its close second cousins in the Ferrari family. With such a pedigree, it was no surprise that this remarkable roadster eventually changed hands for an astonishing US$6 million.