RM Sotheby’s announced the first-ever Lewis Hamilton Grand Prix winning car offered for sale at the Silverstone 2021 Grand Prix — the 2010 McLaren MP4-25A Formula 1 Racer that won the Turkish race.
Formula 1® together with RM Sotheby’s announced a special, single lot auction of the 2010 McLaren Mercedes MP4-25A Formula 1® Race Car for the British Grand Prix weekend in mid-July 2021 at Silverstone. Lewis Hamilton drove this McLaren to victory in the Turkish Grand Prix in 2010. It is the first time ever that a Formula 1 race-winning car driven by Lewis Hamilton is offered for sale in a public auction. The car will be driven on the track during the auction. The presale estimate is $5,000,000 – $7,000,000.
Hamilton-Driven F1 McLaren at RM Sotheby’s Silverstone Sale
Formula 1® and RM Sotheby’s is arranging a special auction on Saturday 17 July 2021 during the British Formula 1 Grand Prix weekend at Silverstone. Only one lot will be available: the 2010 McLaren MP4-25A Formula 1 Racer that Lewis Hamilton drove to victory in the 2010 Turkish Grand Prix race. This will not only be the first-ever Grand Prix race-winning car driven by Lewis Hamilton to come to auction but also the first time ever that a car driven by Hamilton in a Formula 1 race is offered in a public sale.
The auction will take place on the Saturday afternoon of the race weekend, immediately prior to the first ever Sprint Qualifying Race. To mark this unique event, Formula 1® and RM Sotheby’s have created the ground-breaking concept to sell this incredible car live while it is being driven around the historic Silverstone circuit at speeds in excess of 150 mph; a unique auction set-up at one of the most iconic tracks in motorsport. Being held on Hamilton’s home track and with a live audience planned for the Silverstone GP, race fans and registered bidders will be able to witness MP4- 25A take to the circuit at speed in all its former glory.
In over 70 years of Formula 1® and 40 years of RM Sotheby’s, the sale of this GP winning McLaren Mercedes at speed, at a Grand Prix circuit, on race weekend represents a true first of its kind. The auction event is, in so many ways, emblematic of the driver himself. A man who has eclipsed all major records with no sign of slowing. Hamilton has become a Global Icon that transcends the automotive world – currently the most dominant and talked about driver in F1, but yet a gentleman competitor always, showing great deference to the giants that preceeded him and who’s shoulders he stands upon as the face of the world’s biggest annual sporting series.
Lewis Hamilton-Winning F1 McLaren at RM Sotheby’s Sale
The McLaren MP4-25A, powered by the Mercedes-Benz FO 108X 2.4 liter V8 engine, was a major improvement on its predecessor, in part due to the innovative ‘F-duct’ incorporated into its design; the system’s effect being controlled by the driver covering up a small hole in the cockpit with his left leg. The design innovation along with a host of other improvements helped reduce aerodynamic drag and allowed the car as much as an extra 6 mph (9.7 km/h) on straights.
In the 14 years since his F1 baptism in Melbourne in 2007, Lewis Hamilton has competed in 270 Grands Prix, winning 98 and enjoying a further 71 Podium finishes, he has amassed an incredible 100 Pole Positions, 3,872 Points and led for over 5,170 Laps; each milestone reinforcing his reputation at the very pinnacle of the sport and each achieved with recognition and thanks to his team and respect to his rivals.
The availability of this particular example, Chassis no. 1 is an unrepeatable opportunity given the model’s scarcity. While client confidentiality precludes disclosing exactly how many cars exist in private ownership, it’s believed to be only a scarce few. As such these examples remain highly coveted and largely in private hands, unlikely to be sold in the near future.
Furthermore, the McLaren Mercedes represents a car that can still be track driven and supported by the original factory teams as part of individual Heritage departments.
Record Formula 1 Car Prices at Auction
The most-expensive Formula 1 single-seater racing car ever sold at public auction was a 1954 Mercedes Benz W196R that sold for $29,650,000 at the Bonhams Goodwood Festival of Speed 2013 sale.
The two most-expensive modern Formula 1 cars were both race winners driven by Michael Schumacher and sold by RM Sotheby’s: The record car is Michael Schumacher’s Grand Prix-winning Ferrari F2001 sold in Sotheby’s Contemporary Art Evening Auction in November 2017 for $7,504,000. The second most expensive was Michael Schumacher’s 2002 Ferrari F2002 F1 Car, chassis #219, sold for $6,643,750 in Abu Dhabi 2019.
The record for a McLaren Formula 1 car is $5,009,266 paid for a 1993 McLaren Cosworth Ford MP4/8A at Bonhams Monaco 2018. This result was slightly disappointing as Ayrton Senna raced it to his sixth win at the Monaco Grand Prix, especially as the 1984 Toleman-Hart TG184 Formula 1 Racing Single-Seater that Ayrton Senna raced to a phenomenal second place in his debut race at Monaco achieved $1.9 million in the same auction. The Mclaren marque record is $19,805,000 paid for the 1994 McLaren F1 ‘LM-Specification’ road car at RM Sotheby’s Monterey 2019.