The 250 Testa Rossa is now one of the world’s most sought after Ferraris. The TR was designed with existing Ferrari customers in mind, many of whom were currently racing with the 500 TRC model. The 500 TRC was known for its sublime handling and the 250TR built on this quality, using a similar chassis as platform in which to incorporate a much more powerful V12 engine with six twin-choke carburettors. The 250 Testa Rossa won the Manufacturers’ World Championship for Ferrari in 1958.

To set the scene, the fabled 24 Hours of Le Mans race of that year attracted a huge crowd of some 150,000 spectators, gathered in anticipation of an exciting and closely matched dual between Ferrari, Jaguar, Aston Martin and Porsche. The Scuderia Ferrari, who had a bumper entry of 11 cars in the race, made up of both Works entries and privateer teams, eventually won the race with this car.