The Racer Sam Hancock

All signs are – for drivers, collectors and Historic racing fans alike – GT1 cars are the new 1960s GTs

Something Interesting Is

happening in the upper echelons of the Historic race car market. As the world faces a major economic wobble, one category in particular is enjoying a surge in demand from buyers whose appetite for acquiring expensive racing machinery seems undimmed.

Owners you’d normally associate with blue-chip, Goodwood TT-ready competition cars – short-wheelbase Ferraris, Jaguar Lightweight E-types, Cobras etc – are turning their attentions to significantly younger machinery; specifically, GT1 models.

For the uninitiated, a quick history lesson: between 1994 and 2011, GT1 (in its various guises) produced some of the most exotic and evocative production-derived racers ever: think McLaren F1 GTR, Mercedes-Benz CLK GTR, Maserati MC12, Porsche 911 (993) GT1, Aston Martin DBR9, Ferrari 550 Maranello Prodrive, Lamborghini Murciélago, and Corvette C5-R and C6.R to name but a few. A truly golden modern era without a doubt, and – given the rapid advance of electrification –perhaps one unlikely to be repeated.

What started as a privateer series called BPR Global GT was soon taken over by the FIA, and before long it became dominated by manufacturer teams with near-limitless budgets. The competition was so fierce that Mercedes, Porsche and even McLaren (with its long-tail F1 GT) built ‘homologation specials’ that flew squarely against the spirit of the rules.

Untethered by the FIA, the series shone brightly throughout the 1990s until briefly burning itself out when, so emphatic was Mercedes’ dominance in 1998, its rivals refused to show up the following year, causing the category to be restructured.

Fortunately, the ACO had been providing an alternative playground for the cars, both at Le Mans and in its associated series, thus maintaining momentum. And once the prototype-based homologation specials were phased out at the head of the field by the latest LMP cars in the new millennium, the ACO’s redefined class for true, productionbased GT1 cars thrived, resulting in some of the most celebrated battles in sportscar-racing history.

In parallel, the restructured FIA GT championship regained its own inertia with a Balance of Performance process that enabled titanic duels between cars of distinctly differing architecture. However, it too became a victim of its own success when it transpired in 2011 that manufacturers were simply unwilling to spend the money required to replace the aging GT1 cars, instead preferring to elevate more cost-effective GT3 machinery to the top class. Similarly, the ACO abandoned GT1 at Le Mans, and thus the chapter closed on a set of regulations that produced some of the sport’s most lust-worthy models ever.

While the McLarens broke free of the ‘redundant race car’ stigma almost immediately to trade at stratospheric levels, it has taken some time for the British brand’s former rivals to garner the attention of the wider market and begin to close the gap.

Naturally, two Endurance Legends series, from Peter Auto and Masters Historic, has helped enormously, giving owners somewhere to race these cars. Yet it’s only in the past couple of years that the GT1 market has really begun to rally.

And what a rally it’s been. With few exceptions, most GT1 cars are now firmly into seven- or – for super-rare homologation specials – even eightdigit territory, and there are no signs of the market slowing. It seems the magic formula that drove values from the golden era of 1960s GT racing is at play once again: gorgeous, yet recognisable cars from familiar and prestigious marques; illustrious competition histories with worldclass teams and drivers contesting the greatest races; eligibility for today’s best Historic events; extreme rarity; exciting yet manageable driving characteristics; reasonable maintenance requirements; even, in some cases, the potential for road use.

BELOW Friendlier to drive than you might expect, GT1 cars are well suited to experienced amateur racers.

Sadly for us fans, the McLaren –much like the 250GTO – has become too valuable to race, and its presence is sorely missed from any of the Historic categories for which it would be eligible. Fortunately, the rest of this sector seems populated (for now at least) by truly passionate owner/ drivers whose purchasing decisions are driven largely by the prospect of actually racing the cars they buy, more than by any financial speculations. As such, this season’s entry lists are starting to look very spicy indeed. Sam is a professional racing driver, coach and dealer in significant competition cars. See www.samhancock.com.

1988 Ferrari F40

Delivered to Italy in 1988 where it remained with its first owner until 2009. This is a desirable early non cat - non adjust example with only 3 owners from new and current owner since 2015. Having covered 18,000kms this car has a well documented service history including recent full service and new fuel tanks. Included with the car are its original service books tool kit and Ferrari Classiche Certification.