Large car collections rarely change hands. Generally, the owners sell each vehicle individually to maximize their return on investment. Thus, the lots often go to several different buyers rather than remaining together.
Over the course of his career as a Formula 1 team principal and later as the boss of the whole series, Bernie Ecclestone amassed a collection of important F1 cars, going back to the sport’s beginning. He put those vehicles up for sale in 2024, and they all sold to the same buyer, according to recent reports.
A 32-Year-Old Bought Them
Mark Mateschitz is the 32-year-old son of Dietrich Mateschitz, who is the founder of Red Bull and owner of the eponymous Formula One team. When Ecclestone put his collection up for sale, Mark decided to strike. He allegedly paid around $646 million (approximately £500 million) for all of the cars, according to the UK’s The Daily Mail.
The Ecclestone collection includes vehicles ranging from the series’ start to iconic cars from the later eras where Michael Schumacher, Ayrton Senna, and Niki Lauda were the dominant drivers.
Ecclestone allegedly cared who bought his collection. He wanted the models to go to a quality owner. “They’ve gone to a good home, which is the real thing I was interested in making sure,” he told Reuters.
Ecclestone said that Mateschitz wants to create a museum where these important vehicles could be on display. They wouldn’t be in a private collection where no one could see these important machines. However, the exact location of this planned museum isn’t clear, yet.
Mark Mateschitz doesn’t want his collection to just come from Ecclestone. He’s reportedly looking to expand his collection to include other historically significant race cars and vehicles.
What Was In The Ecclestone Collection
The now 94-year-old Bernie Ecclestone amassed an impressive collection of over 69 former race cars. The machines included the Ferrari 375 F1 that Alberto Ascar drove to win the Italian Grand Prix. He also bought cars from victory-achieving drivers such as Michael Schumacher, Niki Lauda, Nelson Piquet, and Mike Hawthorn. There was even a 1958 Vanwall, which was the first British vehicle to win a Formula 1 championship.
TopSpeed’s Take
Ecclestone had the financial means and the access to run Formula One for quite a while. He amassed an impressive collection in that time and had the knowledge to buy some of the most important vehicles out there when they came to auction. In terms of automotive history, his cars are almost priceless because of the driver’s blood and sweat in every fiber of those machines. We can’t wait to see them on display.
Read the full article here