On the performance of the current Formula One team of Ferrari there is a lot to be said. But that the Italian marque has made a solid mark on the sport over the years should be obvious. This hyper rare Ferrari 625 F1 is a prime example. If only because this type of Ferrari earned the marque its first ever world title.
Text: Jeroen Jansen Image: Kevin Van Campenhout, Courtesy of RM Sotheby's
1952 is an exceptional year for Formula 1. Alfa Romeo does not have enough lira in its bank account to build a new car and has to cancel participation. And the BRM team also withdraws from participation. This leaves Ferrari as the only serious F1 participant. In order to still provide some competition, race organisers decide to downgrade their Formula 1 races to Formula 2, a class which at the time is served by four-cylinder engines.
Ferrari put the 500 on the start line, with Italian driver Alberto Ascari at the wheel. A golden combination, as Ascari wins every race he races in his Ferrari 500 that season except one. Indeed, Ascari won seven consecutive races in 1952. A record that lasted for no less than 61 years until Red Bull driver Sebastian Vettel smashed it in 2013 by winning nine races in a row. And Ascari? Who becomes world champion in 1952. He also wins the following year.
German dominance
Back to the Ferrari 500 F2, Ferrari builds six cars for its own racing stable and another five cars for private racing teams. In 1954, when the F2 regulations are abandoned and racing is resumed under F1 conditions, Ferrari decides to put a new engine in the 500 F2 and rename the car 625 F1. Not only its own cars, private cars also return to the factory for this heart transplant that not only gives the car access to F1, but also makes it more powerful.
Unfortunately for Ferrari, the new power source in the car proves insufficient to compete. Mercedes-Benz competes again for the first time since World War II and proves supreme. Especially when, halfway through the season, the now legendary driver Juan Manuel Fangio switches from Maserati to Mercedes. The Argentine driver puts seven of the nine races to his name. The previously strong driving Ascari manages to take one more pole position, but no wins.
Bright red sausage
The car with chassis 0540 -shown here- is one of five private cars built by Ferrari. The car is bought new by Belgian importer and racing stable owner Jacques Swaters, and appears at the start of a GP seventeen times. The car passes from one famous owner to another, from racing driver Alfonso de Portago to Ferrari collector Pierre Bardinon, eventually finding residency with a collector in Cologne, Germany, for over two decades.
Unique Ferrari 625 F1
When the Ferrari is put up for auction, the bright red sausage-shaped single-seater undergoes a secure inspection by Ferrari Classiche. Only then does it really reveal how unique this 625 F1 really is. The car is matching numbers, meaning it still carries its original engine, chassis and gearbox, is in perfect original condition and carries its life experience with pride. Right down to a hand-painted red rev range on the glass. A time capsule with starting numbers.
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