Passed in a mouthwatering January 2024, what happened with the show-stealing 1964 Ferrari 250 LM is from some turn of fate in the classic car world: it won the much-coveted title of winner at the 10th annual The Peninsula Classics Best of the Best Award in the year 2024. The ceremony was held in the sumptuous Peninsula Paris, where the Ferrari 250 LM had as ruling criterion best design, engineering, and racing pedigree.
Peninsula Classics Best of the Best Award is representative of a milestone in the classic automotive world. To step up the award every year is for every artisan in those fields: creation, construction, or history. The award highlights among these: the pinnacle of excellence, showcasing the one car that embodies the highest standards of design and engineering. The Ferrari 250 LM stood tall in a field of exceptional candidates, boxed among an elite select few of nine distinguished vehicles, each one having already received a major concours award during the past year. For this year’s award, these nine were cherry-picked from high-caliber events throughout the world, and the Ferrari 250 LM gained entry by winning the “Best in Show” award at the Cavallino Classic in January 2024.
An Iconic Piece of Ferrari History
Debuted in Paris in November 1963, the Ferrari 250 LM (Le Mans) is a genuine classic car legend. This mid-engined marvel was designed by the eminent Pininfarina, with the body already made by Scaglietti. It was intended to replace the Ferrari 250 GTO, probably the most successful racing car ever made by that manufacturer. Although it didn’t get the GT class approval at Le Mans, its racing blood would speak for itself in years to come.
It is a Grand Touring of the Ferrari 250 P, and with a little patrolling maneuver into the history books early in its life, it managed to break in and get one of its models into victory in the 1965 Le Mans 24 Hours event, winning subsequently the 1965 International Trophy for GT Prototypes. Now regarded as one of the rarest and arguably even the most iconic Ferraris ever produced, it left the production line in an extremely limited numbers, in total only 32 such units were built. Those were built not to be merely designer cars but were also very serious about speed, handling, and durability.
Victory in Racing Occupied Glory of Endurance
This is the very same 1964 Ferrari 250 LM that recently won the Best of the Best Award. It boasts a pretty long heritage in racing. Starting from 1965 until 1967, the car pretty much made these worlds into what they would regard as quite successful motorsport phases. It had big wins in 1966 at such famous venues as Brands Hatch, Snetterton, and Silverstone, proving just how effective it was on the competition front. Furthermore, the 250 LM even witnessed action in two of the most famous endurance races in the world: the 24 Hours of Daytona in 1966 and the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1968. Such entrances into the most revered events in motorsport only added to the legend of this very beautiful car-being a performer and a stayer, all rolled into one.
This particular Ferrari 250 LM also strikes as remarkable because of its extreme rarity. It is one of only a few cars that ever really made it into a racetrack and was constantly maintained to its prime racing condition. The excitement of classic car racing imbues its story, thus making it an even more special piece in any collection. In fact, the pride of having a notable motorsport history, combined with beauty and performance, is part of why it is such a prized choice for the Peninsula Classics Best of the Best Award.
Ownership and Care
In the event of Chris Cox, the latest bearer of the ownership of the Ferrari 250 LM, he expressed his heartfelt thanks on becoming an awardee. “This is really humbling for me to receive such an extraordinary award,” Cox said at the ceremony. The status of the owner to the car has been giving preservation and maintaining the Ferrari into a perfect condition since 2018. His conviction to making this gorgeous automobile endure from all time now makes it much more a living figure in history than just another cultural symbol of greatness in automotive engineering for Ferrari.
The commitment of Cox in preserving the Ferrari 250 LM is a testament to the ongoing appeal and respect for this incredible machine. Meticulous restoration brings this vehicle as shining an example of Ferrari engineering brilliance as it was meant to be a tribute to its motorsport heritage. Its participation in major classic car events will never stop, including the Best in Show at the Cavallino Classic event in 2024, placing in the enduring astonishment and relevance of the Ferrari 250 LM in the culture of collector cars.
The Contender
Undoubtedly, the Ferrari 250 LM deserved to win but it had a number of other competitors to reckon with. Eight other cars from different parts of the world stood up for the world’s greatest award in classic automobiles: Each of these produced histories, engineering, and design from the past, and they included:
An unusual 1932 Alfa Romeo 8C 2300 Spider- perhaps the most sought-after symbol of Alfa Romeo’s craftsmanship and racing history.
A 1957 Ferrari 335 S-another creation from the stable of Ferrari-with a rich pedigree of racing.
A 1937/1946 Delahaye 145 Cabriolet-indeed a fine specimen of French automotive elegance.
They are a French treasure and represent an embodiment of the subterranean sophistication of design and artistry-a Delahaye 135MS Narval Cabriolet 1947.
A 1934 Bugatti Type 59 Sports-a truly legendary car, track and a pedigree of wonderful engineering.
A 1937 Bugatti Type 57S Roadster-the
A real icon of the golden age of motorsport is the 1928 Bugatti Type 35C Grand Prix.
A 1937 Rolls-Royce Phantom III Convertible-model for British luxury and artistry.
All of these cars have their own distinct slice from the great pie of automotive history, but it was the one Ferrari-the 250 LM-that would win the race-the historic relevance of both car and owner was that.
A Historic Triumph
The Peninsula Classics Best of the Best Award serves to reiterate the endless charm of classic cars. For Chris Cox and his rare Ferrari 250 LM, this win at the grand occasion signifies yet another notch in the one vehicle that is so historically relevant in the waning glories of the automotive world.Again, this win was not only for the Ferrari, but also an added chapter in the appreciation of classic cars, their craftsmanship, and their racing history. Even as classic cars face modernity, the Ferrari 250 LM will remain an epitome of automotive excellence for the next years, celebrated for its style, performance, and history.