Opening at $16m... 1956 Ferrari 290 MM sells for $28m in NYC minutes ago

With the sale still in full swing, we can already report that only minutes ago RM’s Max Girardo hammered away the 1956 Ferrari 290 MM for $25.5m – that’s $28,050,000 with buyer’s premium of 10%. A sister factory entry to Castellotti’s winning car, chassis ‘0626’ was driven to fourth place in the 1956 Mille Miglia by Juan Manuel Fangio.
 
In a packed and expectant saleroom, bidding started at $16m, rising in $500k increments before, to tumultuous applause, Max Girardo dropped the gavel at $25.5m.

At $28,050,000 with premium, the figure eclipses 2015’s current record-holder, the Baillon Collection, ex-Alain Delon 1961 Ferrari 250 GT SWB California Spider sold by Artcurial for $18,568,320 in February.

As we revealed in an exclusive newsflash to K500 subscribers before RM announced its entry to the New York catalogue, the 350bhp, fire-breathing Ferrari has led a relatively genteel retirement, spending much of its time in the hands of French Ferrari collector of note, the late Pierre Bardinon. Only four 290 MMs were built, two being badly damaged in racing accidents (one fatal).
 
And to Artcurial’s recent announcement that it will offer the Bardinon Collection's ex-factory Ferrari 335S next February, even faster and with second place on the 1957 Mille Miglia to its name, we’d say that the Artcurial 335S definitely edges the RM 290 MM in desirability.

Did the news of another stellar Ferrari sports-racer affect the ultimate price of the 290 MM? Perhaps, and we think the French saleroom might have been wiser to let the New York car really have its head before revealing its hand.
 
Whatever, we’ll find out on Friday, 5 February 2016.
 
Earlier in the evening RM sold the 1962 Aston Martin DB4 GT Zagato for a net price of $13m (Est. $15m to $17m), a late European-spec Miura SV for $2.42m gross ($2.2m net vs. an estimate of $2.2m to $2.6m) and a car that Hollywood star Sharon Stone highlighted on Twitter, the ex-Janice Joplin hand-painted psychedelic 1964 Porsche 356 C Cabriolet, for an acid-tripping $1,760,000 all-in.
 
The show continues, and we’ll have a full report on K500 in the morning…

Photos by Grant Lamos, Getty Images, courtesy RM Sotheby’s