Silverstone Auctions will offer a historically significant Aston Martin works team race car as the headline lot in its Race Retro Competition Car Sale next month.
The 1989 Aston Martin AMR1 Group C race car was one of four examples built for the track during a golden era of motorsport
Chassis AMR1/05 was the final car built, and was piloted to impressive finishes by some of the most celebrated drivers of the period.
The car made its debut in 1989 at Donington Park, driven by IMSA championship winner Brian Redman and Le Mans winner Stanley Dickens, where it finished a highly respectable 7th.
It then finished 7th again, this time at the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps with Redman and Dickens behind the wheel, before placing 8th in the final race of the season in Mexico City, driven by David Leslie and Michael Roe.
However, with a revised AMR2 model on the drawing board and the goal of the 1990 Le Mans race in sight, the project was abruptly cancelled – as parent company Ford decided it didn’t want Aston Martin entries stealing the spotlight from its other prestige brand Jaguar.
Thankfully, the car was granted a second lease of life on the historic racing circuit. In recent years AMR1/05 has been campaigned around the world, with notable victories at Monza in 2003 and Donington in May 2013, along with a second-place finish in the 2014 Le Mans 24hr support race.
Regarded as an important piece of British motorsport history, the car will now lead the line at Silverstone Auctions, with an estimated value of £500,000 – £550,000 ($614,000 – $675,500).
"This car represents a major piece of motor racing heritage with unquestionable provenance, superb build quality, and with a proven ability to win," said Nick Whale, managing director at Silverstone Auctions.
"Group C racing stands out to this day as one of the most sensational and spectacular eras in the history of motorsport, and this car would be an ideal entrant to the Classic Le Mans race in 2017 and historic Group C racing championship."
The Silverstone Auctions Race Retro Competition Car Sale takes place at the Race Retro International Historic Motorsport Show at Stoneleigh Park on February 24.
