There are unicorns in the automotive mythology, and then there’s the Ferrari 290 MM. When looking at the Supercar Series’ bloodline, this is just one of the incredible machines that contributed its DNA. Born during the ultimate age of motorsport rivalry, when marques competed mercilessly to wear the laurel crowns of victory more for respect than sales, it should be little surprise that one of the most coveted vehicles ever known was born from Enzo’s relentless determination to best Mercedes-Benz.
In 1955, Mercedes claimed the checkered flag of the Mille Miglia—a perilous 1,000-kilometer sprint around the Italian countryside, as famed for its glory as its lethality. That year Stirling Moss and Denis Jenkinson piloted their Formula One–based Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR to a record-setting finish, while also winning the Targa Florio and overall World Sports Car Championship. Enzo fumed watching the Germans claim the Red Arrow trophy of his homeland’s most prized race.
With the full force of his Scuderia behind him, Ferrari’s founder charged his best men to craft the world’s supreme long-distance motorsport gladiator. Its mission to return honor to Maranello defined its very name: 290 for the V12’s 2.9-liter displacement, and MM for the Mille Miglia, which the new car would be designed to win in 1956.
Enzo entrusted legendary Ferrari engineer Giuseppe Busso to heavily adapt the 860 Monza chassis and bore out the previous 250 MM’s V12 into the screaming 2.9-liter. While the new V12 offered top-tier performance for the time—260 horsepower with speeds north of 170 mph—Busso and fellow engineer Carlo Chiti were tasked with ensuring reliability critical for the long-distance races the 290 MM would compete in, such as the Nürburgring, Targa Florio, 24 Hours of Sebring and the 1000 km Buenos Aires.
Perhaps more salient for lovers of Ferrari’s beloved voluptuous body lines, however, was Sergio Scaglietti’s work sculpting the 290 MM’s curvaceous sheet metal. Aimed at optimizing aerodynamics, the famed coach builder and expert in lightweight construction penned the chariot’s iconic swooping fenders to create one of the most lust-worthy automobiles of all time. “Ferrari’s sports-prototype racing cars are among the most legendary in motorsport history as they epitomize the desire, passion and mechanical brilliance that the Maranello team could bring to bear on the track,” as RM Sotheby’s notes. “Most significantly, each and every design had Enzo’s personal handprint upon them.”
When all was said and done, in 1956 the Ferrari brain trust celebrated a mission accomplished when Eugenio Castellotti piloted his 290 MM Spyder Scaglietti across the checkered flag to claim victory in the race, while Juan Manuel Fangio finished fourth in his 290 MM, cementing the model’s legacy. Mercedes did not compete that year, so they can’t truly be said to have been vanquished by Enzo’s marvel, but no matter. Not only did the stunning victory return Ferrari to the apex of the Mille Miglia, it also ensured the 290 MM, with only four ever built, would become one of the most desired vehicles on the planet. In 2015, RM Sotheby’s auctioned Fangio’s 290 MM for $28 million—at the time it was the most expensive car sold that year, the most expensive ever sold in New York City and the most expensive car the auction house itself had ever sold, period.
Prior to the sale it had resided in Pierre Bardinon’s renowned Mas du Clos Collection in France for many years. Three years later, one of only two other existing examples sold for $22 million. Adjusted for inflation, the 2015 sale equates to about $37 million in today’s dollars, but it’s hard to say exactly how much a 290 MM could fetch if and when an example ever comes up for auction again. As Motor Sport magazine put it, “The 290 MM deserves its own niche; designed to conquer the Mille Miglia, it did that and more. But it also marked a return to Ferrari’s core strengths.” Though the model may not be as famous as the Monza or Testa Rossa, collectors have assuredly taken note of its intrinsic value.
“The impressive list of drivers that were given a chance to slide behind the wheel of the 290 MM reads like a who’s who of the finest drivers of the era,” RM Sotheby’s notes. “Their combined accomplishments are truly astonishing in every sense, and motor racing would not have captured the world’s attention in such a way without their influence and expertise.” The auction house adds that, “In today’s heavily regulated world of motorsport, it is wonderful to reflect on the fact that in the 1950s there were few rules to govern the Works teams in the design of their latest race cars. These wonderful machines were therefore developed to the absolute limit of what was achievable, with no rules governing cylinder capacity or weight. The only limiting factor was the bravery of the driver and his ability to read the road ahead on some of the most challenging events for both car and driver that have ever existed.”
Meanwhile, Castellotti’s Mille Miglia–winning Ferrari 290 MM (chassis number 0626) reportedly remains in its original form, widely considered among the most valuable and historically significant automobiles in existence. Formerly owned by ex-Microsoft president and collector Jon Shirley, the Castellotti 290 MM’s current location and ownership remains unknown.