The latest Palm Beach Cavallino Classic, the world’s top event devoted entirely to Ferrari classics, came to a close last week. This year’s event, the 31st, included two extraordinary celebrations: one marking Ferrari’s 75th anniversary and the other the 60th birthday of the Ferrari 250 GTO.
A Ferrari 365 P Speciale (chassis no. 8971), representing production year 1966, was judged the Overall Outstanding Ferrari Granturismo, while a 250 GTO from 1964 (chassis no. 5573 GT) took the Overall Outstanding Ferrari Competition award. è andato alla Ferrari 250 GTO del 1964, telaio nr. 5573 GT
The 31st Palm Beach Cavallino Classic, (organized by Canossa Events) and held on the lawns of The Breakers in Palm Beach (Florida), will be remembered as a very special edition. This well- established event, devoted to Ferrari classics, saw a great turnout, of both cars and visitors, and there was also a hefty dose of Italy in the mix. Indeed, in addition to the cars, the awards, food and wine were all examples of Italian excellence. The event also provided the perfect opportunity to unveil the new “Cavallino” logo.
After the Track Day at The Concours Club on the Thursday (20 January), which was open exclusively to the Concours participants and marked 30 years of the Ferrari Challenge, and the Tour d’Eleganza on the Thursday (21 January), which saw the participants driving from Deerfield Beach to Palm Beach, along route A1A, one of Florida’s most scenic, the Saturday (22 January) brought the eagerly awaited Concorso d’Eleganza, which saw over 150 vehicles gathered on the lawns of The Breakers. The special line-up of cars celebrating the 75th anniversary of Ferrari, one car for each year of the company’s life, was a quite extraordinary spectacle: 75 cars representing the years from 1947 to 2021 plus a sample of the current 2022 production models (one per model), brought along by Ferrari Automobili.
It was a huge thrill, during the award ceremony, to see the 1964 Ferrari 250 GTO making its way through the crowd followed by the 166 Spyder Corsa representing production year 1948: a fantastic display of Ferrari history in a single glance.
Other than the cars..
The cars were not all. Cavallino also unveiled its new logo and the event trophies, designed by Pininfarina and hand crafted in Italy. The tortellini on the menu of the gala dinner were also handmade, by the famous “Sfogline” (specialist pasta makers from Reggio Emilia). These were cooked freshly on the night by an Italian chef who is also grandson of the woman who was EnzoFerrari’s personal chef in the 1950s and ’60s.
The Awards
The 1966 Ferrari 365 P Speciale s/n 8971 owned by Mexican collectors Roberto and Jami Quiroz took home two awards: Overall Outstanding Ferrari Granturismo and The Ferrari People’s Choice Award. Based on the revised 365/P2 racing chassis and nicknamed “Tre Posti” (three- seater), it is the first of the only two examples of the 365 Speciale ever produced. Designed by Aldo Brovarone, its body, by Pininfarina, is both unusual and spectacular.
The Overall Outstanding Ferrari Competition award went to the 1964 Ferrari 250 GTO s/n 5573 owned by American collector Aaron Hsu.
In 1964, this 250 GTO (s/n 5573 GT) was driven by all Ferrari’s F1 drivers, including John Surtees (world champion and the season’s leading driver), Lorenzo Bandini, Ludovico Scarfiotti, and Pedro Rodriguez. It was also raced by the 1961 world champion, Phil Hill, by Jean Guichet (1964 winner of the 24 Hours of Le Mans), and by future member of the works Ferrari Formula 1 team Mike Parkes. A total of six Ferrari Formula 1 drivers raced this car in World Championship competitions. It is the second GTO originally manufactured with the “1964” body design. Acquired in 1972 by the legendary collector Pierre Bardinon, s/n 5573 joined his fabled Ferrari collection at Mas Du Clos. In reference to his GTO 64, Bardinon readily remarked “if I could only keep one car, it would be this one.” (Cavallino Magazine, issue no. 50, page 32). In 2014, by which time both Bardinon and his wife had passed away, the car, meticulously maintained, was purchased directly from the family by its current custodian.
The Palm Beach 2022 Chairman’s Award, assigned by the Chairman of Canossa Events Luigi Orlandini, went to the 1993 Ferrari F40 LM (s/n 95449) belonging to Tom Cabrerizo (USA). One of a series of around 10, it was originally delivered in the United States. It has never raced, but has always been much admired.
On the Sunday, the Cavallino Classic moved to the Mar-A-Lago Club, for the day open also to other car brands, especially (although not only) those based in Motor Valley, whose collectors joined Ferrari enthusiasts for a day devoted to their shared love of Italian cars.
