Ferrari Monza SP1 heads to auction
March 10, 2025
It’s easy to understand why Ferrari wants to engage with its heritage. We’re talking about the company that gave the world the 250 GTO, 365 GTB/4 Daytona, 288 GTO, Testarossa and F40. It’s fair to say a significant percentage of the world’s most iconic sports cars have rolled out of Maranello’s gates. And that’s before we even get to the stream of Formula One cars that have so far won fifteen Drivers’ titles and sixteen Constructor’s titles, making Ferrari the most successful team in the sport’s history by some considerable margin.
Launching the Icona series in 2018, Ferrari honoured its most celebrated models by reimagining their designs for the 21st century. This limited-production program caters solely to Ferrari’s most loyal clientele, offering devoted Ferraristi the opportunity to acquire an exclusive model that’s custom-built to its purchaser’s desired specifications.
To date, the Icona Series has comprised three icons, kicking things off with the Monza SP1 and SP2. Both are essentially the same car, except the SP2 has two seats versus the SP1’s single-seater layout, making it the lighter of the duo. As the only single-seater model yet to feature in the Icona series and by far the rarest, the SP1 is the one collectors are looking for.
Car & Classic is honoured to offer this superb Monza SP1, a one-keeper car with just 140 kilometres on the clock. You simply don’t see these cars come up for sale, let alone the most desirable version with little more than delivery mileage, full main dealer service history, the full array of original accessories and even a two-year Ferrari warranty!
The Monza pays homage to Ferrari’s barchetta-bodied racing cars of the 1950s. These lightweight open-topped specials thundered through the Italian countryside during the golden era of the Mille Miglia and Targa Florio. The influence of the ‘50s Ferraris like the Touring-bodied 166 MM comes through clearly in the Monza’s design. Note the low-slung bodywork with muscular haunches, and most noticeably, the lack of a conventional windscreen. Inspired by the traditional aero screen, the modern-day Monza funnels air over the driver with its “virtual windshield” – Maranello marketing speak for some very clever physics in action. The Monza’s permanently open-topped nature is a direct link to its Mille Miglia-winning forbears; cars that one almost sits on, rather than sits in. It serves as a reminder that today’s cars cocoon us from the outside world, desensitizing us to speed.
By way of contrast, the chassis and drivetrain look to the future rather than the past. The front-mid-engined 812 Superfast lends the Monza its 6.5-litre V12 and seven-speed dual-clutch gearbox, offering 809 horsepower at the heady heights of 8,500 rpm. Bellisimo.
Much like how the 166 MM used the very latest Superlegerra construction techniques, eight decades on, the Monza uses the very best modern materials in order to keep mass to a minimum. Carbon fibre features in abundance, proving the strongest, lightest and most versatile material in which to sculpt the SP1’s slippery shape. Our SP1 was optioned with even more carbon than standard – if indeed there is such a thing as a “standard” Monza… The first owner ordered practically everything to be made out of the stuff, ticking the boxes marked carbon rear diffuser, carbon air vents, carbon front spoiler… The list goes on. Even the hubcaps are special-order carbon fibre items!
Few have been lucky enough to drive a Monza. With just 140 kilometres under its belt, this one’s barely turned a wheel, so even the owner has hardly had the opportunity to get to grips with it. The 812 Superfast on which it’s based was hailed by some as the greatest GT car money could buy, and the Monza takes this to the next level. It’s a visceral experience, a sensory overload heightened further by the fact you’re completely exposed to the elements. Sure, you’ll get a little damp if it rains – remember there is no roof – but you do get to appreciate the howl from that naturally aspirated V12 as it crescendos to its 8,500 rpm like a Rossini opera reaching its climax.
As it heads under the hammer, this 2020 Ferrari Monza SP1 offers an exciting opportunity for collectors seeking their Holy Grail. We wish you the very best of luck in the auction which starts on 30th March 2025.
