Michael Schumacher Drove This Race Automotive in His Components 1 Debut. Now It’s Up for Grabs.
The Bonhams Grandes Marques du Monde à Paris public sale on February 2 will likely be stuffed with all method of motorsport exotica on the market, however one emerald-green open-wheel racer will likely be taking heart stage—the 1991 Jordan-Ford 191-6 Formula 1 automobile utilized by a really younger Michael Schumacher.
Through the preliminary observe session of his first Formula 1 look, Schumacher stunned all in attendance by clocking the eighth-fastest time. The automobile he did it in, chassis No. 191/6, will fall below the hammer barely 18 months after it was final offered by Speedmaster Vehicles for £1.25 million (roughly $1.53 million). Bonhams has since taken up the reigns of the brand new sale, with bidding estimated to speed up to as a lot as $2.1 million.
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“With a automobile so traditionally vital within the profession of one of many best Components 1 drivers of all time, this automobile presents a chance for collectors internationally to personal a chunk of unrepeatable Components 1 historical past,” says Louis Frankel, consignment specialist at Bonhams Collector Vehicles. “The automobile is comparatively easy to run in contrast with the Components 1 vehicles of at the moment. It comes with a pre-heater and starter, all that’s wanted to get the automobile working.”
Penned by famend designer Gary Anderson, the 1991 Jordan-Ford 191 was the Jordan workforce’s first effort in Components 1 after a number of profitable seasons within the now-defunct Components 3000 class. A tribute to Anderson, it was even named the “Finest Wanting F1 Automotive of All Time” by British newspaper The Day by day Telegraph in 2018.
In 1991, Crew 7Up Jordan drivers included veteran Andrea De Cesaris, Bertrand Gachot, Michael Schumacher, Roberto Moreno and Indycar champion Alex Zanardi. Schumacher, then competing for Mercedes in endurance races, had his one-off look in chassis No. 191/6 after Gachot was pressured to serve an 18-month jail sentence for a visitors altercation.
Jordan introduced three chassis (191/4, 191/5 and 191/6) to the Spa-Francorchamps circuit for the Belgian Grand Prix, and Schumacher instantly set to work within the 191/5, outpacing the workforce’s lead driver, Andrea De Cesaris, by 2.68 seconds in observe. De Cesaris instantly suspected one thing was amiss and switched to chassis No. 191/4 for the subsequent session. Schumacher’s unique automobile developed mechanical points and so he ended up within the automobile now on provide, however just for that session.
For the ultimate qualifying session, the 2 drivers modified once more. De Cesaris returned to this 191/6 and Schumacher was again behind the wheel of the 191/5. It didn’t matter, as Schumacher certified in seventh place whereas managing to be 0.774 seconds sooner than De Cesaris, who landed within the eleventh place. Through the precise race, Schumacher’s day was, sadly, over after two corners when his clutch failed. De Cesaris, nevertheless, simply missed a debut victory for himself and the Jordan workforce, closing in on chief Ayrton Senna earlier than De Cesaris had his engine expire with three laps remaining.
Schumacher’s star, although, was on the rise. He was snapped up for the very subsequent grand prix by Benneton, a workforce he stayed with for the subsequent three-and-a-half seasons and win his first two world championships with in 1994 and 1995.
There are solely two examples of the 1991 Jordan-Ford 191 in existence, the opposite being in Michael Schumacher’s private assortment housed in his museum on the Cologne airport. As such, this sale represents an ultra-rare alternative to personal a coveted piece of Formula 1 history.
Click on here for extra photographs of the Ex-Michael Schumacher 1991 Jordan-Ford F1 racer on provide by Bonhams.
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