Photo: Walter Pietrowicz

Greatest Racecar? Maserati 250F

Every era has its own greatest racing car. I would like to go back to my boyhood where I have fond memories of a car that made a real impact on me, the Maserati 250F. Nick Mason gave me a wonderful opportunity to drive his 250F. It didn’t let me down; the drive showed me that the car was just a beautifully balanced machine. I was immediately transported back in time and remembered what a real front-engined racing car looked like. I had thought that I may have had the experience I had had with other racing cars that I held in high esteem, only to be very disappointed when I got behind the wheel and drove them. This was not the case with the 250F; it was a magical drive and all that I had anticipated it to be. It was very docile and would slide and drift when I wanted it to—an all-time classic car.

I think, from another era, the next on my list would be the Williams FW07C. I drove an ex-Alan Jones Saudi car; I found it to be well-engineered, had massive grip, and drove well, too. One also has to consider sports cars. I really don’t think that greatest racecars have to be single-seaters; they do tend to get overlooked by many people; take for example the Porsche 917—just a great car.

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