If you’re in your mid-twenties, the chances receiving a Ferrari as your company car are slim to none. Unless, that is, you’re one of Ferrari’s ace F1 drivers. This 1973 Ferrari 365 GT4 2+2 coming up for auction with Dorotheum was given to a 24 year-old Niki Lauda following the signing of his contract to race for Ferrari in Formula One. Originally delivered to Niki in September 1973 in the fantastic colour combination of Grigio Argento with Blu leather, the car proved to be somewhat of a good luck charm, as Niki would become world champion almost exactly two years later at the Italian Grand Prix in Monza. 

Unfortunately for Niki, getting the car through Austrian Customs was proving to be extremely difficult and expensive, so in the January following his World Driver’s Championship win, the car was sold to fellow racing driver Karl Oppitzhauser. The next owner was Michael Denzel, son of Ferrari importer Wolfgang Denzel, who repainted the car in it’s current colour scheme of dark metallic red, before the car disappeared without a trace.

Decades passed without any sign of Niki Lauda’s Ferrari, and even the car’s current owner had no idea of its impressive history. Today this lovely Ferrari 365 GT4 2+2 remains in largely unrestored condition and would make for a fantastic addition to any Ferrari collection. If this important piece of Ferrari’s history has caught your eye, be sure to check out Dortheum’s single-car auction on December 7th.