Fast and fabulous
Never lost for things to talk about, RickWilson delves into his collection.
This month, we have a kind of twopronged follow-on. Firstly, this piece last month featured the exquisite Ferrari P5 by Dinky, so there’s the Maranello connection, but also, it connects to my largely Daytona-related article on the preceding pages.
Ferrari’s last attempt to build an outright endurance racer was this magnificent beast, designated the 333 SP. The SP clearly stands for sports prototype, but I’ve yet to uncover where the 333 inspiration comes from. Ferrari used to have a habit of making this easy, such as with its 312-series racing cars – 3-litre with 12 cylinders - and so on.
Ferrari (responsible for the chassis and engine) worked initially with Dallara, then Michelotto, for production. Dallara produced the transmission, suspension and bodywork, having also developed the aerodynamics. The two production companies made 16 and 24 cars respectively, making a total of 40 produced. The majority did race, but some were bought by collectors and went straight into storage, sadly.
Powered by a modified 4-litre version of the 65-degree V12 engine from the Ferrari 641 F1 car, from 1990, it made the most delightful noise at full tilt. Prior to my trip to Daytona in 2001, I had seen it race at various tracks in Europe, including Le Mans several times, but nothing prepared me for the ear-splitting delight of one screaming (literally!) around the famous banking in Florida. I can still hear it now, 20 years later (maybe my ears are still ringing?). An absolute joy to witness.
In addition to its obvious mechanical attraction, it’s also a beautifully-styled car, with simple, but effective, aerodynamics. And, to me, it looks best in Maranello Red. So when Hot Wheels produced a run of models in 1/18 scale, I just had to have one. I could have gone for the 1998 Daytonawinning Momo-sponsored car, available in pristine
notch sportscar racing legends were hired to drive it, as it had a real chance at outright victory, and 2001 would be its last chance, as the rules for racing at Daytona were about to change dramatically, which would outlaw the 333 SP and its contemporaries. So with Allan McNish, David Brabham, Eric van der Poele and Ralf Kelleners providing the talent (in the absence of any major sponsorship, they had all signed the bodywork too), the car was qualified fastest (but started third, strangely, I can’t remember why). In the race, it was running very well, leading at times – but the engine let go with little warning during the night. With our car out after four hours (see previous pages), we’d actually all gone back to the hotel for some rest, and I was most disappointed when I returned to the track in the morning to find that the Ferrari had retired. I haven’t seen one in anger since, but those laps at Daytona will live in my memory forever.