Maserati 250F Voted Greatest Racing Car Ever

Readers of U.K. mag Octane have named the Maserati 250F "World's Greatest Racing Car."  Seen here in photos, Pink Floyd drummer Nick Mason drove the car in for a visit with the Royal Automobile Club in London.

The award, suggested by Sir Stirling Moss, was also supported by Mason.  Mason, himself a race fan who has participated in 24 Hours at Le Mans, said, “The accolade is well deserved. To many the 250F is the archetypal Grand Prix car and, apart from being one of the most beautiful, it is one of the most progressive and forgiving of racing cars to drive."

"Who can forget what must be the most iconic of motor racing images – Fangio in a full power-slide at the French Grand Prix in 1957, with battle scars evident on the nose? (The car that is, not the driver).”

Used from 1954 to 1958, the 250F took top prize in 55 races.  An F1 car, it first competed in the 1954 Argentine Grand Prix with Juan Manuel Fangio at the wheel.  Sir Stirling raced his own 250F during that season, which he also used to win the 1956 Grand Prix races in Italy and Monaco.  The Maserati 250F beat out nine other racecars for the magazine's honor, including the Auto Union Type C, Cobra, Lotus 49, Mercedes-Benz W196, Porsche 917, and the Toyota TS010.

“It was a great idea from Octane to get readers to vote for their favourite racing car and I am delighted that the 250F beat its rivals,” Mason said.