Please note that this lot will need to be collected from Lyndhurst, U.K. As long ago as 1993, Ferrari launched their one-make Ferrari Challenge series, which afforded professional and amateur drivers alike the opportunity to sample Maranello’s then-current 348 Berlinetta model in a racing environment.

Initially European in focus, the inaugural Ferrari Challenge North America followed in 1994, while 2011 saw the series extended to the Far East with the Ferrari Challenge Asia-Pacific.

The series’ regulations were revised in 1995, 2000 and 2006 to reflect the incoming 355, 360 and F430 models respectively, whilst 2011 heralded the arrival of the new 458 Challenge model.

Stripped of any extraneous weight, the car was some 350 kilogrammes lighter than the standard car and this - allied to a prodigious 570 horsepower from its 4.5-litre engine - offered startling performance approaching that of many contemporary GT3 race cars.

This particular example is highly unusual in that it remained ...