Mecum’s inaugural Monterey Auction was held August 15, 2009. The newest auction to be held during the famous Monterey Car Week was a huge success. The 1965 Shelby Daytona Cobra Coupe offered at auction earlier in the year found its appropriate audience in Monterey and set a record for the highest bid for an American Car at auction. The championship-winning car sold for a record-breaking $7.25 milllion.
Promoted for months leading up to the event, the Cobra sale was no doubt a benchmark in Mecum Auction’s 22 year history of selling some of the finest muscle and performance cars across the United States.
The 1965 Shelby Daytona Cobra was one of six cars built by Carroll Shelby to compete against the dominating Ferrari in the F.I.A. (Federation Internationale de l’Automobile) World Manufacturers Championship for GT race class. An experimental coupe body designed by Peter Brock was built on an existing Cobra chassis, immediately increasing the top speed by 25 mph. That car won its first race, the 1964 Daytona Continental (prompting Shelby to adopt the name), and five more coupes were built, including CSX2601.
After competing at Daytona, Monza, Spa and Nurburgring, CSX2601 made history when it clinched the 1965 World Manufacturers Championship for the United States and Shelby American on July 4 in Reims, France. Driving the car – and America – to victory was legendary race car driver Bob Bondurant. Bondurant drove the Daytona Cobra Coupe across the Mecum auction block as it set the new high-bid record.
In all, more than 200 cars ranging from a 1931 Rolls-Royce to a 2007 Saleen S7 were offered at the inaugural sale held at the Hyatt Regency in Monterey. To see Mecum’s event calendar visit http://www.mecum.com
