Perhaps the most iconic of all 550 Maranello models has just sent a new price benchmark

It’s no secret that cars with celebrity owners are more valuable than those without, but we suspect few would have predicted how much a 1997 Ferrari 550 Maranello once owned by Michael Jordan would have sold for this week.  

In Europe and the United States, you can pick up the keys to a high-mileage 550 Maranello for just over €100,000, or less than $150,000. However, demand for low-mileage models is very strong, and some have sold for more than $500,000 this year. As this 550 Maranello was owned by Jordan, a pre-auction estimate of between $700,000 and $1.3 million seemed right on the money. It ended up selling for $2.7 million.

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There’s no word on who paid hypercar money for this Ferrari, but the car’s provenance is undeniable. The car was ordered new by Jordan from Foreign Cars Italia of Greensboro, North Carolina, and installed with a custom driver’s seat with slimmer padding and new rails so the NBA legend could fit.

The Car Disappeared From View For 25 Years

Jordan drove the car frequently during his time at the Chicago Bulls, including its championship-winning year in 1998. He sold the car through Lake Forest Sportscars in Illinois in 2002, and it disappeared from view, residing in a secretive Californian collection.

We Are Curated, an exclusive car dealership in Miami, tracked the car down through its VIN and convinced the owner to sell it. It was then returned back to Chicago and listed up for auction through Joopiter last month. Whether or not it’ll continue to soar in value remains to be seen, but it’s certainly among the most desirable 550s on the planet.

Joopiter

Jordan drove the car approximately 6,400 miles (10,299 km) before parting ways with it. When it was sold on October 1, the odometer was sitting at 18,501 miles (29,774 km), showing the Ferrari was driven sparingly. It’s hardly a surprise then that it appears to be in excellent condition.

The Rosso Corsa paint looks absolutely brilliant, as do the spectacular chrome-finished five-spoke wheels. Similarly, the tan-colored leather on the seats, door panels, transmission tunnel, and lower half of the dashboard looks pristine.