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Ferrari to be spun off from Fiat Chrysler

The recently merged Fiat Chrysler Automobiles empire has ambitious plans for growth, and it's going to need some big bucks in its coffers in order to enact them. Part of that cash injection is coming from the floating of its IPO on the New York Stock Exchange, but now FCA has announced a further capital campaign to be based on the enormous asset that is Ferrari.
FCA's board of directors has just approved the separation of Ferrari from the rest of the group as a separate entity. Once that separation is complete, Ferrari will put 10 percent of its shares on the stock market "in the United States and possibly a European exchange" as well.
This isn't the first time that the idea of a Ferrari IPO has been raised. Sergio Marchionne, chief executive of Chrysler, Fiat and Ferrari (pictured above), first raised the idea four years ago. Former Ferrari chairman Luca di Montezemolo nixed the idea, but now that he's been discharged, it appears there's nothing to get in the way of Marchionne's desires.

What next for Stefano Domenicali?

Ferrari is a team that's used to being on top. It does, after all, have more world championships to its name - 15 drivers' titles and 16 constructors' - than any other team in the history of Formula One racing. But despite having some of the best drivers and resources at its disposal, it hasn't won a championship in over five years. Someone had to take the blame for that, and that someone turned out to be Stefano Domenicali.
The team principal who took over after Jean Todt stepped back to focus first on the running of the entire company and then the FIA, Domenicali has presided over the driest spell in the team's history since Michael Schumacher and Ross Brawn arrived in the late 90s to bring Ferrari back to its winning form. Whether that ultimately proves to have been Domenicali's fault or not, the buck stopped on his desk and he resigned a couple of weeks ago, making way for Ferrari's North American chief Marco Mattiacci to take the reins. At least for now, anyway, as rumors circulate of a longer-term solution that could bring Ross Brawn back into the fold following his recent departure from Mercedes.
The big question now, however, is what Domenicali will do next. The latest intel suggests that he could leave four wheels behind but stay in the field of competitive sports to coach an Italian basketball team. The rumors are fueled by reports that Domenicali has been in touch with Giovanni Petrucci, head of the Federazione Italiana Pallacanestro - Italy's national basketball federation. The organization runs two professional basketball leagues within Italy as well as its national team that's won eight international championships, two gold, four silver and four bronze medals in the European league and two silver medals in the Olympics.

Bonhams auction at Quail Lodge led by 1959 Ferrari 250 GT Competizione

It doesn't take too much knowledge of the classic car market to figure out that, when it comes to values, Ferrari leads the pack. Bonhams 2015 Quail Lodge Auction did absolutely nothing to buck that trend with four of the five top sellers bearing the Prancing Horse. While none came near the auction house's sale of a 1962 Ferrari 250 GTO for $38.115 million last year, there were still beauties in the bunch. The leader among these thoroughbreds was a 1959 Ferrari 250 GT Competizione Alloy Berlinetta (pictured above) that went for $8.525 million, including the buyer's premium. It was one of just seven vehicles made to this specification and raced extensively when new, scoring a win in competition at Watkins Glen. A classic 1971 Ferrari 365 GTS/4 Daytona Spider brought $2.64 million, and a somewhat more modern 1985 288 GTO had the hammer drop at $2.365 million. The final Prancing Horse in the top five was a 1951 212 Inter Cabriolet with a body by Vignale for $2.2 million. It scored second-in-class at the 2014 Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance. Overturning the Ferrari trend, a 1955 Lancia Aurelia B24S Spider America rounded out the top five with a sale price of $1,952,500. While these are the most expensive vehicles to cross the block, you can check Bonhams' website for the results on all 111 lots. It's a wonderful array of largely European sports cars that are all in top shape.