The word “NART” can only mean one thing: Ferrari.  Luigi Chinetti’s North American Racing Team served as Enzo Ferrari’s North American proxy, a race team for the rare occasion when the Scuderia couldn’t – or wouldn’t – show up to race stateside.  Chinetti was a shrewd Ferrari salesman, having opened the first Ferrari dealership in the United States.  Chinetti’s passion for racing dated back to his youth; the Italian was a multiple Le Mans winner and a successful driver and mechanic.

This 312P began life in 1969 as a factory racer destined for Le Mans, where it was driven by Chris Amon (it failed to finish).  The car was sold to Chinetti after racing in the 24 Hours and colliding with a Porsche 917.  After another crack at Le Mans in 1970, Chinetti brought the car to North America and turned it over to fabricator Wayne Sparling.  Sparling built a lightweight body for use on American racing circuits, removing the roof and both rear and front end.  The modified car was entered at Daytona and Sebring.  It was then disassembled and its history becomes murkier.  Now raced as a “Sparling-Ferrari”, it’s a truly unique sports car.