When you think of Ferrari track racers, you probably don't think of the 550 (the predecessor to the 812 Superfast). When it launched in 1996, the 550 Maranello marked the return of glorious front-engined V12 Ferrari grand tourers after the mid-engined Testarossa ended production. Without permission from Ferrari, ProDrive turned the 550 into a track racer known as the 550 GT1. It was very successful, finishing first in the GTS Class at the 2003 24 Hours of Le Mans and achieving an overall win at the 2004 24 Hours of Spa.

Not to be outdone, this inspired Ferrari to launch its own 550 race car. Built in collaboration with N-Technology, it was called the 550 GTC. Only two were made before it was replaced by the 575 GTC, and now one of them, chassis number 2102, is heading to auction.

Work on the 550 GTC began after the road-going 550 was discontinued and replaced with the 575. Both 550 GTC cars were delivered to the French team JMB Racing to be raced in the 2003 FIA GT season. Finished in Rosso Corsa red with a Tessuto Racing Nero interior, the 550 GTC for sale made its competition debut at the LG Super Racing Weekend at Donington Park back in June 2003.

It then raced at the 24 Hours of Spa the same month against three Prodrive Ferrari 550s, Dodge Vipers, and Saleen SR7s. During the first six hours, the 550 GTC led the race but was forced to retire after 326 laps due to an engine failure.

In 2004, chassis number 2102 was placed in storage and sold to its second owner, an Italian privateer racer in 2005 who raced it at the 2005 Campionato Italiano Velocita Montagna (CIVM) and became the overall GTM class champion in 2005, 2006, and 2014. He went on to achieve around 30 class and group wins when he continued racing the Ferrari in events until 2016.

In 2016, the engine was rebuilt before the car was sold the next year to its third and current owner who restored its original 24 Hours of Spa livery. If you want to own this rare piece of Ferrari racing history, the 550 GTC will be sold next February at an RM Sotheby's auction in Paris, where it's expected to fetch over €200,000 ($226,000).