Michael Schumacher update as private collection including his F1 racing suit & helmet sells for £2MILLION at auction
A COLLECTION of Michael Schumacher memorabilia has been flogged for £2million more than a decade after his final race.
The F1 race ace’s helmets, racing suits, gloves, boots, gloves and even bottles of champagne were sold in the auction.
Devoted collectors and fans of the German driver – who won a joint record seven world titles – bought a little piece of history by snapping up 159 items of memorabilia.
Schumacher, 54, has not been seen in public since he was almost killed in a horror ski accident in 2013.
At the time of his retirement from racing in 2012, he held the record for the most wins at 91 during his glittering 21 year career.
The pieces were estimated to sell for a total of £1.4million but ended up selling for just over £600,000 more than the expected prices – with the total sale worth £2,081,341.
The most expensive item was a signed helmet from when he won the F1 Championship in 2003 – which sold for £96,000.
It was used at the German Grand Prix, where Schumacher qualified sixth and finished eighth.
A red race suit from the same season went for £62,000.
He wore it during the Canadian Grand Prix where he qualified in third but won the race.
An autographed rear wing end plate from one of his Ferrari race cars – again from 2003 – fetched £20,160.
Schumacher’s Nike Formula 1 racing boots from 2000 meanwhile went for £14,400.
A pair of signed Ferrari gloves he wore behind the wheel in his sixth title-winning season were bought for £12,480.
The Scuderia Ferrari Championship Commemorative Trophy given to team staff in 2000 sold for £9,600.
An empty bottle of Moet champagne – signed by fellow F1 greats Ayrton Senna and Alain Prost in 1989 – was snapped up for £6,000.
A cap he wore in 2012 after moving to Mercedes went for £1,100.
The collection was sold by RM Sotheby’s in Monterey, California, US and ended yesterday.
A RM Sotheby’s spokesman said: “From the moment Michael Schumacher first laced up his race boots and pulled on a helmet, the gifted racer was nothing short of a phenomenon.
“A force of nature who would go on to dominate the highest echelons of competitive motorsport.
“Among this treasured collection of automobilia are more than 75 lots of race-worn clothing and equipment spanning the breadth of Schumacher’s career.”