The 36-lot sale’s headline lot is the boxer-engined König 500 GP developed and ridden by Kim Newcombe, the first New Zealander to win a 500cc Grand Prix. However, we have to question the taste of using his fatal accident at Silverstone in 1973 to market the bike with phrases such as ‘traces from the accident are still visible today’. It’s expected to fetch 120,000 euros.
It would be difficult for us to resist raising our paddle for the timeless elegance of the 1965 Vespa 150 (est. 6,000 euros), and likewise the subtly aggressive 1967 Kawasaki 250 Samurai (12,000 euros), with its racy two-stroke, two-cylinder air-cooled engine. Offered from the collection of the Italian racer Carlo Ubbiali, the distinct dustbin-faired MV Agusta 175 CSS-5V ‘Squalo’ (30,000 euros) is also an intriguing motorcycle, illustrating the extreme lengths engineers went to in what many would call the golden era of Grand Prix racing. An original factory bike, it even comes with the autograph of the 15-times World Champion Giacomo Agostini on the fuel tank. You can find the full catalogue for Auctionata’s Motorcycle Legends sale, taking place in Berlin on 23 September, listed in the Classic Driver Market.
