Late last year we reported that Bernie Ecclestone was preparing to sell off his 69 car-strong collection, including Formula One racers driven by the likes of Niki Lauda, Michael Schumacher, Nelson Piquet, and Mike Hawthorn. Now the collection has found a new home with the help of Tom Hartley Jnr. as billionaire Mark Mateschitz, son of Red Bull founder Dietrich Mateschitz, takes the keys to dozens of legendary Formula One machines. Among the numerous World Championship-winning prancing horses, Mateschitz now owns legends like the Thin Wall Special — the first Ferrari to ever beat Alfa Romeo — and the Alberto Ascari Italian Grand Prix-winning 375 F1. 

However, the good news is that the 32 year old Austrian plans to make the collection accessible to the public in the near future. "How much did he pay for all that sumptuous and historic metal?” we hear you ask. Well, the actual figure hasn’t been disclosed, but Tom Hartley Jnr. did comment that it was “By several multiples the biggest sale price ever achieved for a classic car collection.” Meanwhile, Bernie himself had this to say about selling off so many prized grand prix cars: “With a bit of luck I might get two or three more years. And I don’t want to leave all this for Fabiana to sort. All these car dealers would be driving her mad. So the best thing to do is to get all the cars together and try to make sure they go to proper homes.” With any luck, Mateschitz will decide to open a museum with his newfound collection, and that’s one we’d love to meander through!