Ferrari enthusiasts the world over will celebrate the legendary brand's 60th anniversary this year.
Highlighted by a relay-style, worldwide convoy and celebrations by Ferrari owners, Ferrari's 60th anniversary celebrations kicked off in the Middle East in January, circled around the globe, and will climax this week in Maranello, Ferrari's fabled hometown.
Heading the series of events that will mark the 60th anniversary is Relay Ferrari 60.
This is a relay across every country in which Ferrari operates. Ferrari employees, Ferrari dealers and Ferrari customers will all be involved, carrying a specially designed torch symbolising the 60 most significant events in Ferrari history.
Contemporary and iconic, the Relay Ferrari 60 torch is a bright red cylinder -- capped with a Ferrari 'prancing horse' emblem -- around which icons of the 60 milestones of the company history are wound in a bright metal spiral effect. These icons range from Ferrari's victory at Le Mans in 1949 to its six straight Formula One world titles, 1999 to 2004, all fuelled by Shell.
Shell was with Ferrari at the first Grand Prix in 1950 and its first Formula One World Championship win in 1951. Shell engineers form an integral part of the team, analysing fuel and oil samples in a dedicated Track Lab at races, while providing support in Maranello and at Shell facilities globally. The partnership has taken 11 drivers' and eight constructors' F1 World Championship titles since it began.
Photograph: Piero Ferrari, right, son of Ferrari founder Enzo Ferrari and the company chairman, hands over the ceremonial relay baton at the start of the Ferrari 60 Relay in Abu Dhabi. Photograph, courtesy Shell Motorsport
