Maserati Takes Top Honours at the Inaugural Anantara Concorso Roma as Automotive Masterpieces Cars Shine

Anantara Concorso Roma made an impressive debut in the Italian capital over the weekend of 18–19 April 2026, bringing together more than 70 historic Italian cars in the heart of Rome, with the Anantara Palazzo Naiadi Rome Hotel serving as the event’s headquarters and Casina Valadier at Villa Borghese as the principal concours setting. Conceived as a celebration of “La Dolce Vita delle Automobili,” the event marked the return of a major concours to Rome more than sixty years after the last such occasion and immediately established a distinctive identity by being reserved exclusively for Italian cars. Judging was overseen by Chief Judge Adolfo Orsi, with Lorenzo Ramaciotti and Jean Todt serving among the honorary judges, and the breadth of the field, spread across 16 classes, confirmed the serious ambition behind the concours from its very first edition.

The overall winner of the inaugural edition was the extraordinary 1932 Maserati V4 Sport Zagato, the celebrated sixteen-cylinder pre-war machine that claimed Best of Show on Sunday. Presented by Lawrence Auriana, friend and supporter of Automotive Masterpieces, the Maserati proved a fitting headline winner, while the confirmed class winners reflected the exceptional breadth of the field assembled in Rome.

A significant number of cars associated with Automotive Masterpieces were entered in the concours, underlining the quality of the research and collector relationships behind the project. Particularly notable were two class-winning entries: the 1949 Alfa Romeo 6C 2500 SS Berlinetta (Pinin Farina), sn 915769, from the Corrado Lopresto collection, which headed the early post-war coupé category, and the 1935 Alfa Romeo 6C 2300 Gran Turismo Pescara Spider (Touring), sn 6C 700635, winner of the Alfa Romeo 6C 2300 class. The presence of the monograph beside the Pescara, unveiled for the first time on this occasion, also added an especially meaningful scholarly dimension to the concours presentation.

Other Automotive Masterpieces cars present in Rome included the 1953 Ferrari 340 MM Spyder Touring, sn 0294AM, winner of the special award “Ian Cameron per il miglior suono”, and Jan De Reu’s Fiat 8V (Carrozzerie Speciali Fiat), sn 106000089, winner of the prize for Best Restoration. Three further Automotive Masterpieces entries had been accepted for the event but were ultimately unable to attend. The Alfa Romeo 6C 2300 B Mille Miglia ex Count Mazzotti, sn 815074, and the Ferrari 250 Europa (Pinin Farina), sn 0303/EU, of the 1954 Brussels Motor Show were prevented from reaching Rome because of unresolved customs issues, while John Houghtaling’s Ferrari 735 LM, sn 0546 LM, had to withdraw because of a setback in its restoration schedule.

Beyond the awards themselves, Anantara Concorso Roma left the clear impression of a new event with genuine stature. The combination of an exclusively Italian field, the Roman setting, the quality of the entries and the seriousness of the judging gave the first edition immediate credibility. With the Maserati V4 Sport Zagato as its first Best of Show winner, the new concours could scarcely have chosen a more compelling emblem of Italian automotive imagination with which to open its history.

Photo ©️ Jacopo Pieretti - Sandro Binelli - Annatara Concorso Roma