Maserati announce new FTributo Ghibli
The latest iteration of Maserati’s ‘FTributo Special Edition’ series pays homage to Maria Teresa de Filippis, who was the first female to compete in Formula One.
Born in Italy, de FIlippis started racing in 1948, initially in production cars before moving to more exotic sports cars. A runner-up finish in the 1954 Italian Sports Car Championship led to Maserati signing her as a works driver, for whom she campaigned a factory A6GS in the 1955 Targa Florio and other events, but her first F1 drive wouldn’t come until 1958.
Although Maserati had withdrawn from F1 as a constructor after the 1957 season, their cars remained available to privateers like de Filippis, who secured a 250F for the 1958 Monaco Grand Prix.
Although she failed to qualify at Monaco, de Filippis made history at the Belgian Grand Prix three rounds later as the first female to qualify and start a Formula 1 race.
De Filippis would also race a Maserati 250F in the Portuguese and Italian Grands Prix that year, before switching to a Behra Porsche RSK for the 1959 Monaco Grand Prix, which would be her fifth and last GP entry.
In honour of de Filippis, an FTributo Special Edition will be available on the Ghibli sedan and Levante SUV in a choice of Arancio Devil (orange) or Grigio Lamiera (grey) colours; the former referencing de Filippis’s nickname of “the she-devil”; the latter inspired by racing circuits generally, as the “home” of Maserati.
On Ghiblis in Arancio Devil, a choice of 21-inch Anteo or Titano wheels in Grigio Opaco (opaque grey) include detailing in Cobalt Blue, with the same blue applied to the FTributo badge on the front guards and Maserati trident on the C-pillar. For the Grigio Lamiera colour option, wheels are finished in gloss black, with the rim detailing and badging in orange.
Inside, the seats, dash and doorcards can be trimmed in a choice of black, orange or natural finish PienoFiore leather, with cobalt blue and/or orange stitching. The Maserati trident and FTributo logo are embroidered into the front seat headrests in orange.
No details are provided concerning whether the FTributo Special Edition will be available on the Ghibli Hybrid four-cylinder, 3.0-litre turbo V6 or 3.8-litre V8, nor if that running gear will be altered, but previous special editions have been unchanged mechanically.
Similarly, local pricing is also unavailable, but the cheapest MY22 Ghibli variant starts at $145,990, so the FTributo Special Edition will certainly carry a premium over that.
