Chassis #211 is also the F2001 in which the seven-time world champion secured his fourth world title, with victory at the Hungarian Grand Prix. The car is expected to fetch around US$4million when it goes under the hammer.

The F2001 was a product of the fabled Ferrari ‘dream team’ led by Jean Todt, Ross Brawn, Rory Byrne and Paolo Martinelli, and it was the dominant machine of the season. It allowed Schumacher to match the outright record for Formula 1 wins – 51, held since 1993 by Alain Prost – and he would then surpass it on his way to a new mark of 53 wins by season’s end.

During the 2001 season, Schumacher won a total of nine grands prix in the F2001, taking the title in this very chassis in Hungary. His points tally of 123 almost doubled that of his nearest challenger, David Coulthard, who scored 65.

Schumacher’s 2001 title was his fourth of seven and his second consecutive title for Ferrari. It came during a sequence of five straight drivers’ and constructors’ title wins for Michael and Ferrari between 2000 and 2004 – a period during which team and driver achieved new standards of excellence.

The F2001 represented early noughties state-of-the-art F1 chassis design, with its tightly-sculpted Coke-bottle rear-end surround. Ferrari found further advantage by working hand-in-glove with Japanese tyre partner Bridgestone, which was fine-tuning its compounds and constructions to suit Schumacher’s particular requirements.

Powering him was a Ferrari Tipo 050 three-litre V10 engine, pushing out over 800bhp through a seven-speed semi-automatic transmission.