The Peninsula Classics Best of the Best Award – the ultimate best in show

In our rich and diverse car culture, there are thousands of car shows that bring some of the best cars from the past and present to the limelight. Among those shows, the most pristine examples of the finest cars on earth are always at the world’s top concours events. The things that can turn up at a proper concours event can bewilder and amaze like nothing else can. Typically those events will crown a best in show to recognize a single car as the most exceptional machine among an already exceptional collection of cars. This year’s Monterey Car Week will have plenty of concours with plenty of best in shows, but one concours event will take that concept to a much higher level.
The Peninsula Classics Best of the Best Award will be presented at The Quail, A Motorsports Gathering on August 19th and it’ll be a literal best of the best show. They’re bringing in six best in shows from top concours events around the world onto the same lawn to compete for the ultimate best in show. They’ll have 23 industry legends on hand who will be charged with the daunting task of picking a single best of the best in show and essentially naming the finest car in the world.
Some details on the six cars in the running for this award are past the jump. They’re phenomenal.

Six of the finest cars from around the world, each with a best in show from a top concours event under its belt, will be judged by 23 prominent figures in the automotive world; such names like Peter Brock, Ian Callum, Gordon Murray, Ralph Lauren, Jay Leno, Fabio Filippini (Design Director of Pininfarina), Shiro Nakamura (Senior VP of Nissan), Henry Ford III, and more will be on hand. These are the cars they’ll be judging:

1903 Mercedes 60HP Simplex: only four currently exist and it originally replaced the Mercedes 35hp, which was once the fastest production car in the world. This example was named best in show at the Royal Concours of Elegance.

1932 Isotta Fraschini Tipo 8A S Sport Cabriolet: this car was best in show at least year’s Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance and it’ll be coming back for a second helping. It’s only changed hands four times since it was new. It resides in North America now but had previously lived a quiet life in Switzerland and France.

1930 Cord L29 Brooks Stevens Speedster: this hot rod was crowned best in show at last year’s Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance and was heralded as defining the mid-century American aesthetic in the automotive industry.

1937 Talbot-Lago T150C SS ‘Goutte d’Eau’: this car made Teardrops cool. It’s won prizes at every major concours in pre-war Europe and has won some top-level races. It redefined automtive style and motivated many other French designers to adopt a similar streamlined design.

1965 Ferrari 166 / 206 SP Dino 0834: this one-of-a-kind Dino won the coveted Scuderia Ferrari Cup for Best of Show at the Cavallino Classic. It first competed in 1965 by Scuderia Ferrari and was piloted by Giancarlo Baghetti and later by Ludovico Scarfiotti to many wins over its long career.

1968 Alfa Romeo Tipo 33 Stradale: returning to its home turf is last year’s best in show at The Quail, A Motorsports Gathering. The Tipo 33 Stradale was derived from the Alfa Romeo 33/2 race cars with the goal of creating a sports car staying as true to its racing heritage as possible. It’s powered by a 2-liter DOHC V8 with 230 horsepower and has an extended chassis for driver comfort.

So those are the six best cars from the world’s top concours events competing for The Peninsula Classics Best of the Best Award. The winning vehicle will be chosen next Tuesday before being shown at The Quail on Friday at one of the biggest events in Monterey Car Week.
Obviously they’re all spectacular, but are you able to narrow it down to one? I can’t.
[Source: Signature Events]