One Formula 1 fan will spend a December morning in the passenger seat alongside two-time champion Fernando Alonso at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, as the Spaniard auctions off a hot lap for his foundation.
The experience is part of JOOPITER's The Modern Grid: An Auction of F1 Memorabilia sale, which runs from 7-20 October. It carries an estimate of $12,000 to $18,000. At the time of writing, the lot had already received seven bids and had reached $12,000. A portion of the proceeds will go to the Fundación Fernando Alonso.
The experience will take place on 16 December. The winning bidder will be briefed on the day's schedule before changing into an Adidas race suit and putting on a Bell helmet to get into the passenger seat of Alonso's Aston Martin DTM car "or similar".
Alonso will complete around two hot laps with the winning bidder alongside him and the pair will be able to talk throughout the experience via an intercom system. The laps will be filmed on an onboard camera, and the fan will be able to take the footage home on a personalised USB drive afterwards.
Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin Racing
Photo by: Clive Mason / Getty Images
In addition to the video, the winning bidder will also keep the race suit, which Alonso will sign.
"After more than twenty years in Formula 1, my passion for the sport is still the same," Alonso told JOOPITER.
"When I am alone in the car, I am simply striving for perfection in every single lap ahead of me. This SpeedXperience is my way of opening that door to someone who loves this sport as much as I do. I’m happy to partner with JOOPITER for this special sale, giving someone the opportunity to experience g-forces and accelerations up close while supporting Fernando Alonso Fundación, a cause that is important to me."
The auction also includes race suits, helmets and an F1 show car.