Strictly bush league stuff where he’s concerned, though—to date he’s racked up some 200 concours awards including 50 Best In Shows, and he’s the only man on Earth to have won theto-kill-for Coppa d’Oro at the Concorso d’Eleganza Villa d’Este four times. He probably uses Pebble Beach trophies as paperweights. Of course, Lopresto’s sensational collection of 100-plus cars is comprised of Italian classics – but not a single one of them is a Ferrari or Maserati.
Which makes it all the more interesting, of course.
He favors Alfas and Lancias, Fiats, and Isotta Fraschinis. His collection isn’t open to the public, but you can get an eyeful of it inBest In Show: Italian Masterpieces from the Lopresto Collection just published by Skira . “I’m willing to pay for a shape, for a design, for the person who’s behind it,” the book quotes. “I don’t want to pay the prestige of a particular marque.”
In it, you can trace an obsession which began at the age of 18 with his first acquisition, a Fiat Balilla Lusso. His primary passion is for one-off coachbuilt examples from the famed houses of Bertone, Pininfarina, Carrozzeria Touring and more, but he also has a few prized prototypes and chassis no. 1 models, including an Alfa Romeo Giulietta Spider Bertone Prototype and an Alfa Romeo Giulietta Pininfarina Prototype.
“In the 1980s, when everyone was betting on the classics, I chose prototypes, those cars where talent and brilliance is expressed best,” Lopresto writes in the book, which retails for about $90 and is a suitably elegant bit of coffee table ballast. His earliest car is a 115-year-old year old Isotta Fraschini Tipo 1902 that was once in the Ford Museum, to the "youngest" car in the book, a 1973 DeTomaso Pantera II 7x Montella prototype.
Both damned sexy in their own way.
If you'd like a copy of the book, the easiest route is simply to email the collection directly—they'll figure out shipping and send one out to you. Email info@loprestocollection.com for more details.
