The Championship Car
On the evening of June 13, 1997, Michael Jordan secured his fifth NBA Championship with the Chicago Bulls. Hours later, he left the United Center behind the wheel of a new Ferrari 550 Maranello, a cigar in one hand and the championship trophy in tow.
Photographs from that evening have since become part of the visual mythology of Jordan's career: the rich Rosso Barchetta paint catching the paparazzi lights, chrome Speedline wheels, tan leather interior, and an Illinois vanity plate that read MJ 5.
A defining object of Jordan's final championship years in Chicago, the car accompanied him through the closing chapter of a dynasty that reshaped not only basketball, but global culture as a whole.
He and the Bulls were pursuing their fifth title together, while Ferrari itself was returning to one of the configurations that had defined its own legacy.
A Ferrari Legacy in a League of its own
The 550 Maranello heralded the marque's revival of the front-engined V12 grand tourer after more than two decades of mid-engined flagships—a contemporary interpretation of the grand touring Ferraris that established the brand's reputation for high-octane luxury and craftsmanship. Powered by a naturally aspirated 5.5-liter V12 paired with Ferrari's celebrated six-speed gated manual transmission, the 550 combined understated elegance with extraordinary performance.
Delivered through Foreign Cars Italia in Greensboro, North Carolina, the car retains its original factory warranty booklet, with a rare signature by Jordan alongside his Durham, North Carolina address. Because he stood 6-foot-6, Ferrari is understood to have modified the driver's seating position, adjusting the seat rails and padding to accommodate his height. Finished in Rosso Barchetta over tan leather, its specification is both rare and remarkably restrained—reflecting an era before personalization became commonplace among celebrities.
More Than A Collector's Car
Unlike many collectible cars, this Ferrari earned its status through Jordan’s personal use rather than preservation. In short, it was one of his well-documented favorites for a significant period.
Over roughly 6,400 miles, Jordan drove it to Bulls home games, practices, and public appearances throughout his final seasons in Chicago. Among the many cars associated with him during his career, none became more instantly recognizable. The deep red paint, chrome wheels, and MJ 5 license plate appeared repeatedly in photographs and television coverage, becoming part of the visual record of the Bulls' second championship three-peat.
Its Influence Reached From
the Road to the Court
When Nike designer Tinker Hatfield began developing the Air Jordan XIV, he looked to Jordan's Maranello as a primary source of inspiration. Ferrari's design language carried directly into the shoe, from quilted leather reminiscent of the cabin and sculpted side vents echoing the bodywork to a tire-inspired heel and a Jumpman emblem set within a shield modeled on Ferrari's prancing horse.
Jordan debuted the silhouette on June 14, 1998, in Game 6 of the NBA Finals against Utah–wearing the XIV as he hit the title-winning jumper over Bryon Russell with 5.2 seconds remaining on the clock. Now remembered simply as The Last Shot, it secured his sixth NBA Championship and became his final basket as a Chicago Bull.
THEN THE FERRARI DISAPPEARED
On December 4, 2002, Jordan sold the Maranello through Lake Forest Sportscars in Illinois. Afterward, it slipped almost entirely from public view. For nearly a quarter of a century there were no confirmed sightings, and among collectors it gradually assumed an almost mythical status as one of Ferrari's most famous missing celebrity automobiles.
Its rediscovery in 2026 unfolded like detective work.
After a decade-long effort led by CURATED Co-Founder John Temerian, a breakthrough came when a partial chassis number surfaced in an old online forum, allowing the team to reconstruct the full VIN. Working from Ferrari's historical dealer records, which still listed chassis 108712 under Michael Jordan's name with the MJ 5 plate attached, CURATED's research team traced the Ferrari to a long-term California owner who had never publicly offered the car for sale. Temerian ultimately acquired the car sight unseen, and on May 29, 2026—exactly twenty-nine years after its original delivery—it returned to Chicago.
THE OPPORTUNITY OF A GENERATION
Today, twenty-nine years after it first arrived in Michael Jordan's garage, Chassis 108712 returns to public view not simply as an exceptional Ferrari, but as an object that captures a singular cultural moment.
Together with Michael Jordan 'The Last Dance' Game-Worn 1998 NBA Finals Game 3 Jersey—also offered by JOOPITER—it speaks to the seismic reach of Jordan’s influence at the height of his powers, and to a career that shaped sport, design, and popular culture like no other athlete before–or since.
