5% discount on your first order — create a free account

Create Account
✓ 14-day returns ✓ Hand-checked before shipping ✓ Secure checkout
Account

Maserati Tipo 61 #98 C. Shelby Times Mirror GP For Sportscars 1960 Minichamps 1:12

New arrival
Maserati Tipo 61 #98 C. Shelby Times Mirror GP For Sportscars 1960 Minichamps 1:12 120601298 Diecast
1 / 8
Minichamps' 1:12 diecast Maserati Tipo 61 #98 wears Carroll Shelby's 1960 Times Mirror GP for Sportscars livery, a snapshot of the American driver before the Cobra years. Opening parts, a heavy metal body, and large-scale presence make it a hands-on piece for historic racing and Shelby-themed collections. It pairs naturally with the number 5 Camoradi car at the same scale. Check shelf depth before ordering.
Maserati Tipo 61 #98 C. Shelby Times Mirror GP For Sportscars 1960 Minichamps 1:12
Current price: 599.00 €
Last one in stock
Estimated delivery: Oct 29 – Nov 3, 2026
Shipping rates by country
5% discount on your first order — create a free account
Pay securely with
Shipping to 79 countries Worldwide delivery
Prices incl. 23% VAT No hidden costs
Shipping rates by country Tracked & insured
Pay in EUR € Local currency
Specifications
Brand
Maserati
Manufacturer
Minichamps
Scale
1:12
Material
Diecast
Model Condition
New Model
SKU
120601298
100% authentic Direct from manufacturers
5-layer carton Foam-filled interior
Easy returns 14 days, no questions asked
Secure payment 256-bit SSL encryption

About the Maserati Tipo 61 #98 C. Shelby Times Mirror GP For Sportscars 1960 Minichamps 1:12

TL;DR: The Minichamps Maserati Tipo 61 Shelby #98 1:12 is a large diecast replica of the Birdcage in Carroll Shelby's 1960 Times Mirror GP for Sportscars livery. It has opening parts, a number 98 racing finish, and the presence of a 1:12 casting, making it a strong piece for collectors who follow American road-racing history.

Before the Cobra, there was the driver. Carroll Shelby took the wheel of a Maserati Tipo 61 in 1960, near the end of his driving career, before turning to building cars. Minichamps captures that moment at 1:12, with the number 98 and the Times Mirror Grand Prix livery front and center.

Minichamps Maserati Tipo 61 Shelby 1:12 and the Times Mirror Livery

Reading the Number 98 Livery

Race livery is mostly a matter of registration: where the number sits, how crisp its edges are, and whether the base color runs clean up to them. On the number 98 car, check the numerals and the Times Mirror lettering under a lamp, looking for even spacing and sharp outlines. Printed graphics on a hard metal shell tend to sit flat and age well, which suits a historic racer whose graphics are the point of the model. The restrained, period-correct look of a 1960 sports-racer lets the paint finish and the numerals do the talking, with no modern sponsor clutter to dilute them.

Diecast Mass and Opening Parts at 1:12

A large zinc alloy casting has a density that no resin piece of the same size can mimic. Lift this model and the weight tells you the body is metal before you read the label. The opening parts reward closer study of the car's structure, and at 1:12 there is enough room inside the shape for that to be worth doing. Open slowly, and let each panel go only where you can see it settle. Diecast tolerance means panel gaps will not match the hairline cuts of a cast resin model, a fair trade for a piece built to be handled.

Carroll Shelby, Maserati, and an American Road-Racing Story

The Driver Who Became a Builder

Shelby is remembered less for his driving than for what came after: the Shelby Cobra, which he built in the early 1960s, and Shelby American, the company behind it. A Tipo 61 in his hands is a snapshot from before that turn. The livery name points to the Times Mirror newspaper group, the sponsor tied to the event, which fits the American flavor of the whole model. Owners tracing Shelby's career through scale models can start here, with a European sports-racer, and follow the thread to the Cobra and beyond.

The Tipo 61 as a Sister to Car 5

The same Birdcage type won the 1960 Nürburgring 1000km in the hands of Stirling Moss and Dan Gurney, and Minichamps lists that number 5 Camoradi car as a separate 1:12 model. Think of the two as complementary: one a European endurance winner, one an American event livery. The Tipo 61 used a front-mounted four-cylinder engine and a lattice of slim tubes, a very different construction from the mid-engine cars that were about to take over sports-car racing, which gives it a place as a late front-engine chapter in this story.

Display and Handling at Large Scale

A 1:12 casting asks for planning. Choose a shelf deep enough to carry the full length with clearance, and make sure it is rated for the weight of a large metal model. Low raking light shows off the paint depth; direct sunlight fades finishes over months and should stay away. Dust settles quickly on a low sports-racer, so a soft brush is the safer tool. Handle by the body, never by thin protruding parts, and keep the packaging for any later move. If you already own the number 5 Camoradi car, the number 98 completes a natural pair, and if you own neither, it is a sound buy for an American-themed historic racing shelf.

Collectors also bought

Browse all 1:12

5% off your first order

Create a free account and claim 5% off your first order — from hundreds of collectible 1:18, 1:43 and 1:12 models by Porsche, Mercedes-Benz, BMW and more.

Create free account Browse the collection
Collectible 1:18 model cars by Porsche, Mercedes-Benz and BMW — Models118 first-order offer
599.00 €
599.00 €
0