Only on rare occasions was a 250 GTO entered by the works Ferrari team. They were most often run by Enzo’s official concessionaires and a band of privateers – albeit with the factory often helping.

The most significant of those concessionaires was Luigi Chinetti – an important figure in early Ferrari history. In 1949 he had driven a 166 MM to victory in the 24-hour races at Le Mans and Spa and went on to become the importer for the American market. Chinetti set up the North American Racing Team in the late 1950s, and it was NART that was entrusted with the GTO’s competition debut at Sebring in 1962.

In Europe, Jacques Swaters’ Garage Francorchamps was the Ferrari agent for the Benelux countries, and his Ecurie Francorchamps team entered cars in Formula 1, Formula 2, sports cars and GT racing. Swaters enjoyed the patronage of a number of quick gentlemen drivers, as well as running aces such as Willy Mairesse and Lucien Bianchi, and Ecurie Francorchamps entered GTOs in everything from Belgian hillclimbs to Le Mans.