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Now in 2026, Monterey Car Week has firmly established itself as America’s leading automotive event, so it is only natural that it also hosts some of the world’s most prestigious auctions. So when news emerged that an authentic Shelby Cobra Daytona Coupe would be heading there through Gooding Christie’s, it was clear that something major was about to happen. That prediction proved correct, as the car has now set a fresh record for the most expensive American car ever sold at auction, achieving a final sale price of $42,905,000.

The Shelby Cobra Daytona Coupe, for anyone somehow not familiar with it, ranks among the rarest and most sought-after American sports cars ever made. Penned by Peter Brock and developed by Ken Miles to extract more top-end speed from the Cobra platform, the Daytona Coupe gave the open-top brute a fixed roof, reworked body panels, and a distinctive Kamm tail. Those changes immediately lifted the car’s performance potential, and they arrived just in time for a showdown with Ferrari’s Colombo V-12-powered 250 GTO.

And that showdown truly happened. Reliability trouble near the end of the 1964 Le Mans race stopped the Daytona from finishing on the overall podium, so the car had to settle for a class win and fourth place overall instead. For context, Ferrari’s 250s came home in fifth, sixth, and ninth places respectively. Even so, stronger and more consistent results through the 1965 season allowed the Coupe to claim the FIA GT Championship, an achievement that no other American car can claim. Even then, outright victories at the sport’s most revered venues remained out of reach for the closed-roof Cobra.

Just seven Shelby Cobra Daytona Coupes were ever built, and this example, CSX2300, is the only one that continued racing actively after 1965. The car later scored victories at Suzuka and Fuji in 1966, and it is said to have served as a road car around Tokyo until it left in 1968. In 1975, Carroll Shelby bought the car back and kept it in his possession until 1998. That makes CSX2300 the only Daytona Coupe ever personally owned by Shelby, which adds an extra layer of appeal for the most devoted enthusiasts.

Daytona Coupes rarely come up for sale, simply because so few of them were built. The previous public sale took place at Monterey in 2009 through Mecum Auctions, when CSX2601 changed hands for an impressive $7,685,000. The collector car market has changed dramatically since then, but it is obvious that Shelby models are finally receiving the level of appreciation they deserve. After all, it takes an exceptionally special car to stand alongside the values of the 250 GTO, or even the first Luce EV for that matter. I know which machine I would rather spend about $40 million on.