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19 of 170 lots
Lot 19
1971 MV Agusta 750 Sport
Estimate:
$160,000 - $200,000
Starting bid:
$25
Sold for
$120,000
Live Auction
Pebble Beach Auctions 2023
Description
Giuseppe Mele, Pescara, Italy (acquired new in 1971)
Eleonora D’Alesio, Pescara, Italy (acquired from the above in 1974)
Mario Rossana, Parma, Italy (acquired from the above in 1981)
Pierene Quartini, Parma, Italy (acquired from the above in 1985)
Private Collector, Switzerland (acquired in 1986)
Current Owner (acquired from the above)

Without Reserve

Chassis: Frame No. MV4C75 214038
Engine: 214-042

Desirable, Early-Production Example of an Important Italian Superbike
Extremely Rare as One of Just 56 MV Agusta 750 Sports Built in 1971
Accompanied by Original Italian Registration Documents
Retains Its Matching-Numbers Engine per MV Agusta Factory Record
Documented with Report by Marque Expert Ian Falloon

743 CC DOHC Air-Cooled 4-Cylinder Engine
Four Dell’Orto UB24BS2 Carburetors
65 BHP at 7,000 RPM
5-Speed Manual Gearbox
Front and Rear Drum Brakes
Front Telescopic Fork Suspension
Rear Swing-Arm Suspension with Twin Telescopic Shock Absorbers

In 1907, Sicilian aristocrat Count Giovanni Agusta founded the Agusta Aeronautics Company near Palermo, Italy, a mere four years after Orville and Wilbur Wright’s famous flight at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. The company soon thrived, particularly during WWI and WWII, when it produced airplanes for the Italian government. Post WWII, the company was banned from aircraft production, and the factory was retooled to produce motorcycles, providing Italy with the simple and affordable personal transport it needed in the immediate aftermath of the war. The new company was named MV Agusta – “M” for Meccanica (Mechanical) and “V” for Verghera, the town in which the first bikes were built.

MV Agusta soon began building racing motorcycles as well, and the company’s history of precision engineering meant that they soon dominated Grand Prix racing. The company won 38 Riders’ World Championships and 37 Constructors’ World Championships from 1952 to 1976, with an astonishing 270 World Championship race wins – a record unlikely to ever be repeated. Much like Enzo Ferrari, MV Agusta built road-going machines as a means of funding its racing efforts. None was more important and impressive than the 750 Sport, which featured a powerful and exotic DOHC, four-cylinder engine. Extremely expensive at the time, they were among the first true “superbikes” – the motorcycle equivalent of Lamborghini’s Miura or Ferrari’s Daytona – with gorgeous styling and extreme performance.

This outstanding early-production example was delivered new in Pescara, Italy, to Giuseppe Mele, a personal friend of Count Agusta. Original Italian registration documents on file record three subsequent Italian owners, and in 1986, the bike was bought by a Swiss motorcycle collector. The consignor purchased the MV from him earlier this year and had mechanical work undertaken by Italian car and motorcycle specialist Jay Niederst of Ventura, California. The motorcycle has since been exercised sparingly and remained in the consignor’s collection of significant Italian road and racing motorcycles.

This MV’s rare and desirable early-production features include its unique, early cylinder heads, Borrani rims, petcocks, controls, and livery. The 750 Sport is accompanied by a report from marque expert Ian Falloon, which summarizes the bike’s history, notes that the paint on the bike’s tank was recently restored to the original early tricolore color scheme, and documents that “the engine and frame numbers correspond perfectly with the official factory records.” For enthusiasts looking to add a historically significant motorcycle to their stable, the MV Agusta 750 Sport possesses all the attributes of a blue-chip collectible: rarity, beauty, an exotic mechanical specification, and impressive performance. This example is distinguished even further by its early build date, well-documented provenance, and period-correct presentation. As an exceptional example of one of the world’s most desirable motorcycles, its sale is an exciting opportunity that will appeal to even the most discerning of collectors.