TO SELL AT BONHAMS

One of the last personal items to be signed by F1 legend Ayrton Senna on the weekend that he died, is to be sold by Bonhams on 20 March. The blue baseball cap is one of a whole host of personal and poignant items in this important F1 and Motorsport memorabilia single-owner collection sale, to be held at Bonhams salerooms in New Bond Street.

At the close of a TV interview before the San Marino Grand Prix at Imola in 1994, Murray Walker asked if he could have one of the 'Nacionale' caps that Senna was famous for wearing. Ayrton Senna immediately took the cap from his head, added a signature and handed it to Murray Walker. It is expected to fetch £3,000 - 4,000.

The 'Legends in Time' collection, amassed by a true Formula One fanatic over nearly twenty years, features many personal items never seen at auction before.

The core of the collection is a group of 60 original pencil drawings by motorsport artist Alan Stammers, celebrating the world's top F1 drivers in their most famous cars. These unbelievably detailed drawings were first commissioned in 1988 by the vendor who produced a limited edition of prints from them to sell to the growing number of F1 memorabilia collectors. Most of the original drawings and prints have been signed by the drivers they depict, making them highly collectable, and the pencil drawings come to the market for the first time.

One of the most evocative drawings is of Juan Manuel Fangio and Sir Stirling Moss at the 1955 Belgian Grand Prix. Mercedes-Benz team mates for this season, they drove so close together that they were nick-named 'The Train'. Fangio, who won the World Championship five times and legend Sir Stirling Moss both signed Stammers' print, and this original drawing is signed by Moss. The print signing was the first time they had ever signed artwork together, and the prints were the last items Fangio signed. Estimate £1,400 - 1,600.

The signatures of almost all the popular names in F1 from the past half century including Juan Manuel Fangio, Michael Schumacher, Ayrton Senna, Nigel Mansell, Jackie Stewart and Damon Hill all appear on Stammers' individual artwork.

Estimates for these gems range from £600 - £3,200.

The commission of these drawings and the consequent quest to get them signed brought the owner of the collection into personal contact with the world's best drivers and fed his passion for Formula One. Since the late '80s, he has built up an unrivalled  collection of memorabilia, which is now for sale.

There are 21 race-worn helmets in the sale including :

· The helmet worn by Damon Hill during his inaugural Grand Prix at Silverstone in 1992. The vendor congratulated Hill who had just qualified last and arranged to sponsor him for the race later that day. Estimate £7,000 - 9,000.

· The helmet worn by Schumacher when he finished 2nd in the 1992 Australian Grand Prix, and also in the Japanese GP. Signed and complete with teeth marks on the drinks-tube! Estimate £15,000 - 18,000.

· A helmet worn by Alain Prost during his 1993 world championship-winning year with Williams. Estimate £8,000 - 10,000.

The Collection contains very many personal items associated with Sir Stirling Moss including:

· 1965 MGB driven by Moss in the 1989 Pirelli Classic Marathon, in which he finished third overall and won the class. Since that time the car has completed 12 Tour Autos, driven by the original owner who shared the 1989 race with Moss. Complete with full FIA papers and a new engine, the car is ready for anyone who is not superstitious to take it on its 13th French rally. Estimate £26,000 - 32,000.

· Sir Stirling Moss' personal Vespa scooter on which he covered over 1500 London miles and is still registered in his name. Estimate £1,800 - 2,200.

Legendary racing drivers' autographs are highly collectable -  why bother with a scrap book when you can collect them all inscribed on a giant  bottle of bubbly. Originally sold for charity at Fangio's 80th birthday party in 1991, this Salmanazar (12 bottle size) unopened bottle of Moet Chandon is adorned with the greatest names: Fangio, Moss, Salvadori, Surtees, Mansell, Hill - to name but a few. Estimate £2,400 - 2,800.

Away from Formula 1, the collection features motorsport memorabilia and two highly sought-after registration plates -  LKY 7  (estimate £6,000 - 7,000) and for owners of fixed-head coupes FHC 7 (estimate £5,000 - 6,000)