Throughout the history of international sportscar racing, few eras are remembered as fondly as Group C, which prevailed from 1982 until 1992. Similarly, few Group C cars evoke such emotion as the Lancia LC2––a glorious blend of Dallara-led chassis design and construction, and spectacularly powerful Ferrari V-8 turbocharged engines developed by Maranello design guru, Nicola Materazzi. Remarkably, just nine chassis were produced across the four-year LC2 programme. This car––chassis 0005––made its race debut at the 1984 Monza 1000 Kilometres, then the opening round of the World Sportscar Championship (WSC). Drivers Riccardo Patrese and Bob Wollek qualified 4th before a fire around two-thirds distance ushered the car into retirement. The race was dominated by the Rothmans Porsche team, with the sister LC2 of Mauro Baldi and Paolo Barilla finishing a distant 3rd. After an encouraging pole position at the Silverstone 1000 Kilometres in mid-May––albeit one followed by another retirement––chassis 0005 was entered for Le Mans. The promising Formula 2 driver Alessandro Nannini was paired with Wollek on this occasion. A blistering lap from the Italian secured the car’s second pole position in two races, his effort more than three seconds clear of teammates Baldi, Barilla, and Hans Heyer, and almost nine seconds faster than the 3rd-placed Joest Porsche. A series of minor problems restricted chassis 0005 to an 8th-place finish, and the small consolation of being first non-Porsche home. That year’s WSC season continued with chassis 0005 qualifying 11th for the Brands Hatch 1000 Kilometres—only to withdraw from the race with engine failure—and finishing 3rd at Imola. The car’s season ended on a high with victory in the Kyalami 1000 Kilometres, courtesy of Patrese and Nannini. Lancia took 2nd place in the Teams’ Championship at the year’s end. Duly upgraded, chassis 0005 was retained by Lancia’s Works outfit for 1985, and this car's WSC season commenced at Monza. Wollek and Baldi qualified the car 2nd to teammates Patrese and Nannini, although an altercation with Surer’s winning Porsche regrettably heralded the Franco-Italian pair’s retirement in that race. Once again, chassis 0005 took pole position for the third round of the Championship at Silverstone courtesy of Patrese and Nannini. Lancia’s run of three poles in three races underlined their greatly improved pace. However, the race told a familiar story, with the Works Porsches once again prevailing, and chassis 0005 salvaging a valiant 3rd place at the flag. Appropriately, the car’s WSC swansong would be at Le Mans, where it was driven by Baldi and four-time victor, Henri Pescarolo. Having qualified 6th, the pair drove a measured race to finish 7th overall; Porsche once again secured the first five places, ahead of the sister LC2 in 6th. Following the conclusion of its competitive career, chassis 0005 remained in a private collection until its acquisition by the vendor in 2016. During their ownership, it has been maintained by World Endurance Championship team, United Autosports. Boasting spectacular performance, a fascinating race history, and arguably the most evocative of all racing liveries, chassis 0005 perfectly encapsulates the magic of Group C racing. As such, it would undoubtedly be the star of any collection—or indeed any race, or demonstration—in which it was to feature.