From Concours d’LeMons to Center Stage: Why the Audrain is Redefining Automotive Excellence in 2026
The gilded streets of Newport, Rhode Island, are hosting a new kind of automotive royalty this year, and I, with a decade of immersive experience in the ultra-luxury and performance vehicle market, am thrilled to be on the front lines. When Donald Osborne, the bowtie-wearing, opera-singing maestro of the Audrain Concours d’Elegance, cornered me at MODA in Miami and declared, “Make me a judge?” I didn’t hesitate. A flick of his hand, a megawatt smile, and just like that, I was in the arena.
The Audrain Motor Week, the brainchild of a group of discerning collectors who decided to challenge the establishment, has exploded onto the scene. It’s more than just a car show; it’s a philosophical statement about the evolution of automotive culture. Founded in 2019 out of sheer spite—a direct shot at Amelia Island after Hagerty’s Broad Arrow auction house poached nearly 30 of RM Sotheby’s top employees—Audrain has rapidly ascended from a scrappy underdog to a legitimate competitor for Pebble Beach.
The Pebble Beach Paradigm Shift
Talk to legends in the industry—guys like Jay Leno—and they’ll tell you the Audrain has already surpassed Pebble Beach. The evidence is overwhelming. During The Gathering at Doris Duke’s “summer cottage” (Audrain’s answer to The Quail), the podcast Spike’s Car Radio, which I co-host, snagged a live interview with Leno. He candidly admitted that the Audrain reminds him of Pebble Beach approximately 15 years ago—a simpler, purer time. Leno, who owns what he calls a “ridiculous house” in Newport, is essentially royalty here. In 2025, the city mayor issued a proclamation declaring October 2nd to be “Jay Leno Day,” cementing his integral role in this burgeoning dynasty.
This isn’t just hype. The Audrain is tapping into a real desire for authenticity in the high-end collector car world. While Pebble Beach remains the pinnacle for some, the Audrain is attracting a new guard of collectors and enthusiasts who value substance over spectacle. As someone who negotiates multi-million-dollar transactions for classic sports cars and investment-grade hypercars every day, I can tell you this shift is fundamentally changing the value proposition for serious collectors. The best sports cars aren’t always the most famous names anymore; they are the ones that embody the true spirit of performance and design.
The Challenge of Judging: Why Quality Over Quibbles
When you sit at the judges’ table, the pressure is immediate. Phil Neff, the head judge, scanned the room during breakfast, asking, “Is there anyone here who hasn’t judged a concours?” Silence. Including mine. Now, I might not have judged a fancy-schmancy Sunday at Audrain before, but I am practically a Concours d’LeMons veteran. I’ve judged so many of those ridiculous parody car shows that I’ve lost count, and truthfully, I’ve sworn them off forever. Should I have raised my hand? Who knows. But let’s be honest—it’s cars, right? How hard could it be? My ego remains undefeated.
Neff’s team paired me with Ray Evernham, the legendary NASCAR Hall of Fame crew chief who has more wins with Jeff Gordon than most people have hot dinners. We immediately clicked—we’d both raced at Pikes Peak, one of the most demanding motorsport venues in the world. Our task: award the Sporting Choice Award, essentially finding the most “sporting” car on the lawn.
I asked Neff for clarification. Should we focus more on traditional sports cars or actual race cars? “Yes,” he replied with a smile.
This meant we were looking at every single car on the field that had two doors or no doors. That was well over 100 cars, and we had just two hours. We put on our judge hats—medallions, clipboards, No. 2 pencils, and navy blazers—and hit the lawn. Like any concours, the cars are divided into classes. We decided to look at each class, identify the one car that truly “popped,” and write down our top four or five favorites. The instruction was clear: don’t get bogged down in the typical, automotive-related minutiae that plagues modern car judging. Who cares if the trunk lining is wrong? Don’t even open the trunk.
Still Not Simple: Navigating the Elite Selections
Two classes quickly demonstrated why judging requires expertise, not just enthusiasm. Class D featured six near-identical Ford GT40 Mk1 homologation specials. They were all equally awesome. Without checking carb-bolt alignment (as we were instructed not to), picking a winner was impossible. The people judging Class D had to be subject matter experts to make this call. The same was true for Class A, the prewar Alfa Romeo division, which showcased six mind-blowingly excellent 8Cs. I couldn’t even begin to articulate why the car that won its class did so, though the burgundy beauty went on to win Best of Show—and somehow, that made total sense.
We managed to narrow down our list, but sacrifices had to be made. A Lamborghini 3500 GTZ Zagato Coupe absolutely blew my mind—I’d never heard of it before. It turns out only two were ever built, and the other is being kept private. But as novel as it was, it wasn’t going to win the Sporting Choice Award. Evernham, meanwhile, was captivated by an exceedingly rare Allard JR that raced at the 1952 24 Hours of Le Mans. However, I quickly realized he owns three Allards, so we removed this rarity from contention. Still, it was a sweet car. Fitted with a Jaguar C-Type body to comply with new Le Mans regulations, yet powered by a 5.3-liter Cadillac V-8, it remains the most successful of the seven Allard JRs ever built. For those interested in classic race cars, this era represents a golden age where engineering was raw, dangerous, and undeniably beautiful.
The Hardest Decision: Modern Beauty vs. Postwar Elegance
Our most difficult choice was for third place. It came down to two cars: an oligarchic 1938 Talbot-Lago T150 C Lago Figoni et Falaschi Teardrop Coupe and a light green 1951 Cisitalia 202SC Pinin Farina Cabriolet. I am a sucker for postwar Alfas. I don’t know exactly why, but I just love them. Perhaps it’s the Bakelite used on all the switchgear. This particular 6C was finished in handsome blue and had a great backstory. Its present owner hadn’t driven it since 1973 until the day before the Concours, when he took it on the Audrain Tour d’Elegance.
However, we found the Caddy more sporting. It was one of two, custom-bodied in Pasadena, California, by the same guys (Bonham & Schwartz) who did Clarke Gable’s Duesenberg. The candy-red Series 62 just popped. It had that wow factor—that “know it when you see it” quality that defines automotive greatness. One of two made, yes, but the only survivor as its sibling burned up in a fire. This car was built for a wealthy Californian oil baron family, the Doheny clan, who just happened to be the founders of Beverly Hills. We awarded it our third-place vote—in Audrain-speak, Honorable Mention.
The Final Verdict: Why the Cisitalia Stole the Show
For us, the Sporting Choice Award came down to two cars: the oligarchical 1938 Talbot-Lago T150 C Lago Figoni et Falaschi Teardrop Coupe and the light green 1951 Cisitalia 202SC Pinin Farina Cabriolet. The Talbot “Goutte d’Eau” certainly had the provenance. Aside from being the only long-wheelbase T150 C ever built (15 regular wheelbase versions were made), this particular car holds a racing record that will never be broken: Built in 1938, it won the Belgian Grand Prix at Spa in 1948, making it the oldest car to ever win a grand prix race. Imagine a 10-year-old car winning an F1 race today? That alone was almost enough to swing us. But not quite.
Perhaps it was the Talbot-Lago’s massive sunroof, or its dark paint job, or the fact that by lengthening the car, the normally tidy Figoni et Falaschi shape looked a bit bloated. Or maybe the Cisitalia was just that good. Evernham said it best: “The Cisitalia just spoke to me. The combination of color, stance, and placement of chrome created a picture in my mind of driving it down a beautiful coastline wearing my vintage Wayfarers.”
Exactly. Look, there’s a good reason the Museum of Modern Art in New York includes a Cisitalia 202 (coupe) in its permanent collection. These little sports cars are just that spectacular. And somehow, on this day, in that color, and with its top dropped, it was the car we just kept coming back to while fantasizing about driving it around the Newport coast. The 202SC simply tickled our fancy the hardest, and
