FILE - In this 1921 file photo, Enzo Ferrari is pictured in an Alfa Romeo ES, at the Mugello Circuit in Tuscany, Italy. The Italian founded Scuderia Ferrari, literally Ferrari Stable, in 1929 to help drivers in racing their cars. Enzo's second and sole living son, Piero, will retain a 10 percent stake after Wednesday's share listing of 9 percent of the company's share capital. Parent Fiat Chrysler will see its stake reduced to around 80 percent following the flotation which could value Ferrari at just shy of $10 billion. (AP Photo, File)
The Associated Press
LONDON (AP) - Ferrari, arguably the most famous brand in sports cars, is gearing up for a share listing in New York on Wednesday that it hopes will help it back to the top of the Formula One tree.
Ferrari, which has won 15 drivers' world titles and 16 constructors' championships since Formula One started in 1950, has been lagging other teams on the grid over the past few years.
Kimi Raikkonen was Ferrari's last world champion, back in 2007, joining a legendary list of winners including Alberto Ascari in the 1950s, Niki Lauda in the 1970s and Michael Schumacher in the 2000s.
For a team that's the only one to have competed in every season in Formula One history and has the greatest number of fans worldwide, the dearth of success is concerning.
Ahead of the listing, which could value the company owned by Fiat Chrysler at around $10 billion, Ferrari said the "prestige, identity and appeal" of the brand depend on the success of the racing team.
"If we are unable to attract and retain the necessary talent to succeed in international competitions or devote the capital necessary to fund successful racing activities, the value of the Ferrari brand and the appeal of our cars and other luxury goods may suffer," it said.
The stakes are high for a company that was founded in 1929 by Enzo Ferrari, a former driver himself, as a means to help out owner-drivers to race. By 1947, it was producing its own cars.
Since then, the cars, both racing and road, that have emerged from the Maranello factory in northern Italy have gleamed and excited.
The Associated Press has followed Ferrari for decades. Here are some of the most memorable vehicles as captured by photographers from The AP.
FILE - In this July 10, 1949 file photo, Italian-born Luigi Chinetti is driving his Ferrari 166MM at the Spa 24-hour race at the Spa-Francorchamps racetrack in Belgium. The 166MM was to score many of Ferrari's first victories in motor sport. According to Ferrari's flotation documents, the "prestige, identity and appeal of the Ferrari brand depend on the continued success" of the racing team in Formula 1. (AP Photo, File)
The Associated Press
FILE - In this July 6, 1952 file photo Alberto Ascari of Italy in action in a Ferrari at the French Grand Prix in Rouen. Ascari won the race and later that year became Ferrari's first Formula One world champion. Ferrari drivers have won the title on 15 occasions but not since Kimi Raikkonen in 2007. In the Ferrari flotation document, there is an acknowledgement that the team has declined in recent years. "As a result, we are enhancing our focus on Formula 1 activities with the goal of improving racing results and restoring our historical position as the premier racing team in Formula 1," it said. (AP Photo, File)
The Associated Press
File - In this Saturday, May 19, 2007 file photo, a boy looks at a 1970 Ferrari 512 S racing car at Ferrari headquarters in Fiorano, Italy. Ferrari cars have always turned eyes, on and off the track. In a statement ahead of its share listing, the company says the racing team is a "a key component of our marketing strategy." (AP Photo/Luca Bruno, File)
The Associated Press
FILE - In this March 13, 1990 file photo a 1962 Ferrari 250 GTO is displayed in Bridgehampton, New York. The company originally started making road-worthy vehicles to help fund Scuderia Ferrari's racing interests. Ferrari's historic cars have enduring appeal and are widely sought at in auctions. A Ferrari 250 GTO went for a record $38 million in 2014 in an auction in California. (AP Photo/Mario Suriani, File)
The Associated Press
File - In this Saturday Feb. 27, 1993 file photo, a new Ferrari 348 Spider convertible makes its debut on Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills, Calif. Road-worthy vehicles have become the cornerstone of the company ahead of its flotation. In 2014, Ferrari shipped 7,255 cars, helping to generate a net profit of around $300 million. (AP Photo/Douglas C. Pizac, File)
The Associated Press
FILE - In this Sunday, June 1 1997 file photo, vintage Ferrari's cars parade on a track by the Circus Maximus in downtown Rome. Ferrari cars are out of the reach of most people. Ferrari says it pursues "a low volume production strategy in order to maintain a reputation of exclusivity and scarcity among purchasers of our cars and deliberately monitor and maintain our production volumes and delivery wait-times to promote this reputation." (AP Photo/Plinio Lepri, File)
The Associated Press
FILE - In this Saturday August 10 1996 file photo, Germany's Michael Schumacher drives his Ferrari to set the best time and take pole position for the Hungarian Grand Prix in Budapest. Schumacher's arrival at Ferrari in 1996 marked a turning point for the team, though it would take another four years before he added to his previous two world titles and ended Ferrari's 21-year title drought. He is the most successful driver of all time having won the world title on seven occasions, five with Ferrari. Ferrari's symbol on the New York Stock Exchange says it all - RACE. (AP Photo/Dusan Vranic, File)
The Associated Press
FILE - In this Sunday, Sept. 20, 2015 file photo, Ferrari's German driver Sebastian Vettel stands on his car as he celebrates winning the Singapore Formula One Grand Prix on the Marina Bay City Circuit. Ferrari will be hoping that the share listing will help Vettel, a four-time world champion with Red Bull Racing, to secure the team's first world championship since Kimi Raikkonen in 2007. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan, File)
The Associated Press