Can’t speak to him personally- but 458 was such an iconic number for so long because of how ridiculously well that car drove. The lightness, the feel, it genuinely felt more like a race car than most anything street legal before it could even touch (the 430 scuderia was close, but this is a base car giving that feeling!)

The 488 is a spectacular car too- but something about the 458 just feels raw and fun, and my own personal reason- the 458 loves oversteer more than the 488.

And as a Porsche guy, I adore oversteer.