the birdcage wasnt designed by maserati, it was designed by pininfarina. It certainly doesnt look like a maserati. The mc12 is a slick car.
For the first time in a while i'm proud to say the us has topped a ferrari with the gt in terms of speed and performance vs their new f430, however i'd have to say the italians have most everyone else beat... brits have nice cars, certainly better than alot of stuff americans make. although they seem to have more of a high price range to work with- the new corvette has 400 hp so you know they have to be slacking somewhere to keep the cost low-ish and aston and tvr have more liberty in building more expensive car. There are some smaller american manufacturers that take on the world's best like saleen with their s7.
and yes, the gt40 is probably the greatest car ever made...