VeloceToday.com

The Online Magazine for Italian and French Classic Car Enthusiasts

Maserati’s Indy Interludes

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We always believe in eye catching lead photos. Don't we?

A brief look at Maserati at Indy

By Roberto Motta

Photos Courtesy Indianapolis Motor Speedway Museum

The American racing world has many famous and prestigious races and tracks, like the 24 Hours of Daytona and 12 Hours of Sebring. But while these venues are undoubtedly rich in history, nothing compares to the one whose name immediately reminds us of the American dream. For millions of Italians, the Indianapolis 500 is truly “The Greatest Spectacle in Racing.”
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Spanish Grand Prix

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The start was the most exciting part of the race.

By Erik Nielsen

Photos courtesy and copyright Ferrari Media

McLaren challenges, but Vettel prevails; Welcome back, Bob

Sebastian Vettel did something different this weekend, for the first time in memory, the pole sitter did not win at Barcelona. He also needed to actually work for this win, holding off a hard charging Lewis Hamilton who was hot on the German’s rear wing for the closing laps. The Brit could not find a way around for the win. History will likely show that this was one more incremental step for the Red Bull driver’s 2011 championship, but those that watched the race know that this was closer racing than has been seen so far this season.
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1962 Alfa Romeo Giulietta Berlina e t.i. Brochure

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Alfa’s Giulietta Berlina

The Alfa Giulietta Berlina should have been the greatest sedan of the 1950s. We kick off a multi-part look at the semisweet success of Alfa’s first Giulietta, the Berlina, with a fascinating original brochure, reproduced as accurately as possible. This will be followed by a owners’ manual, full history of the 1300 Berlina, variants, competition history and much more. Giulietta Berlinas area actively raced by Scuderia del Portello also featured in this edition of VeloceToday.

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Interview With Marco Cajani of Scuderia del Portello in Italian and English

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Marco Cajani with the Alfa T33 and a variety of Alfas used by Scuderia Portello.

Story and Photos By Roberto Motta unless otherwise noted.

NEW! Scroll down for the Italian language version.

Most vintage car enthusiasts are aware of the famous Scuderia del Portello, named after the town near Milan where Alfa Romeo was born. Its distinctive shield has been seen all over the world on a great variety of Alfa Romeos. To learn more about the Scuderia del Portello and its president Marco Cajani, we had a meeting with him in the team headquarters in the town of Seregno. We found that Cajani is an inexhaustible source of ideas, a passionate collector and a good driver. During his life with cars, thanks to his organizational skills and an innate charisma, he was able to bring the world famous Scuderia del Portello to new levels of excellence. A graduate in architecture, Cajani is responsible for recovery and building restoration. But the Alfa Romeo is his great passion, a passion that binds him hand in glove with the Scuderia del Portello.

But who is Marco Cajani and what is his background? We’ll let him tell his story without interruption:
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Inside Scuderia del Portello with Roberto Motta

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A group of Alfa 1300 Berlinas waiting for their day in the sun.

Roberto Motta gets an exclusive look at the jewels in the Scuderia del Portello. All photos by Roberto Motta unless othewise noted.

Scuderia Portello has been at the forefront of Italian Vintage Racing since its creation in 1989. At first a small but enthusiastic group of Alfa owners began competing in European vintage car events, but as the sport grew the Scuderia was also entrusted by the company of Alfa Romeo to manage the appearances and transportation of the Arese Museums’ jewels. ( See Interview with Marco Cajani, President, Scuderia del Portello )
Below is the lair of the famous Scuderia, opened to our correspondent Roberto Motta. It is not open to the public and naturally discretion is always optimum.
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Mille Miglia at Brescia with Alessandro Gerelli

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One of our most outstanding long term contributors has been the Milanese Alessandro Gerelli who first came to these pages in 2002 with a story about his experiences at Monza: Monza, a Personal Look.

From then on Gerelli has never stopped filing excellent stories from all over Europe and the U.K, and even the United States. From 2004 on, Alessandro provided the color in blue and red for every single Mille Miglia event, rain or shine.

As we kickoff VeloceToday’s First Ten Years Celebration (yes, it’s been that long), we present the below urls from Gerelli’s coverage of this great event since 2004, and cap it off with the Mille Miglia of 2011.

We thank you again, Mr. Gerelli!
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This Week, of Interest

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Welcome to VeloceToday! Please scroll down to read: Rally Sardinia in Italian and English, The OSCA GT S/N 0094, Broadway Bugattis, and F1 in Turkey.

Morry Barmak sent us a brief description of a sign he just acquired that may be of interest to our readers. It’s pricey, but certainly caught our attention! If you are interested, drop us a line at pete@velocetoday.com.

Has anyone seen this car? This car was built by Andy Schwartz in the early 2000s. At the time he was an engineer with the Ford racing group but is currently not working there. He built this car in his home workshop from his own design using basically stock Cosworth Vega engine. We have not been able to locate Mr. Schwartz or the car. Can you help? Email pete@velocetoday.com.

We received an email from Bill Miller, who happened to purchase some items from the estate of the late John Bentley, who passed away on 10/26/98. Email pete@velocetoday if you are interested in purchasing these rare items. Omega watch engraved on the back as follows: 12 Hours Of Sebring 1st place Index of Performance 3/26/60. Helmet and software, SCCA driver’s license.

The Fabulous OSCA 1600 GT

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Childe Freeman's OSCA 1600GT Zagato of the double bubble variety, S/N 0094.

By Antony Childe-Freeman and Mark R. Brinker

You’ve already read about the exploits of the OSCA 1600GT at Le Mans. Here’s a bit more history of the car itself, with a focus on another ex racer, S/N 0094.

The OSCA 1600 GT Zagato is perhaps one of the most underappreciated and misunderstood GT cars of the post war era. Signaling a close to the Maserati brothers dynasty and remaining in the shadow of the legendary OSCA MT-4 (overall winner at Sebring in 1954), the 1600 GT emerged with a very different goal in mind; to produce an agile and stylish coupe. The results were an international success.

The OSCA 1600 GT Zagato prototype debuted at the 1960 Turin Auto Show. The car was tested by Ludovico Scarfiotti (Auto Italiana Sport, February 1, 1961), receiving rave reviews. The Maserati brothers knew they had a winner. OSCA 1600 GT Zagato production quickly commenced.

An All-New Tubular Chassis
The 1600 GT was built on a specially designed tubular OSCA chassis, not on a Fiat 1500 or 1600 unit as some authors have incorrectly described. The chassis for the 1600 GT was constructed at the OSCA factory with some components sub-contracted out. The wheelbase was 2250mm (88.5 inches), 50mm longer than the MT-4. The majority of cars were equipped with independent suspension front and rear, although a few cars had live axle rear suspension. The rear live axle, also known as the Ponte Rigido (PR), was a less expensive alternative, but also used on the Le Mans Experimental flat topped OSCA Zagato s/n 0036.

Alberto Luti in 0094 before the start of the Ascoli-Colle San Marco event.

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Rally Sardinia 2011 In English and Italian

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Fords few high but couldn't stop the Citroens.

By Roberto Motta

Photo credits: Citroën Communication, Abu Dhabi World Rally Team, BMW and Volkswagen-Press-Media

After victories in Mexico, Portugal and Jordan, the DS3 WRC Citroen won a fourth consecutive victory on dirt, allowing Sébastien Loeb and Daniel Elena to achieve a major success that helps them to strengthen their leading position in the drivers’ standings World Rally Championship. Sébastien Ogier and Julien Ingrassia finished in fourth place scoring valuable points for Citroën Total World Rally Team, which is also leading the standings in the Constructors’ Championship.
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Rally Sardinia in Photos

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Mini Clubman WRC.

Photo credits: Citroën Communication, Abu Dhabi World Rally Team, BMW and Volkswagen-Press-Media

One of the most interesting aspects (and there are many) of the WRC is the fantastic photography made available via the press services of all the major players. Italian Editor Roberto Motta and I have developed a way to sort through the hundreds of images that Motta gets after each event. He will sort through and send me as many as one hundred images, and from there I’ll pick 20-30 for the article, or as in this case, articles. It is always a difficult joy to make the selections.
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Bugattis On Broadway

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It is hard to attract a crowd on Broadway. It takes something like a Bugatti Veyron, suitably roped off to get bystanders to notice. And that is what you need to wear, automotive wise, in NYC to get gawkers. Photo by Werner Pfister.

Story and photos by Werner Pfister

Not one but two Bugattis debuted on Broadway recently. A White Grand Sport and an all Blue Carbon Fiber Super Sport were displayed in front of the landmark Sardi’s Restaurant on West 44th Street in New York. It is most appropriate that the latest Bugattis had their coming out party at Sardi’s which is a Broadway institution after being located continuously for 90 years in the Theater District. [Read more…] about Bugattis On Broadway

Turkish Grand Prix

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The start of the Turkish Grand Prix.

By Erik Nielsen
Photos courtesy Ferrari Media

Several years ago, Ferrari fans were perfectly happy with routines. Michael Schumacher would have a flawless qualifying session, have an uneventful race and cross the line with a gap to second place that could occasionally be measured with a calendar, rather than a stop watch. But should the same type of performance happen from another driver and team combination, the talk quickly changes to how F1 has lost its magic and it is more about the money than the show. It was about the money back then, too, but one didn’t feel like a complete futz for spending $30 for a coffee cup with the scudetto on the side of it when your team was winning.
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