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Luigi Fagioli | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Fagioli in 1932 | |
| Born | Luigi Cristiano Fagioli (1898-06-09)9 June 1898 |
| Died | 20 June 1952(1952-06-20) (aged 54) Monte Carlo, Monaco |
| Cause of death | Injuries sustained whilst testing for the 1952 Monaco Grand Prix |
| Formula One World Championship career | |
| Nationality |  Italian |
| Active years | 1950–1951 |
| Teams | Alfa Romeo |
| Entries | 7 |
| Championships | 0 |
| Wins | 1 |
| Podiums | 6 |
| Careerpoints | 28 (32)[a] |
| Pole positions | 0 |
| Fastest laps | 0 |
| First entry | 1950 British Grand Prix |
| First win | 1951 French Grand Prix |
| Last entry | 1951 French Grand Prix |
Luigi Cristiano Fagioli (Italian pronunciation:[luˈiːdʒifaˈdʒɔːli]; 9 June 1898 – 20 June 1952) was an Italianracing driver, who competed inGrand Prix motor racing from1928 to1949,[b] andFormula One from1950 to1951. Nicknamed "theAbruzzi Robber",[c] Fagioli won the1951 French Grand Prix withAlfa Romeo aged 53, and remains theoldest driver to win a Formula One Grand Prix. Fagioli was runner-up in theEuropean Drivers' Championship in1935 withMercedes.
Fagioli is the only Formula One Grand Prix winner born in the 19th century, and the only Grand Prix racing driver to have won a championship race in both theAIACR European Championship and theWorld Drivers' Championship.
Fagioli was born in the small town ofOsimo, in theMarche region in centralItaly. As a boy Fagioli was fascinated by the relatively new invention of the automobile and the ensuing, newly-born racing scene. Blessed with great natural driving instincts, the young Fagioli started racinghillclimbing andsports car before enteringGrand Prix racing in 1926. In 1930 he was offered the opportunity to join theMaserati team. He soon established himself as a serious contender, winning theCoppa Ciano and theCircuit of Avellino Grand Prix. In April the following year, he went head to head withLouis Chiron and hisBugatti Type 51 at theMonaco Grand Prix. In what would go down as one of motorsport's most famous battles, Chiron eventually took the chequered flag first but Fagioli received universal praise for the skill he displayed in racing a car set up for long stretches as opposed to the tight twists and short runs that characterize the street circuit ofMonte Carlo. Fagioli avenged his defeat in Monaco a few weeks later by winning theAutodromo Nazionale Monza Grand Prix inMonza, Italy ahead of Chiron and fellow Italian driversAchille Varzi andTazio Nuvolari. In 1932, Fagioli won theGrand Prix of Rome driving for Maserati but for the 1933 season he signed with theAlfa Romeo team ofScuderia Ferrari. At the wheel of anAlfa Romeo P3, Fagioli ran a successful campaign, winning theCoppa Acerbo, theGrand Prix du Comminges, and theItalian Grand Prix. The win at Coppa Acerbo happened at the expense of Nuvolari, who was forced to retire with a mechanical failure while on the lead during the closing stages of the race. For this reason Fagioli became known as "Il ladro degli Abruzzi" (The Abruzzi Robber).[2]
Fagioli's confidence in his abilities would occasionally inform his fiery temper. One not to refrain from retaliating against other drivers when he felt they had done something wrong on the track, he would frequently take chances, and as such developed a somewhat controversial reputation after a string of significant crashes. In 1934Mercedes, acknowledging Fagioli's talent, hired him to drive one of theirSilver Arrows alongside chief mechanicHermann Lang. The relationship was successful although not without drama. In his very first outing for Mercedes, a furious Fagioli abandoned his car after team managerAlfred Neubauer ordered him to stay put in second place and let fellow Mercedes driverManfred von Brauchitsch to win the race. Despite such bumpy start, Fagioli went on to win his second consecutive Coppa Acerbo and, together withRudolf Caracciola in a Mercedes W25A, won his second straight Italian Grand Prix. Fagioli's third win of the season came on the occasion of theSpanish Grand Prix at theCircuito Lasarte.
For the 1935 racing season, Fagioli's factory Mercedes was upgraded to a W25B model. He won theMonaco Grand Prix, theAVUS andPenya Rhin Grand Prix. However, his relationship with the team soured after he displayed a blatant disregard for team orders by trying to take on Rudolf Caracciola on multiple occasions.
Fagioli left Mercedes at the end of the 1936 season and joinedAuto Union. No longer restricted by team politics, his rivalry with Caracciola escalated, culminating in a physical altercation between the two at theTripoli Grand Prix. Towards the end of the season, a series of health problems, including crippling rheumatism, began to severely affect Fagioli's racing ability. At the 1936 Coppa Acerbo, he could only walk with the aid of a cane and was forced to drop out of the race.
By the end ofWorld War II, Fagioli's health had improved and at 52-year-old he joined Alfa-Romeo's 1950Formula One squad for the first everFIA World Championship. Fagioli drove the158/159 Alfetta, and managed to score five podium finishes in six races, entering the final round as one of three drivers in contention for the title.Giuseppe Farina eventually won the championship, withJuan-Manuel Fangio finishing second and Fagioli third. In 1951 Fagioli won theFrench Grand Prix withJuan-Manuel Fangio, earning the distinction of being the oldest person to ever win a Formula One race. During the race, the Alfa Romeo team manager ordered him to hand over his healthy car to Fangio while Fagioli would drive Fangio's car, which was plagued with engine problems. This was common practice in Grand Prix racing before 1957 –Enzo Ferrari had done the same, orderingJosé Froilán González to hand over to the quicker and more experiencedAlberto Ascari; Fagioli was allegedly so disappointed with this arrangement that he elected to retire from Formula One racing there and then.
For 1952, Fagioli signed withLancia to drivesports cars. He finished in third place at the 1952 edition of theMille Miglia ahead of arch rival Caracciola.
In June 1952, while practising for theMonaco Grand Prix, which was a sport cars event that year, Fagioli crashed in a Lancia Aurelia during practice in the tunnel. His injuries, initially believed to be minor, worsened after a few days. Fagioli died in aMonte Carlo hospital three weeks later.
Fagioli ranks as one of Italy's greatest race car drivers. With the exception of the1950 Monaco Grand Prix, where a pile-up on the opening lap involving seven cars forced him to retire, he managed to finish on the podium of every single Formula One race he entered. That gives him thesecond-highest percentage of podium finishes in the Formula One World Championship (85.71%), after "one-time wonder"Dorino Serafini who has a perfect 100%.[3]
(key) (Races inbold indicate pole position) (Races initalics indicate fastest lap)
| Year | Entrant | Chassis | Engine | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | EDC | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1931 | Officine A. Maserati | Maserati26M | Maserati 2.8L8 | ITA | FRA Ret | BEL | 26th | 22 | ||||
| 1932 | Officine A. Maserati | Maserati V5 | Maserati 5.0V16 | ITA 2 | FRA | GER | 7th | 18 | ||||
| 1935 | Daimler-Benz AG | MercedesW25A | Mercedes 4.0L8 | MON 1 | FRA 4 | BEL 2 | GER 6 | SUI 2 | ITA Ret | 2nd | 22 | |
| MercedesW25B | ESP 2 | |||||||||||
| 1936 | Daimler-Benz AG | MercedesW25 | Mercedes 4.3L8 | MON Ret | 14th | 26 | ||||||
| MercedesW25K | Mercedes 4.7L8 | GER 5 | SUI Ret | ITA | ||||||||
| 1937 | Auto Union AG | Auto Union C | Auto Union 6.0V16 | BEL | GER DNS | MON | SUI 7 | ITA | 20th | 36 | ||
Source:[4] | ||||||||||||
(key) (Races inbold indicate pole position) (Races initalics indicate fastest lap)
| Year | Entrant | Chassis | Engine | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | WDC | Pts[a] |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950 | Alfa Romeo SpA | Alfa Romeo158 | Alfa Romeo 158 1.5L8s | GBR 2 | MON Ret | 500 | SUI 2 | BEL 2 | FRA 2 | ITA 3 | 3rd | 24 (28) | |
| 1951 | Alfa Romeo SpA | Alfa Romeo159 | Alfa Romeo 158 1.5L8s | SUI | 500 | BEL | FRA 1* | GBR | GER | ITA | ESP | 11th | 4 |
Source:[6] | |||||||||||||
* Fagioli exchanged cars withJuan Manuel Fangio, each being jointly classified 1st and 11th. Each scored half points for the win.
(key) (Races inbold indicate pole position) (Races initalics indicate fastest lap)
| Year | Entrant | Chassis | Engine | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950 | Alfa Romeo SpA | Alfa Romeo158 | Alfa Romeo 158 1.5L8s | PAU | RIC | SRM | PAR | EMP | BAR | JER | ALB | NED | NAT | NOT | ULS | PES 3 | STT | INT | GOO | PEN |
Source:[7] | ||||||||||||||||||||
