(Photo: Enzo Ferrari Museum)
An exhibition of photographs to celebrate the visionary’s 120th birth anniversary opened in Modena on Feb 18, within the complex housing the Enzo Ferrari Museum. On show are pictures of him from childhood to adulthood, his driving career, and as manager and manufacturer together with motor racing champions such as Nuvolari, Castellotti and Villeneuve.
Ferrari, whose sports cars are synonymous with speed and luxury, takes its name from Enzo Anselmo Ferrari, who was born in Modena, on Feb 18, 1898. The Italian manufacturer also rolls out vehicles for the road, but these models take inspiration from the speedsters that rule the race tracks, recognisable by the black prancing stallion on their logo.
Enzo Ferrari loved cars from young and started out as a test driver for Costruzioni Meccaniche Nazionali in 1919 before joining Alfa Romeo a year later to run its motorsports team. By 1923, he was in the cockpit and winning races. In 1929, he set up Scuderia Ferrari (the Ferrari Stable), a motorsport team of racing drivers and technical assistants working for brand Alfa. Similar deals with Bosch, Pirelli and Shell followed, and the team of 50 full- and part-time drivers won eight victories in 22 competitions.
In 1946, Enzo Ferrari built the 1.5-liter Ferrari Tipo125, which won the Monaco Grand Prix a year later. In 1950, he took part in the first F1 World Championship in 1950 and went on to dominate this event in the early 1950s. He retired from the tracks after the death of his son Dino in 1956, but continued to manage Ferrari until 1971. He died in August 1988, leaving fans and fellow drivers with these words: “Think as a winner and act as a winner. You’ll be quite likely to achieve your goal.”
