2 replies to this topic

[Eric Dunsdon]

In the entertaing Brock Yates biography of Enzo Ferrari it is said that 1950's Ferrari team manager Nello Ugolini considered Oscar Galvez to have been a faster driver than Fangio or Gonzalez but had been denied the opportunity to race in Europe because of his opposition to the Peron regime in Argentina. In the George Monkhouse book 'Grand Prix Racing Facts And Figures' however, there is a picture of Galvez and Chico Landi standing alongside Nuvolari at the 1948 French Grand Prix, in which Galvez was entered to drive a Scuderia Argentina Maserati 4CL which was among the non starters. Earlier that year Galvez had finished ahead of team mate Fangio in the Scuderia Argentina 4CL's at Mar del Plata and had beaten Fangio on a number of occasions when driving his 8C 308 Alfa Romeo. Galvez joined Fangio and Gonzalez in the Works Maserati team for the 1953 Argentine Grand Prix in which he finishd 5th. I have seen from previous topics that Galvez was Argentine Champion on a number of occasions and he has always interested me as a driver, who for whatever reason, never achieved what he was really capable of. I know that there are a number of Forum members who know a great deal about South American motor racing and wondered what their opinions of Galvez might be?. Was his opposition to Peron real?. And if so, was it such a handicap to a possible career in Europe, or was it simply, that he preferred to stay, and race ,in his home land?.

Edited by Eric Dunsdon, 26 January 2012 - 11:16.

[David McKinney]

Oscar Alfredo may have been a match for JMF in the marathon cross-country races in the late 1930s and '40s, and on the circuits in the immediate postwar period. Maybe he slowed a little after that, or perhaps it was just that Fangio (and then Gonzalez) improved, but by the time they were all racing supercharged 2-litre Ferraris in the 1952 Temporada, Galvez wasn't quite as fast, and in the 1953 Argentine GP you mention he was not in the same class as his Maserati team-mates Fangio and Gonzalez

I don't know about the anti-Péron thing, but maybe if Galvez had gone to Europe in 1948 or 1949 he might have stayed at a higheer level

[Bauble]

In his book FANGIO by Fangio, Juan speaks very highly of his friend and rival Oscar Galvez. In the long distance races that they competed in before coming to Europe they were great rivals. In one chapter about the International Grand Prix of the North, 5920 miles fron Buenos Aires to Lima, Juan writes ".... before an impressive audience, which had eyes only for the favourites, like Oscar Galvez well worthy of his fame." and "...I was looked on as a very promising young man".

He describes Oscar as his; "great rival" in these races. After the war they competed against each other with Galvez driving his 3.8 litre Alfa Romeo and being a front runner in most events, and as Eric states, was deemed worthy of coming to Europe with government backing.

Oscar was actually 2 years younger than Fangio, but was an established 'star' when Juan started driving in the long distance races.

Was he as good as Fangio? Of course not, but only Nuvolari can match El Chueco's stature in annals of motor sport.

bauble.