16 replies to this topic

[Nanni Dietrich]

Yesterday I had a discussion with a group of friends about the top-ten Italian drivers.

It is not an easy list to compile.

Nowadays no one of them is in F1 (except Raffaele Marciello, third driver at Sauber for 2015). Possibly only one (part-time) is in Indycar, Luca Filippi and only one in EWC, Mauro Bonanomi at Audi.

There was a time in the late 1980s when almost 12 or 13 Italians packed the F1 grids (or, at least the pre-qualifying session...)

 

Try...

1 - Gimmi Bruni

2 - Luca Filippi

3 - Davide Valsecchi

4 - Edoardo Mortara

5 - Giancarlo Fisichella

6 - Mauro Bonanomi

7 - Raffaele Marciello

8 - Davide Rigon

9 - ...

 

 

Would you mind help me? I want to know your "actual list" of top-ten Italian racing drivers. Not the all-time list, the list of today.

Thank you.

 

[ensign14]

Hadn't thought about it, but, blimey, you're right.  Doesn't seem yesterday since F3000 was rammed full of -inis. 

[Michael Ferner]

Gee, Fisi's still active? Way to go!

[ReWind]

Although I cannot see any nostalgia in this item the answer is in the Autosport rankings.
For Italy today it says:
1) Edoardo Mortara (# 150 worldwide)
2) Andrea Caldarelli (153)
3) Ronnie Quintarelli (158)
4) Gabriele Tarquini (186)
5) Raffaele Marciello (204)
6) Gianni Morbidelli (211)
7) Vitantonio Liuzzi (245)
8) Gianmaria Bruni (258)
9) Kevin Giovesi (261)
10) Lorenzo Bertelli (271)
11) Maurizio Mediani (276)*

 

[* included because Bertelli is a rally driver]

Italy is a lamentable # 26 in the nations rankings.

Edited by ReWind, 20 February 2015 - 15:52.

[nicanary]

It's time they brought out a new formula to find Italian talent. They could call it something like Formula Junior, maybe production-engine based..........

[Charlieman]

It's time they brought out a new formula to find Italian talent. They could call it something like Formula Junior, maybe production-engine based..........

Just don't screw up the rules with fast team/customer cars, rear engines and disk brakes. Or do it slowly.

[Charlieman]

One has to consider that a racing car must have WINGS.  

[Nanni Dietrich]

Although I cannot see any nostalgia in this item 

...

Italy is a lamentable # 26 in the nations rankings.

 

I see a lot of nostalgia in this item, indeed...

[nexfast]

Italy has been in crisis I would dare to say since Musso died. With the possible exception of Bandini in the sixties, whose likely full potential was curtailed by an early demise, and a golden season by Alboreto in 1985 I can't remember any other Italian driver who could be considered as a true contender for the World Championship Drivers title. I have mixed feelings about De Angelis true potential and I acknowledge some very good, but not great, drivers from Patrese to Trulli and including Capelli and Fisichella (and I always had an inescapable soft spot for Ghinzani while admitting his F1 career was never very successful). As a great admirer of Italy in general I look at  this situation with a lot of regret, though my feeling is that the tiffosi care more about Ferrari than about their compatriot drivers which might partially also explain the scarcity of good opportunities for the italian driver. If one gets out of F1 surely Tarquini, Giovanardi and especially Ravaglia should be seen as extremely successful touring car drivers. From Nanni Dietrich's contemporary list, Marciello and Mortara seem to be the most promising (and by the way Bonanomi is Marco, not Mauro).

[D28]

The post from Nexfast is a very sobering reminder that the last Italian WC was Alberto Ascari and the last home grown GP winner was Ludovico Scarfiotti, 48 years ago. Don'r know where the problem lies, as plenty of youngsters compete in the kart ranks, but somewhere along the line sponsorship or momentum dries up. Truly a sad state of affairs.

[Michael Ferner]

Well, yeah, Scarfiotti won 48 years ago, but what about Brambilla, Alboreto, de Angelis, Patrese, Fisichella (etc.?), they did win Grands Prix didn't they?

[Collombin]

I'm guessing it was a reference to Italians winning in Italy, although de Angelis "won" at Imola in 1985.

[D28]

I was simply reflecting on the fact that the last Italian to win the Italian GP was 48 years ago, and how unbelievable this scenario would have appeared to observers from the 1950s-60s. Certainly people like Alboreto and De Angelis were winners, just not at the GP at Monza which is a very special place

Edited by D28, 21 February 2015 - 22:49.

[eldougo]

Alberto Ascari

Guiseppe Farina

Lorenzo Bandini

Lella Lombardi

Vittorio Brambilla

Riccardo Patrese

Michele Alboreto

Bruno Giacomelli

Elio De Angelis

Alex Zanardi......

[Stephen W]

Statistically the most succesful Italian driver of the post 1949 period is Luigi Fagioli. Despite only contesting seven (7) GPs he accumulated one win, four seconds and one third. He retired just once. No other Italian driver has such a fantastic strike rate.

 

  

[Michael Ferner]

Statistically, even Giancarlo Baghetti was more successful than Fagioli after 1949 (he won three times, and his WC win was genuine, whereas Fagioli never won, just starting a car that another driver ultimately won with). What you're talking about is averages, a consistently bad choice for analysis of performance.

[Eric Dunsdon]

Tazio Nuvolari.

Achille Varzi.

Pietro Bordino.

Antonio Ascari..

Luigi Fagioli.

Giuseppppe Farina.

Alberto Ascari.

Giuseppe Campari

Luigi Musso

Eugenio Castellotti.

 

Not what was asked for I know, but what a list!. Sadly, I couldnt name any current Italian racing drivers.