Luigi "Gigi" Soffietti is a former Italian racing driver. He entered 56 sports car races and Grands Prix between 1932 and 1938 (48 started) in Alfa Romeo's and Maserati's. Notable entries include the Mille Miglia and Targa Florio, but also the German Grand Prix, the Tripoli Grand Prix (both three times), and the Monaco Grand Prix (twice).
The Monaco Grand Prix is a Formula One motor racing event held annually on the Circuit de Monaco, in late May or early June. Run since 1929, it is widely considered to be one of the most important and prestigious automobile races in the world, and is one of the races—along with the Indianapolis 500 and the 24 Hours of Le Mans—that form the Triple Crown of Motorsport. The circuit has been called "an exceptional location of glamour and prestige". The Formula One event is usually held on the last weekend of May and is known as one of the largest weekends in auto racing, as the Formula One race occurs on the same Sunday as the Indianapolis 500 and the Coca-Cola 600.
Grand Prix motor racing, a form of motorsport competition, has its roots in organised automobile racing that began in France as early as 1894. It quickly evolved from simple road races from one town to the next, to endurance tests for car and driver. Innovation and the drive of competition soon saw speeds exceeding 100 miles per hour (160 km/h), but because early races took place on open roads, accidents occurred frequently, resulting in deaths both of drivers and of spectators. A common abbreviation used for Grand Prix racing is "GP" or "GP racing".
Hermann Lang was a German racing driver who raced motorcycles, Grand Prix cars, and sports cars.
Peter John Collins was a British racing driver. He was killed in the 1958 German Grand Prix, just weeks after winning the RAC British Grand Prix. He started his career as a 17-year-old in 1949, impressing in Formula 3 races, finishing third in the 1951 Autosport National Formula 3 Championship.
The Coppa Ciano was an automobile race held in Italy. Originally referred to as Coppa Montenero or Circuito Montenero, the Coppa Ciano name was officially in use between 1927 and 1939.
Reginald Parnell was a racing driver and team manager from Derby, England. He participated in seven Formula One World Championship Grands Prix, achieving one podium, and scoring a total of nine championship points.
Jan Ellegaard Magnussen is a Danish professional racing driver and was a factory driver for General Motors until the end of the 2020 season. He has competed in Championship Auto Racing Teams (CART), NASCAR, the FIA Formula One World Championship and the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
Emilio Materassi was an Italian Grand Prix motor racing driver.
The European Drivers' Championship was an annual competition in auto racing that existed prior to the establishment of the Formula One world championship in 1950. It was established in 1931 and ran until the end of 1939 with a hiatus from 1933–34, and awarded points to drivers based on the results of selected Grand Prix races, the so-called Grandes Épreuves. The championship was discontinued because of the outbreak of World War II in 1939, and no champion was officially declared for the last season.
The World Manufacturers' Championship, also known as Automobile World Championship, was a competition organised by the AIACR between 1925 and 1930.
The 1938 Grand Prix season was the sixth AIACR European Championship season. The championship was won by Rudolf Caracciola, driving for the Mercedes-Benz team. Caracciola won one of the four events that counted towards the championship.
The 1939 Grand Prix season was the seventh AIACR European Championship season. The championship winner was never officially announced by the AIACR due to the outbreak of World War II less than two weeks after the final event in Switzerland. The Italian GP initially had been a fifth event, but it became clear well before the war that it would be cancelled due to construction work. At that time, it was also undecided which scoring system would be used, the old minimum points system that basically counted positions, or the French maximum points system similar to the modern one. Although Hermann Paul Müller would have won the championship on points according to the old system, the president of Nazi Germany's highest motorsports organisation declared Hermann Lang the champion. Lang was clearly the dominating driver in that season, which was acknowledged by the international press. In the first two of the four championship events, both Lang and Müller won once while the other failed to complete 75% of the distance. The German round saw Lang retiring early, and Müller finishing 2nd behind Caracciola. This left Müller in the lead in both scoring systems, as published in magazines, with the Swiss round deciding the outcome. Müller finished 4th behind three Mercedes, which gave him the lead in the old point system, while in front, Lang had beaten Caracciola for the lead in the maximum points system.
The 1925 Grand Prix season was a watershed year in motor racing. It was the first year for the new AIACR World Manufacturers' Championship season. The championship was won by Alfa Romeo, with its P2 model.
The Mercedes-Benz W154 was a Grand Prix racing car designed by Rudolf Uhlenhaut. The W154 competed in the 1938 and 1939 Grand Prix seasons and was used by Rudolf Caracciola to win the 1938 European Championship.
The Montenero Circuit, official name: Circuito del Montenero or sometimes referred to simply as "the Livorno Circuit", was a Grand Prix motor racing road course located at the southern outskirts of Livorno, a city on the mediterranean coast of the Tuscany region in Italy. The venue was best known as the home for the annual Circuito Montenero - Coppa Ciano and the 1937 Italian Grand Prix.
The 1926 San Sebastián Grand Prix was a Grand Prix motor race held at Circuito Lasarte on 18 July 1926. It was also designated as the European Grand Prix.
The Mercedes-Benz W25 was a Grand Prix racing car designed by Daimler-Benz AG for the 1934 Grand Prix season, in which new rules were introduced, and no championship was held. In 1935, the European Championship was resumed, and it was won by Rudolf Caracciola in a W25. In modified form, the W25 remained in use until 1937, when it was succeeded by the Mercedes-Benz W125.
The 1934 Monaco Grand Prix was a Grand Prix motor race held on 2 April 1934 at Circuit de Monaco in and out of Monte Carlo. The race comprised 100 laps of a 3.180km circuit, for a total race distance of 318.0km.
Robert Brunet was a French racing driver between 1931 and 1951. Most of his 44 entries were Grands Prix, but he also entered the 24 Hours of Le Mans. He achieved a class victory and was fifth overall in the 1949 edition.
This article gives a general overview of motorsport in Italy. For a more exhaustive view see; Motorsport in Italy by decade and Motorsport in Italy by year. Motorsport is widely popular in Italy, and its history spans over a century back to the early 1900s. Today, Italy is considered a hub of motorsport in terms of racing venues, drivers, teams, and manufacturers. It hosts annual races across Formula One, MotoGP, the World Touring Car Cup, and other prominent motor racing series.
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