Ludovico Scarfiotti

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Ludovico Scarfiotti
Nationality  Flag of Italy Italian
Formula One World Championship career
Active years 1963 – 1968
Teams Ferrari, Cooper, Anglo American Racers
Races 12 (10 starts)
Championships 0
Wins 1
Podium finishes    1
Career points 17
Pole positions 0
Fastest laps 1
First race 1963 Dutch Grand Prix
Last race 1968 Monaco Grand Prix

Ludovico Scarfiotti (18 October 1933 - 8 June 1968) was a Formula One and sports car driver from Italy. Just prior to entering Formula One, he won the 1963 24 Hours of Le Mans for Ferrari. Immediately after he debuted in Grands Prix racing on 23 June, later participating in 12 World Championship races. He won 1 race, and scored a total of 17 championship points. A motor sports competitor for a decade, Scarfiotti won the European mountain driving title in 1962. He was proclaimed Italy's best driver in both 1962 and 1965.[1]

Contents

[edit] Early life

Scarfiotti was born in Turin. Scarfiotti was associated with cars from his youth. His father was among five founders of the Fiat automobile company.[1]

[edit] Sports car competition

Ludovico Scarfiotti at the Nürburgring 1964
Ludovico Scarfiotti at the Nürburgring 1964

Scarfiotti competed in the 1,000 Kilometres de Paris sports car race in October 1962. He finished third with teammate Colin Davis. The event was won by Pedro Rodríguez and Ricardo Rodríguez driving a Ferrari.[2] Partnered with Bandini, Scarfioti was victorious in the 24 Hours of Le Mans in June 1963. Their factory Ferrari achieved an average speed of 117.99 miles per hour over a distance of 2,832 miles (4,558 km). The victory was worth almost $20,000 in various prize money along with prestige.[3]

John Surtees and Scarfiotti shared a Ferrari which gave the marque a fourth consecutive victory in 1965. They won the 1000km Nürburgring race. They led throughout the 44 laps, posting a winning time of 6 hours, 53 minutes, and 5 seconds, for an average speed of 90.46 mph (145.58 km/h).[4] Scarfiotti and Lorenzo Bandini drove a 2-litre Ferrari to second place in a 1,000 kilometre sports car race at the Nürburgring in June 1966. First place went to Phil Hill and Joakim Bonnier driving a 5.4-litre Chevrolet-powered Chaparral. The Ferrari was 90 seconds behind in a race that debuted the automatic transmission Chaparral in European competition. Surtees withdrew his 4-litre Ferrari after a number of pit stops following shock absorber trouble on the seventh lap.[5]

Surtees severed relations with the Ferrari racing team following their decision to replace him with Scarfiotti at the 1966 24 Hours of Le Mans. Surtees sustained grave injuries during a September 1965 race in Canada. The dispute was between Surtees and Ferrari team chief, Eugenio Dragoni. The quarrel had to do with Surtees' not having recovered sufficiently to drive competitively. Surtees had a valid complaint. He took first in a 1966 1,000 kilometre race at Monza and won the 1966 Belgian Grand Prix held on June 12.[6] Scarfiotti joined Mike Parkes in a Ferrari P4 for a 1,000 kilometre race at Spa in May 1967. They finished a lap behind Jacky Ickx and Richard Thompson, who drove a Ford Mirage (race car). The winning team averaged 120.5 mph (193.9 km/h). and posted a time of 5 hours, 9 minutes, 46.5 seconds.[7]

Scarfiotti entered a Ferrari factory car in the September 1967 200-mile Canadian-American Challenge Cup race held on a 2.85-mile (4.59 km) course near Bridgehampton, New York. His sponsor was the North American Racing Team of Luigi Chinetti.[8]

The Targa Florio is run near the Tyrrhenian Sea and the breath-taking scenery of the Madonie Mountains which overlook the Mediterranean Sea. The cars run through Cerda to Caltavuturo and Campofelice di Roccella. Scarfiotti wrecked his Porsche on the first day of qualifying in May 1968 and was forced to drive one of the Porsche team's spare entries.[9]

[edit] Formula One racer

Enzo Ferrari named Scarfiotti to the Ferrari Formula 1 team of drivers for 1962 along with Surtees, Willy Mairesse, Bandini, and Nino Vaccarella.[10] Scarfiotti placed sixth in the second Ferrari in the 1963 Dutch Grand Prix at Zandvoort. He was a lap behind victor, Jim Clark, in a Lotus. John Surtees piloted the first Ferrari to third place behind Dan Gurney in a Brabham. Scarfiotti finished fifth in the 1965 Syracuse Grand Prix.[11]

Scarfiotti became the first Italian in fifteen years to win the Grand Prix of Italy when he drove his Ferrari to a track record speed of 136.7 mph (220.0 km/h)., to secure the 1966 Italian Grand Prix. As of the end of the 2007 Formula One season, Scarfiotti's 1966 win marks the last time an Italian driver won the Italian Grand Prix. He completed the 68 laps around the 3.6.-mile (5.8 km) Autodromo Nazionale Monza in an event in which Jack Brabham clinched his 3rd Formula One World Championship, despite exiting on the 7th lap.[12]

The Ferrari team decided to enter two cars in the 1967 Syracuse Grand Prix, following the death of Bandini from burns sustained during the 1967 Monaco Grand Prix. Scarfiotti and Parkes each drove a 1966 model single-seater.[13] The two Ferrari drivers shared the victory when they crossed the finish line in a dead heat in Siracusa. Parkes and Scarfiotti were in 3-Litre cars. They were clocked at 113.65 mph (182.90 km/h). for an official time of 1 hour, 40 minutes, 58 seconds, for the 191.2-mile (307.7 km) race.[14]

Brian Redman and Scarfiotti came in 3rd and 4th, respectively, at the 1968 Spanish Grand Prix in Jarama. Both drove for Cooper, with Redman competing in only his second Formula One Grand Prix. The race marked the first win for Graham Hill since 1965.[15]

Driving a Cooper, Scarfiotti placed 3rd in the 1968 Monaco Grand Prix, an event marked by mechanical breakdowns that eliminated 11 of 16 starters before the race was completed.[16] Scarfiotti's qualification time of 1:35.9 was well off that of pole sitter, Bruce McLaren, who was clocked at 1:29.8. Qualifying times were hindered by a track which was slick from rain and mist.[17]

[edit] Death

Ludovico Scarfiotti died in 1968 at a hillclimbing event on the Roßfeldhöhenringstraße near Berchtesgaden, Germany. Scarfiotti died when his car crashed in the German Alps during trials for an uphill mountain climb in Berchtesgaden. He became the 3rd Grand Prix driver to die in 1968, following Jim Clark and Mike Spence. Scarfiotti wrecked his Porsche 910 on the Rossfeldstrasse track. The car veered abruptly and catapulted ten yards down a tree-covered slope. The Porsche hung in the trees and Scarfiotti was thrown from the cockpit. His body was discovered fifty yards away. He died in an ambulance of numerous fractures. Huschke von Hastein, the team manager of Porsche, stated that he had never been associated with a fatal accident during the eighteen years he had been in charge of the team. 60 yards (55 m) of burned rubber braking indicated that Scarfiotti had slammed on his brakes at the final moment. Scarfiotti was married and had two children.[1]

[edit] Complete Formula One World Championship results

(key) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year Team Chassis Engine 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 WDC Points
1963 Scuderia Ferrari Ferrari 156 Ferrari V6 MON BEL NED
6		 FRA
DNS		 GBR GER ITA USA MEX RSA 16th 1
1964 Scuderia Ferrari Ferrari 156 Ferrari V6 MON NED BEL FRA GBR GER AUT ITA
9		 USA MEX - 0
1965 Scuderia Ferrari Ferrari 1512 Ferrari V12 RSA MON BEL FRA GBR NED GER ITA USA MEX
DNS		 - 0
1966 Scuderia Ferrari Ferrari Dino 246 Ferrari V6 MON BEL FRA GBR NED GER
Ret		 10th 9
Ferrari 312/66 Ferrari V12 ITA
1		 USA MEX
1967 Scuderia Ferrari Ferrari 312/67 Ferrari V12 RSA MON NED
6		 BEL
NC		 FRA GBR GER CAN 21st 1
Anglo American Racers Eagle T1G Weslake V12 ITA
Ret		 USA MEX
1968 Cooper Car Company Cooper T86 Maserati V12 RSA
Ret		 16th 6
Cooper T86B BRM V12 ESP
4		 MON
4		 BEL NED FRA GBR GER ITA CAN USA MEX


Preceded by
Olivier Gendebien
Phil Hill		 Winner of the 24 Hours of Le Mans
1963 with:
Lorenzo Bandini		 Succeeded by
Jean Guichet
Nino Vaccarella

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b c Scarfiotti, 34, Killed In Car-Racing Crash, New York Times, June 9, 1968, Page S1.
  2. ^ Pedro and Ricardo Rodriguez First in France With a Ferrari, New York Times, October 22, 1962, Page 52.
  3. ^ Italian Ferrari Sets 2 Marks in Winning Le Mans Race, New York Times, June 17, 1963, Page 45.
  4. ^ Driver Is Killed In German Race, New York Times, May 24, 1965, Page 43.
  5. ^ Italians Are Next In 2-Liter Ferrari, New York Times, June 6, 1966, Page 57.
  6. ^ John Surtees, Ferrari Team Call It Quits, New York Times, June 23, 1966, Page G4.
  7. ^ Ickx, Thompson Win Belgian Race, New York Times, May 2, 1967, Page 59.
  8. ^ Hulme Paces Bridgehampton Trials, New York Times, September 17, 1967, Page S9.
  9. ^ Vaccarella Will Carry Hopes Of Sicilian Auto Fans Today, New York Times, May 5, 1968, Page S7.
  10. ^ Ferrari Team Named, New York Times, December 2, 1962, Page 253.
  11. ^ Clark Sets Mark With Lotus-Climax In Sicily Auto Race, New York Times, April 5, 1965, Page 40.
  12. ^ Italian Wins at Monza; Ginther Hurt in Crash, Los Angeles Times, September 5, 1966, Page B5.
  13. ^ Two Ferraris Are Entered In Italian Formula One Race, New York Times, May 21, 1967, Page 23.
  14. ^ Surtees, Driving a Lola, Takes 2-Heat Grand Prix of Limburg (Belgium), New York Times, May 22, 1967, Page 61.
  15. ^ Graham Hill of Britain Drives Lotus Ford to Victory in Spanish Grand Prix, New York Times, May 13, 1968, Page 60
  16. ^ Graham Hill Takes Monaco Grand Prix, New York Times, May 27, 1968, Page 66.
  17. ^ McLaren, Gurney and Rindt Among Qualifiers For Monaco Grand Prix Today, May 26, 1968, Page S7.

[edit] External links