Emilio Materassi
Emilio Materassi (born October 30, 1894 in Borgo San Lorenzo , † September 9, 1928 in Monza ) was an Italian racing driver .
Early years
Emilio Materassi was a trained two-wheel mechanic and later discovered a passion for engines and automobiles . In his early twenties, Materassi took over the management of the family business; a wine and rope shop. But the business failed and Materassi earned his living as a bus driver.
Racing
When Gran Premio Gentlemen 1921 on the Circuito di Montichiari in Brescia Materassi made his race debut. However, he could not finish his race because of a defect. In his next race in Mugello he finished eighth.
In 1923, with the help of wealthy friends, Materassi opened his own workshop in Florence ; the "L'Autogarage Nazionale". Thanks to a work contract with Hispano-Suiza , Materassi was able to purchase aircraft engines from the First World War and modify them for racing vehicles. He built the engines into Italian cars and called his construction "Italona". Despite the high dead weight of almost two tons , the racing cars were competitive due to the high engine power in hill climbs.
With his own Italona designs, Materassi won several local races, including the Circuito del Mugello twice . In 1926 he was fourth at the Targa Florio . In 1925 and 1926 he won the Coppa Montenero , which earned him the nickname "King of Montenero".
In 1927 Materassi became a works driver at Bugatti and won the Gran Premio di Tripoli , the Targa Florio and the Coppa Montenero for the third time in a row.
In 1928, Materassi founded his own racing team - the Scuderia Materassi - in which he bought cars and material from the bankruptcy of the Talbot team. Thanks to his own revisions to the vehicles, Malterassi was able to reduce the weight of the chassis by 30 kg. In addition to Materassi himself, Luigi Arcangeli , Antonio Brivio , Gastone Brilli-Peri and Gianfranco Comotti also started for the Scuderia. This year, alongside Mugello, he also won the Coppa Montenero for the fourth time in a row.
The fatal accident
At the Italian Grand Prix in Monza , a Materassis accident triggered the biggest accident in racing history to date.
During a duel with Bugatti driver Giulio Foresti on the start-finish straight , the cars of the two competitors touched and Materassis Talbot got on, jumped over a protective ditch and hit the stands through a fence. Materassi and twenty spectators were killed immediately, dozens more were injured, some seriously. Another injured person died in hospital three days later.
With 22 deaths in one race, the accident was the greatest disaster in racing history until the Le Mans catastrophe in 1955 . As a result, the Italian Grand Prix was canceled in the two following years, but the Gran Premio di Monza took place in the same place.
Web links
- Donatella Biffignandi: LA VERA STORIA DI EMILIO MATERASSI. (pdf) www.museoauto.it, 2004, accessed on August 2, 2014 (Italian).
Individual evidence
- ↑ historicracing.com: Emilio Materassi ( Memento from August 15, 2014 in the Internet Archive )
- ^ Motorsportmemorial.org: Emilio Materassi
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Materassi, Emilio |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Italian racing car driver |
| DATE OF BIRTH | October 30, 1894 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Borgo San Lorenzo , Italy |
| DATE OF DEATH | September 9, 1928 |
| Place of death | Monza , Italy |