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.

History

During the years immediately following World War I several road circuits were created in Italy. These included the

Montenero Circuit 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, Italy, Livorno, a city on the mediterran ...

Livorno Livorno () is a port city on the Ligurian Sea on the western coast of Tuscany, Italy. It is the capital of the Province of Livorno, having a population of 158,493 residents in December 2017. It is traditionally known in English as Leghorn (pronou ...

, which became home for the annual Coppa Montenero from its inauguration in 1921. In the beginning it was only a local affair and the organizers quickly found themselves in financial troubles. In 1923 the event was taken over by the

Automobile Club of Italy The Automobile Club d'Italia (usually known by its acronym ACI) is a not-for-profit statutory corporation of the Italian Republic. The club originated through the efforts of Count Carlo Biscaretti di Ruffia as the "Automobile Club of Turin" found ...

and the future was secured. In 1927, the Livorno-born politician Costanzo Ciano donated a victory trophy: the Coppa Ciano. At first, this was awarded to the victor in a separate sports car race, run within a week of the Coppa Montenero. In 1929, however, the Coppa Ciano was merged into the main event and at the same time became the name most often used. The driver

Emilio Materassi Emilio Materassi (October 30, 1894 – September 9, 1928) was an Italian Grand Prix motor racing driver. Early life Born in Borgo San Lorenzo, near Florence, Italy, Emilio began working in a bicycle shop, learning the basics of applied mechani ...

won 4 years in a row 1925-1928 and earned the nickname "King of Montenero". In the 1930s, Italian

Hall of Fame A hall, wall, or walk of fame is a list of individuals, achievements, or other entities, usually chosen by a group of electors, to mark their excellence or Wiktionary:fame, fame in their field. In some cases, these halls of fame consist of actu ...

driver

Tazio Nuvolari Tazio Giorgio Nuvolari (; 16 November 1892 – 11 August 1953) was an Italian racing driver. He first raced motorcycles and then concentrated on sports cars and single-seaters. A resident of Mantua, he was known as 'Il Mantovano Volante' (Th ...

won this race five times, more than any other driver. In his 1936 victory he made his way through the field, beating the otherwise superior German cars. This victory was one of the reasons leading to the Italian Grand Prix being held at the Montenero circuit in 1937, instead of the usual venue,

Monza Monza (, ; lmo, label=Lombard language, Lombard, Monça, locally ; lat, Modoetia) is a city and ''comune'' on the River Lambro, a tributary of the Po River, Po in the Lombardy region of Italy, about north-northeast of Milan. It is the capit ...

. The 1939 race was run to Voiturette regulations and became the last before World War II stopped all racing for many years. In 1947 the 20th and final edition of the Coppa Montenero was run, with 1500 cc unsupercharged cars. At that point, due to Costanzo Ciano's connections with the now abolished Fascist regime, it was no longer called Coppa Ciano.

Coppa Ciano by year

External links

Circuito del Montenero - Coppa Ciano
(Italian)

1931,1932, 1935-1939

The Formula One Archives

when Nuvolari waved the steering wheel at the crowd...

References

{{reflist Auto races in Italy Recurring sporting events established in 1927 Recurring events disestablished in 1939 Pre-World Championship Grands Prix

History

Coppa Ciano by year

See also

External links

References