Franco Cortese (10 February 1903 in

Oggebbio Oggebbio is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Verbano-Cusio-Ossola in the Italian region Piedmont, located about northeast of Turin and about northeast of Verbania. Oggebbio borders the following municipalities: Aurano, Brezzo di B ...

Piedmont it, Piemontese , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographics1_title2 ...

– 13 November 1986 in

Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...

) was an Italian

racing driver Auto racing (also known as car racing, motor racing, or automobile racing) is a motorsport involving the racing of automobiles for competition. Auto racing has existed since the invention of the automobile. Races of various sorts were organise ...

. He entered 156 races between 1927 and 1958, of which one was a

Formula 1 Formula One (also known as Formula 1 or F1) is the highest class of international racing for open-wheel single-seater formula racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The World Drivers' Championship, ...

Grand Prix Grand Prix ( , meaning ''Grand Prize''; plural Grands Prix), is a name sometimes used for competitions or sport events, alluding to the winner receiving a prize, trophy or honour Grand Prix or grand prix may refer to: Arts and entertainment ...

and three were

Formula 2 Formula Two (F2 or Formula 2) is a type of open-wheel formula racing category first codified in 1948. It was replaced in 1985 by Formula 3000, but revived by the FIA from 2009–2012 in the form of the FIA Formula Two Championship. The name return ...

Grands Prix. Cortese holds the record of most finishes in a

Mille Miglia The Mille Miglia (, ''Thousand Miles'') was an open-road, motorsport endurance race established in 1927 by the young Counts Francesco Mazzotti and Aymo Maggi, which took place in Italy twenty-four times from 1927 to 1957 (thirteen before World ...

race: fourteen. Besides having entered many races in an

Alfa Romeo Alfa Romeo Automobiles S.p.A. () is an Italian luxury car manufacturer and a subsidiary of Stellantis. The company was founded on 24 June 1910, in Milan, Italy. "Alfa" is an acronym of its founding name, "Anonima Lombarda Fabbrica Automobili." ...

, Cortese became most famous for his affiliation with

Ferrari Ferrari S.p.A. (; ) is an Italian luxury sports car manufacturer based in Maranello, Italy. Founded by Enzo Ferrari (1898–1988) in 1939 from the Alfa Romeo racing division as ''Auto Avio Costruzioni'', the company built its first car in ...

between 1947 and 1949, driving the first race car built by Ferrari in 1947, the

Ferrari 125 S :''See also the Ferrari 125 F1, a Formula One race car sharing the same engine'' The Ferrari 125 S (commonly 125 or 125 Sport) was a 1.5 litre race car built in 1947 by automaker Ferrari of Modena, Italy, its first vehicle. Only two were made. ...

, which brought victories at four races in 1947. In 1950 he co-founded the Formula One team

Scuderia Ambrosiana Scuderia Ambrosiana was an Italian motor racing team that competed in Grand Prix motor racing and the Formula One World Championship. The team was founded in 1937 by drivers Giovanni Lurani, Luigi Villoresi, Franco Cortese and Eugenio Minetti and ...

with

Giovanni Lurani Giovanni “Johnny” Lurani Cernuschi, VIII Count of Calvenzano (December 19, 1905 – January 17, 1995) was an Italian automobile engineer, racing car driver and journalist. He studied engineering at the Politecnico di Milano and raced cars suc ...

Luigi Villoresi Luigi Villoresi (16 May 1909 – 24 August 1997) was an Italian Grand Prix motor racing driver who continued racing on the Formula One circuit at the time of its inception. Biography Born in Milan, Lombardy, and nicknamed "Gigi", he was the older ...

and Eugenio Minetti.

Complete results

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cortese, Franco 1903 births 1986 deaths Sportspeople from the Province of Verbano-Cusio-Ossola Italian racing drivers Ferrari people 24 Hours of Le Mans drivers Mille Miglia drivers Italian Formula One drivers Formula One team owners Italian motorsport people European Championship drivers