The last Ferrari driver to win home Italian GP broke incredible F1 record before being dropped
Ludovico Scarfiotti became the first Italian Ferrari driver to win his home Grand Prix at Monza since the legendary Alberto Ascari 14 years earlier. He was dropped for the following race.
Formula 1 had stopped racing on the Monza oval course in 1961 following the fatal accident involving Ferrari's Wolfgang von Trips, in which the German driver and 15 spectators were killed. Ferrari had won just one of the four races held on the revised circuit since then.
Scarfiotti was competing in his maiden Italian Grand Prix in 1964 when he watched Ferrari's John Surtees claim the chequered flag. Having qualified 16th, the Italian finished ninth, helped in part by a host of retirements.
1966 Italian Grand Prix: The background
Both Scarfiotti and Surtees would end up playing a key role in the early narrative of the 1966 season.
Surtees and team-mate Lorenzo Bandini started the season in the two Ferraris, but by race three Surtees had quit the team after a dispute over his entry at the 24 Hours of Le Mans - the iconic Ford 'photo finish' race.
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Surtees and Scarfiotti were due to share one of the Ferrari entries at Le Mans, with Surtees, who had won the 1964 Drivers' Championship, set to race the first stint.
Team manager Eugenio Dragoni then changed his mind on race day, putting Scarfiotti - the nephew of FIAT president Gianni Agnelli - in first instead. Agnelli was also attending the race in person. Surtees walked out of the team after subsequent talks with Enzo Ferrari failed to resolve the dispute.
So, to Monza, where Ferrari were still winless after six Grands Prix of the 1966 season.
Bandini had a best finish of sixth in the previous four races. Ferrari didn't compete at Brands Hatch due to a metalworkers strike in Italy.
Mike Parkes, who had driven his Ferrari to second place in France before two consecutive retirements, put his Scuderia car on pole ahead of Scarfiotti.
Once the race got underway, it was Bandini - who had made a stunning getaway from fifth on the grid - who led on the first lap, with Parkes in pursuit. In front of team boss Enzo Ferrari, it was the dream start.
Given Ferrari's fortunes during the 1966 season, and with Jack Brabham on the verge of sealing the Drivers' Championship with two races to spare, the Italian Grand Prix had taken on huge significance for the Scuderia.
Scarfiotti had dropped down to seventh, but profited from an engine issue for Bandini and overtook Surtees and Denny Hulme for second.
He was now only behind Parkes, who was a successful engineer by trade but also a more than accomplished driver. The Englishman had entered the British Grand Prix in 1959, only to fail to qualify.
His chance at F1 redemption began as early as 1963 when he joined Ferrari, initially to run in sportscars. He won 1000-kilometre races at Monza (twice) and Spa, and Ferrari identified him as a replacement for Surtees when his countryman walked out of the team.
Parkes' first race of the season was planned for Monza, with the Scuderia taking the time to build a longer chassis to fit his taller frame. As it happened, he had three races to adapt to the Ferrari car before the Italian Grand Prix.
He ended up essentially playing second fiddle to Scarfiotti at Monza, with the team wanting an Italian driver to take the chequered flag.
Still, he played a key role in protecting the race win, with Scarfiotti having initially taken the lead on lap 13. He battled with Hulme and Surtees to prevent them from having an opportunity to overtake the lead Ferrari. Helped by Bandini, who was several laps down, they did their job in preventing Scarfiotti from losing the advantage.
By the end of the Grand Prix, and with all rivals bar Hulme having faltered due to car issues, Scarfiotti crossed the line to win his first Formula 1 race by a margin of 5.9 seconds ahead of Parkes.
What happened to Ludovico Scarfiotti after his historic Monza win
The win was significant for several reasons. It was an Italian driver winning the Italian Grand Prix for Ferrari in front of Enzo Ferrari and the Tifosi. No Italian driver has won the Italian Grand Prix for Ferrari since.
It was also the fastest F1 race ever seen at the time, with Scarfiotti winning at an average speed of 136.7mph (220km/h).
Remarkably, the Italian had driven the spare Ferrari 312 chassis, designated the number 011, which hadn't been used during the 1966 season.
The race also ended up being Scarfiotti's final Grand Prix of the 1966 season, despite there still being two races to go. Ferrari only entered a single car, driven by Bandini, at the subsequent United States Grand Prix, having entered four - including one private entry - at Monza.
Motorsport Magazine's report from the race states that Ferrari had planned three entries, but that the other two were 'withdrawn'. The contemporary report does not specify why Scarfiotti's planned entry was withdrawn.
Scarfiotti did return in 1967, driving in two Grands Prix with a best result of sixth. He competed at Monza for the Anglo American Racers team, but retired on lap five due to an engine failure.
The Italian switched to Cooper for 1968 and competed in three further Grands Prix, finishing in fourth place twice. The Monaco Grand Prix proved to be his last. Scarfiotti was killed 12 days later in an accident at a hillclimb event in the German Alps.
Ryan Smart