Top 10 @Monza – Ninth place: 4 September 1966

**Rob** · 28th August 2013, 20:32

An Italian driver winning the Italian Grand Prix at the wheel of a Ferrari: could there be a better combination for what is definitely one of the most passionate group of supporters in the world of Formula 1? Unfortunately, the situation has only arisen three times, the last one no less than 47 years ago: on 4th September 1966, Ludovico Scarfiotti won from his team-mate Mike Parkes, both men driving the 312 F1-66. Before Scarfiotti, only Alberto Ascari had achieved this result, in 1951 and again in 1952. It should be pointed out that another Italian, Giuseppe Farina, won at Monza at the wheel of an Italian car, an Alfa Romeo with the added bonus of taking the world title.

1966 was not an easy season for the Scuderia, despite the fact that the car, fitted with the new 3000 cc V12 engine introduced that year, was very competitive. There were problems with reliability, the tyres (which led to a switch from Dunlop to Firestone) and with production because of some unrest from the trades union, which slowed down work in the factory. This would all conspire against the Maranello drivers fighting right to the end for the title, although the team managed to finish second in the Constructors’ championship. On top of that, there was the Surtees situation, with the Englishman dismissed by Enzo Ferrari on the eve of the Le Mans 24 Hours, after the 1964 World Champion had won the Belgian Grand Prix. Mike Parkes was brought in alongside Lorenzo Bandini and, as from Germany, so too was Scarfiotti.

And so to Monza, where Surtees, having switched to the Maserati-powered Cooper, still had a theoretical chance of taking the title away from Jack Brabham: for the Commendatore, it would have been too great a disgrace to see the Englishman take the title with another car, with points previously scored in a Ferrari. Preparation for the home race was meticulous and the result lived up to expectations. In qualifying, Parkes took pole from Scarfiotti, with Bandini fifth. In the race, Parkes took off in front, but Bandini crossed the line in the lead at the end of the opening lap: unfortunately for him, a fuel pump problem led to a loss of fuel, which affected his race, which in any case then ended prematurely with a broken engine. The worst fears seemed to be coming true when Surtees passed Parkes on lap 2, while Scarfiotti had dropped back into the pack, but the ex-Ferrari man was in turn passed by Brabham, although he had to retire on lap 8. In the meantime, Scarfiotti had fought his way up the order, while Parkes and Hulme traded places at the front. The Italian got into his team-mate’s slipstream and passed him on lap 13, before settling into a lead he would keep all the way to the end, apart from lap 27. Behind him, the fight for second place saw Parkes prevail over Hulme by just three tenths, while Brabham was able to celebrate being champion the moment Surtees retired.

The Italian crowd went wild, including a young man who had just turned 19 years old and who was lucky enough to be attending his first ever Grand Prix that very day. A few years later, he would become very familiar to all Ferrari fans and to a wider audience too: his name? Luca di Montezemolo.