Carlo Chiti and Autodelta: when Alfa ruled the circuits

As we celebrate Alfa Romeo’s 110th anniversary, Carlo Chiti, the exuberant Tuscan engineer who managed to return Alfa Romeo to racing glory after they retired from Formula 1 in 1951, cannot be forgotten. Chiti was born at Alfa in 1953, in the Reparto Esperienze Speciali (ndr. Special Experiences Department), but lack of racing drove him to Maranello and to Ferrari. Here the results were there for all to see: three World Championship for Makes with the Testarossa, two Drivers’ World Championships, with Mike Hawthorn in 1958 and Phil Hill in 1961, the year in which Ferrari also won the first Constructors’ Championship with the F156 known as the “Shark Nose”.

Autodelta’s origins are close to Udine, in a shed next to the Alfa Romeo dealership. The TZ2 was the first model registered for the races in the name of Alfa Romeo.

Chiti, with his somewhat turbulent character, suffered from the tensions at Ferrari caused by the wife of the Commendatore, who was too present and too authoritarian. The situation precipitated when Ferrari received a letter written by a lawyer (grave mistake having used a lawyer, Enzo did not tolerate threats) signed by him and seven other executives in charge of the company, which called for the removal of his wife from the Factory. Ferrari, never one to miss an opportunity, seized the moment to get rid of certain individuals who had become too independent, and fired everyone. It was a draconian move (but he subsequently recovered the ones he really needed...)