The inaugural Ferrari Tribute to Mille Miglia took place May 6-9, 2010, starting and ending in Brescia, Italy. After three days of competition and 1,180 kilometres of driving, the 130 modern and classic Ferraris entered officially ended their race along the route of the Mille Miglia, just a stone’s throw from the Maranello factory complex, before moving on to the grand finale parade along Viale Venezia in Brescia.
The last edition of the famous race was held in 1957 and this is also the cut-off year of manufacture for cars entering the contemporary race, thus excluding owners of more modern Ferraris from 1958 and beyond. Beginning with this edition in 2010, however, they have their own dedicated event.
The Ferrari Tribute was an event within an event as the 43 different Maranello models went ahead of the historic Mille Miglia car race, whipping up huge enthusiasm amongst the spectators that lined out to welcome the Tribute participants at every stage. They drove from Brescia to Rome and back, against the marvelous backdrop of the Po Valley, the hills of the Marche, Umbrian forests, snow-capped Apennines and gentle Tuscan countryside. The drivers and navigators from 16 different countries were invariably greeted by a festive atmosphere at every stage but most notably along the legendary hairpins of the Futa and the Raticosa mountain passes where hundreds of fans thronged the roadsides. The routes through small towns and the larger historic cities, such as Bologna, Florence, Siena and of course, Rome, were spectacular too. In fact, there was a particularly impressive parade at Castel Sant’Angelo on the Friday evening.
Final classifications were be decided by regularity trials over specific sections, including the Fiorano circuit during the Maranello stage. Aside from the overall classification, there were separate standings for “contemporary” cars from 1982 to 2010 and “classic” cars from 1958 to 1981. Surprisingly, the entry list was weighted heavily towards modern Ferrari with only 23 Enzo-era cars in the tribute. Part of the problem was the requirement that only road-legal cars with regular number plates and insurance were eligible.
Overall victory in the first Ferrari Tribute to Mille Miglia went to the 2000 Ferrari 360 Modena of Leonardo Giardina and Giuseppina Di Serio, who finished ahead of the 2009 Ferrari California manned by Marta Bonomi and Adrian Paolicchi and the 1992 Ferrari 512 TR crewed by Gino Verghini and Lamberto Fuso.
Ferrari Tribute to Mille Miglia 2010 – Contemporary Car Results (1982-2010)
1. 2000 Ferrari 360 Modena F1 – Leonardo Giardina and Giuseppina Di Serio
2. 2009 Ferrari California – Marta Bonomi and Adrian Paolicchi
3. 1992 Ferrari 512 TR – Gino Verghini and Lamberto Fuso
4. 2010 Ferrari 458 Italia – Mario Gnutti and Simona Cremonesi
5. 2009 Ferrari F430 Spider – Sotiris Gikontes and Maria Zouropoulou
Ferrari Tribute to Mille Miglia 2010 – Classic Car Results (1958-1982)
1. 1971 Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona – Ugo Gussalli Beretta and Donato Benetti
2. 1958 Ferrari 250 GT SWB – Antonio Ghini and Cristina Valenza
3. 1961 Ferrari 250 GT Series II Cabriolet – Carlos Lopez and Maria Eugenia Lopez
4. 1958 Ferrari 250 GT Tour de France – Kim Taylor-Smith and Neil Twyman
5. 1961 Ferrari 250 GT SWB California Spider – Chris and Natasha Evans
Click for complete results: Ferrari Tribute to Mille Miglia – Official Rankings.
Ferrari Tribute at Mille Miglia 2010 – Photo Gallery and Video
[Source: Ferrari SpA]
