Alberto Ascari leading the 1953 Italian Grand Prix at Monza in his Ferrari 500 F2. He was denied victory when his car was T-boned by Onofre MarimonÕs Maserati within sight of the checkered flag. The eventual winner was Juan Manuel Fangio.
Photo: Pirelli
Eugenio Castellotti was deeply concerned about his best friend and mentor. Four days earlier, Alberto Ascari plunged his Lancia D50 headlong into Monte Carlo harbor at more than 120 mph, while he was leading the 1955 Monaco Grand Prix. The 1952-53 Formula One World Champion was plucked from his submerged car by a frogman and hauled unceremoniously onto the deck of a small rescue boat, shaken and gasping for breath but glad to be alive. Before being taken to the hospital, the bedraggled Italian still had the presence of mind to insist that the frogman dive down to the sunken D50 again and bring up his bright blue “pudding bowl” crash helmet – a fanatically superstitious man, Ascari always refused point blank to drive a racing car without his indispensable head gear. So central was that particular helmet to his peace of mind that, if a mechanic in the pits even so much as moved it from the top of a tool box during testing, the Milanese driver would refuse to continue with the test session.
Prelude to Disaster
It was the Thursday after the Monaco accident, and Castellotti worried that his friend was still sitting around in his Milan apartment, dwelling on the fearful accident. So the young driver called Ascari at home and invited the double World Champion to Monza. It was May 26, 1955, and Eugenio was testing a 4-cylinder Ferrari 750 Sport at the track for the forthcoming 1000 Kilometre race at the Brianza circuit. Castellotti thought that watching a few hours’ testing would help take his friend’s mind off the near fatal Monaco accident and begin the process of bringing Alberto back into the motor racing fold.
