Alfa Romeo started motor racing almost immediately after it was founded. A.L.F.A. ventured into motor racing in 1911, with drivers Franchini and Ronzoni competing in the Targa Florio with two 24 HP models. The marque’s first success came in 1913 when Nino Franchini finished second in Parma-Poggio Berceto race with a 40-60 HP and Giuseppe Merosi built a very advanced racing car in 1914, which was named the Grand Prix. In 1920 Giuseppe Campari won the race at Mugello with a 40-60 HP, Enzo Ferrari was second in Tange in the same year. A year later Giuseppe Campari won at Mugello again Ugo Sivocci won the 1923 Targa Florio with an RL and Antonio Ascari took second. Sivocci’s car was painted with the green cloverleaf on a white background that was to become Alfa’s good luck token. Alfa Romeo team: Antonio Ascari, Giusepe Campari, Tazio Nuvolari, Luigi Arcangeli, Achille Varzi and Giulio Ramponi (Chief Mechanic).
In 1923 Vittorio Jano was lured to Alfa from Fiat, designing the motors that gave Alfa racing success into the late 1930s. In 1925 Alfa Romeo won the first Automobile World Championship in the history of automobile racing. Over 4 rounds the Alfa Romeo P2 won the European Grand Prix at Spa and the Italian Grand Prix at Monza, and hence incorporated the laurel wreath in their logo.
For 1932 Jano produced the sensational P3 which won its first race driven by Tazio Nuvolari at the Italian G. P. and 5 more Grand’s Prix that year were shared by Nuvolari and Rudolf Caracciola. Alfa Corse closed for 1933 and locked the cars in the factory, but they eventually transferred them to Enzo Ferrari’s now privatized ‘factory’ team Scuderia Ferrari. The P3 then won six of the final 11 events of the season including the final 2 major Grands Prix in Italy and Spain.
In 1934 Louis Chiron won the French G.P. in the P3 whilst the German Silver Arrows dominated the other 4 championship events. However the P3s won 18 of the 35 Grand’s Prix held throughout Europe. 1935 was even tougher, the P3 was simply outclassed by the remorseless Silver Arrows, but Tazio Nuvolari gave the P3 one of the most legendary victories of all time by winning the 1935 German G. P. at the Nurburgring. The P3 managed 16 victories in 1935.
In the 1930s Tazio Nuvolari won the Mille Miglia in a 6C crossing the finishing line after having incredibly overtaken Achille Varzi without lights (at nighttime). Alfa Romeos won the Targa Florio six times in row in the 1930s and the Mille Miglia every year from 1928 to 1938 except for 1931.
The 8C 2300 won the Le Mans 24 Hours from 1931 to 1934, with Alfa Romeo withdrawing from racing in 1933 when the Italian government took over, and the racing of Alfas was then taken up by Scuderia Ferrari as Alfa’s outsourced team. Enzo Ferrari drove for Alfa before he went on to manage the team, and after that went on to manufacture his own cars.
