download

#66 1958 Monaco Grand Prix

2021-04-22 01:00

Osservatore Sportivo

#1958, Fulvio Conti, Translated by Nicola Carriero, Simone Pietro Zazza,

#66 1958 Monaco Grand Prix

On Sunday, January 26, 1958, the second episode of the Temporada Argentina takes place: the Buenos Aires Grand Prix for sportscars and – except for th

fotor_2023-6-21_19_59_6-fotor-20230621195934.jpeg

On Sunday, January 26, 1958, the second episode of the Temporada Argentina takes place: the Buenos Aires Grand Prix for sportscars and - except for the well-known English reserve - manufacturers’ international championship. With the new rules taken by FIA, for the first time there is the limitation of maximum 3L engines for sportscars. This rule will stay until 1960, but it was not enough to curb the excessive danger of this car category. Even if the difference between 1000 or 1500 cc does not change much in terms of mechanical performance, because in any case they will exceed 250 km/h. With the natural technician evolution, the 3L engine can develop the same power and speed of the 4000 or 4500 cc of the year before. But this change could not be unseen by those who had less familiarity with this problem. The list of the starter car was limited only to Ferrari and Maserati drivers, plus some Porsche that will try to win in the category of 1500 cc displacement. There is also a list of cars up to 2L, which always take to the duel between the two Italian houses. Ferrari was represented by the official team (Musso, Collins, Hawthorn, Trips, Hill and Gendebien) with three new 3000 cc  twelve-cylinder cars, called 250 Testa Rossa, with a power of almost 300 HP. The couple of drivers will not be decided until the official practice. Maserati, with six-cylinder 3L cars, can count on Fangio, Moss, Behra and Schell. Unfortunately, the Formula 1 race winner, Stirling Moss, who had to pair with Behra, is not sure to start. On Friday, his car had a serious mechanical problem, some steering deficiency. Everyone, organizers and driver, do not talk about it, but after a while, everyone knows it. If Moss and Behra did not have any car, they had to find a solution. Porsche, after hearing that they offered one of their 1500, and Moss’s rivals start to be aware. Meanwhile, in Italy, the first meeting of the Interministerial Commission established by the government in Rome makes a first version of the new national motor calendar and the concessions, but they deny the hope for the Mille Miglia to stay in the original way.

 

The decision is drastic: no more road races, without any exceptions for the Brescia classic race; they can continue to do this, with the same name, only if they totally change it with one of these solutions: regularity races, circuit races, mixed races. The 1000 Km of Buenos Aires, valid for the first race of the manufacturers international championship, was dramatic. At the start, Collins gets first ahead Musso, but few minutes later the Italian driver has a crash with a Ferrari 3000 driven in private form by the French driver Trintignant. Musso got the worst: a shoulder bruise and a severe steering failure that ends up with the abandonment of the race by him. Fangio has a dramatic accident in the first few laps too. The Argentine driver hits a shelter and damages seriously his Maserati 3000 and has to make a long pit stop. When he comes back, he is already beaten so he decides to retire the car. The race continues with Collins first ahead of Trips and Moss. On lap 100, Trips had a puncture, so Moss takes the second place. On lap 140, a dramatic incident takes place between the Argentine Magnasco, with Maserati, who hits a barrier and is badly hurt. The unfortunate driver is taken to the hospital where they find a cranial fracture. At the end of the 200th lap, Collins has an advantage of over two minutes and, on lap 300, Hill takes his place and in the meantime also Gendebien substitutes Trips and Behra substitutes Moss. On lap 400, Gendebien overtakes Behra; from now until the end, the classification will not change, the couple Collins-Hill (Ferrari) wins the race, ahead of Trips-Gendebien (Ferrari), Moss-Behra (Porsche) and Drogo-González (Ferrari). It seems like the Ferrari victory was easy in the 1000 Km of Buenos Aires. The Modena team was ready to interpret the new technical rule, taking the knowledge that Enzo Ferrari had in order to cover what the buyer asked. The Buenos Aires car was a mix between the Testa Rossa with the design of the chassis and the famous Gran Turismo with the 3L engine, it seemed right for solving the problem. That is how the 250 Testa Rossa was born, a heavy powerful, resistant car but also easy to handle.

fotor_2023-6-21_20_1_15-fotor-2023062120143.jpeg

For what has been seen during this race, it is likely that the House of Maranello can win another world championship. At the moment, only Aston Martin has a 3L car that can challenge Ferrari, but this will happen only in two months, during the 12 Hours of Sebring. But now. with these 8 points, Ferrari may win easily, Collins-Hill were always in the first position during the race, undisputed by anyone. The Temporada Argentina will end with the Buenos Aires Grand Prix on Sunday, February 2, 1958; even if it will not count for the world championship, it is still very interesting. The unexpected and extraordinary victory of the Cooper-Climax of Stirling Moss, with the shock of every Italian fan seeing Ferrari and Maserati cars losing the race from an English modest artisanal car. There is a mitigating factor: Fangio, when he was first, had to make a pit stop to change the rear tyre; Musso was the most brilliant between the Ferrari drivers, but he was misguided by the man in the box (that was what he said after the race), who fails to chase the Cooper even if at first it seemed possible. That is true, but Moss’s car had some tyre issues and the slowdown on the final was caused by this. The truth is that the low weight and the handy Cooper-Climax car managed to compensate the lower displacement and power compared to Italian cars, because the layout of this race is mainly run at low speed. It was not so difficult to think that the CSI during the last meeting in Monte-Carlo would have rejected the English protest to recognise the first two races of the Temporada Argentina. It is also true that an English driver won the most important race. Now they can have their revenge. The race condition cannot change the forces in competition that much. In fact, this Grand Prix will be divided into two different practices and, in the end, the times that will make the official classification will be added up; every session will have 30 laps, corresponding to 140 km. This means that there will be no problem with tyres like during the Argentine Grand Prix, with a longer number of laps, and it could be a point in favour for Fangio and for the drivers of the Italian cars.

 

Therefore, the layout has also changed, this time is 4707 metres long (number 4 of Buenos Aires racetrack), with 17 turns, mostly tight, and it is slower than the number one where the Buenos Aires Grand Prix took place. In the first practice, Fangio and Moss were the fastest, like in the first race of the season. The four Ferrari of Musso, Collins, Hawthorn and Trips were not yet identified. Now the Temporada ends with the Buenos Aires Grand Prix, that is like a final walkway where with the speed of a Formula 1, the protagonists of the first two competitions will parade. The speed of the old and the new and the desire of win of many (Fangio will be sorry for not winning in his home Grand Prix) make the wait livelier for the last competition of the Temporada, even if it will not count for the World Championship. Sad note: the Argentine Magnasco died at the hospital for the cranial fracture reported when the car overturned. Musso’s condition does not cause concern after having been injured in the shoulder during the 1000 Km. On Sunday, February 2, 1958, Juan Manuel Fangio wins the Grand Prix of Buenos Aires City. The race starts in the afternoon after a strong storm that made the track dangerous. This one is divided into two races, each of them of 30 laps. The first one was won by the English driver Hawthorn (Ferrari) ahead of Fangio, Musso and Behra. Musso takes the second place at the end. This race was characterized by some frightening incidents, luckily without any damage for the drivers. This race had to be a revenge between the Cooper of Stirling Moss and the Italian cars: Ferrari and Maserati, after the win of the first one fifteen days later. But on the day of the race, the challenge ends already in the first turn of the first lap, Moss goes off track after a collision with the South African Iglesias. Moss comes out without a scratch, but for him the race is over. On lap 10, the Australian Ken Kavanagh on Maserati goes out of the track. During the first race, Hawthorn stays first during all the race. On the seventeenth lap, Trips with his Ferrari goes off the track, after his overtake on Fangio that brought him in second place.

fotor_2023-6-21_20_4_34-fotor-2023062120455.jpeg

In the second race, Hawthorn had a problem in the car and had to let Luigi Musso by, the only Ferrari driver who managed to do all 60 laps of the Grand Prix: after the two races, Fangio is largely first. After two unlucky races, Juan Manuel Fangio can give great satisfaction to his audience. Anyway, this may be the last time, because the future of the Argentine driver is not certain after some recent rumours (he stops racing, he does not stop, he is searching a car, he is more interested on Indianapolis, etc.), before the race he declared to the Argentine radio that he is satisfied with his five championships and he will appear not so much and only in the more interesting events. Maybe this decision was taken also because he cannot find a car so easily: after the retirement of Maserati, even if without a direct apparition, Fangio bought some of their racing cars (in one of them he won a Grand Prix), but these cars are getting old, especially now that Maserati does not tune them anymore. The last possibility is Ferrari, but they are full, with all young drivers, who are more convenient in terms of salaries. The race for the win of the championship, by the technical point of view, is in favour of Ferrari, whose racing cars are starting to go well. The recent inconvenience with the transmission at Buenos Aires by Collins (2 times) and by Hawthorn, is easily disposable. Maybe the rivalry and disagreement that can threaten the compactness of the team are more unlikely to happen where there is not a driver that can prevail over the other. Despite the inter-ministerial commission was asked by the government to intervene on the motorsports calendar proposed by some passionate organizers, despite the congressman Spallino, Italy is going to have a season full of racing, records and events. Especially motoring is on the agenda. After ten days from the end of the Temporada Argentina, the teams prepare for the next few races: the Cuba Grand Prix and, later, the 12 Hours of Sebring. All these races in only a month. The topic of greatest interest is the news about the two wins of some months ago in Russia by some North European driver, behind the wheel of a Ferrari. It is the first time in the history that there are reports of sportscar races in USSR: until now there were only reports of some special endurance or offroad practice made with some unspecified cars, maybe military. It is certain that in Russia has built record-breaking cars between 500 and 1000 cc. 

 

It seems like this movement is growing up, it seems also the some of the Soviet officials are going to talk with some European racetrack, so, in the future, Russian cars can participate to some western race. From some English sources it is known that Russia started to build a car with the right requirements for the Formula 1. Some of the German cars by the famous Auto Union - built in Zwickau and in Chemnitz, in East Germany, twenty years ago - ended up in Russian hands at the end of the war. There are a few points of contact from this car and the new European one, but it cannot be excluded that study, project or the same technicians who worked directly for Professor Porsche to create the Auto Union, this built the basis for a clamorous official entry of USSR in motorsport. On Thursday, February 20, 1958, at 5:45 p.m., at Rancho Boyeros Airport, Amedeo Bignami, Alonso Gutiérrez, and Francisco Pancho Avila arrive in Havana. These individuals do not know each other and have nothing in common. Bignami, a businessman from Mantua who has been producing mufflers in Verona for some time, was a mechanic for prominent drivers like Nuvolari and Varzi between the late 1920s and the early 1950s. He was also a tester for Alfa Romeo racing cars and the technical director of the Argentine Team with which Juan Manuel Fangio raced. Disembarking from a flight from Madrid, he finds himself in the midst of a bustling crowd, feeling nauseated. After leaving the airport, a drowsy-looking man asks him if he needs a taxi. Amedeo stares into his eyes, then nods slightly. The man snaps his fingers and whistles; a car emerges from a tangle of vehicles, driven by a toothless boy. Meanwhile, someone else approaches with the intention of taking the same taxi. Alonso Gutiérrez comes from Miami on a private plane. He is a Cuban involved in business on the island under the orders of certain Italian-Americans. Earlier, approaching the black Buick with tinted windows that was waiting for him, he noticed that the tires were slashed and scolded the driver who had left the car unattended to grab a coffee. After reaching the taxi, he asks Amedeo where he is headed.

 

"Hotel Nacional".

 

Alonso Gutiérrez replies:

fotor_2023-6-21_20_5_34-fotor-202306212063.jpeg

”Me too. Can I join?"

 

Francisco Pancho Avila, a third-year medical student, flew on a national airline plane from Santiago. He is involved in connecting Fidel Castro's guerrillas with the July 26 Movement, the clandestine organization operating in Havana. Francisco is in a hurry and heads towards the only taxi in the area; Radymir had rushed towards him unnoticed by Amedeo and Gutiérrez. After asking if they mind, he joins the other two passengers. Along the way, Gutiérrez asks Amedeo who he is, where he's from, and why he is in Cuba.

 

"I'm an Italian tourist".

 

Amedeo replies, trying to stay calm.

 

"My daughter knows Havana very well and will be happy to meet you at the hotel. By the way, you haven't told me your name…".

 

"Franco. Franco Magnani".

 

Shortly after, Avila, who has remained silent in the meantime, asks Radymir to stop near Avenida de los Presidentes. After about ten minutes, the taxi takes the avenue lined with splendid royal palms leading to the Nacional. At the entrance, Bignami bids farewell to Gutiérrez and heads to the front desk. In Italy, he was advised to spend the first night in the best hotel and not worry about expenses since he had to behave like a wealthy tourist on vacation.

 

"But then, where will I stay?" 

 

He had anxiously asked Giorgio, the party man who had contacted him.

 

"Don't worry, you'll be given instructions at the meeting. The organization has planned everything".

 

Amedeo had been recommended to the foreign affairs section of the Communist Party by his cousin Ernesto Zanardi, a well-known leader in the Porto Catena neighborhood where they both grew up. So far, everything has gone well. The idea of ​​seeing the friend with whom he shared many successes and victories puts him in a good mood. From the balcony, he can see the large bay and the Malecón, an asphalt ribbon that stretches for many kilometers along the coastal seawall, where the second Cuban Grand Prix will take place in a few days. The next day around noon, he would meet an Italian there on the Malecón, under the equestrian statue of Calixto García, a hero of the independence wars. Before leaving, in an abandoned house on the Po River embankment, Giorgio had handed him the plane tickets and also communicated the recognition phrase. He had insisted on knowing the name of that man, but Giorgio had been adamant:

 

"It's not necessary for you to know... And if someone asks why you're in Havana, say you're on vacation, without mentioning Fangio".

 

Amedeo Bignami, well-known and respected in the racing community, is described by the international sports press as Fangio's discoverer or Fangio's master. Next to a great champion is always a great mechanic, but for Juan, Amedeo was something more: an inspirer and technical advisor, a fraternal friend who had launched him to conquer the world title. Inside the suitcase, following Giorgio's instructions, Amedeo has two photos with him. One depicts Fangio holding one of the renowned Marmitte Bignami, with the dedication:

fotor_2023-6-21_20_5_41-fotor-202306212067.jpeg

"Para Amedeo Bignami, con recuerdos y admiración por nuestros triunfos que son los suyos, su amigo de siempre" (To Amedeo Bignami, with memories and admiration for our triumphs, which are yours, your lifelong friend).

 

In another, there is the plaque given to him in September 1950 by the Automobile Club Argentino and the Presidency of the Republic with a motivation of which he is proud:

 

"Al gran amigo y magnífico Director Técnico de nuestro Juan Manuel Fangio en todas las pistas del mundo Amedeo Bignami, Republica d'Argentina" (To the great friend and magnificent Technical Director of our Juan Manuel Fangio on all the tracks of the world, Amedeo Bignami, Republic of Argentina).

 

But now he must focus on the mission entrusted to him by the Communist Party, as a reserved person and a friend of Fangio. On Friday, February 21, 1958, at 9:00 a.m., after leaving the Hotel Nacional, Amedeo Bignami pays the bill, checks the time, and realizes he's early. He then enters the spacious garden.

 

"¿Fósforo señor?" (Matches, sir?)

 

A girl lights his cigarette held between his lips. She introduces herself as Dorita and begins to competently describe the aspects that make the Hotel Nacional an eclectic building of great interest. At 12:00 p.m., Amedeo arrives at the Malecón. Reaching the terrace, the Italian mechanic notices three men and a woman speaking in low voices. Without much thought, he approaches and says:

 

"¿Per plaza de la Catedral?" (To the Cathedral square?)

 

The girl responds:

 

"Todo recto, hasta al final del Malecón" (Straight ahead, until the end of the Malecón). 

 

It's the password. Amedeo shows a newspaper with photos of him with Fangio, and the guys embrace him, saying:

 

"Bienvenido compañero" (Welcome, comrade).

 

Gino Doné Paro, the most elegant, puts him at ease by speaking Italian mixed with Spanish.

 

"We were worried because el hombre who accompanied you in the taxi is un gangster".

 

Amedeo hadn't realized it, but Gino had waited for him at the airport and followed him. After that, the group gets into a car and heads towards Calle 21. Meanwhile, a sudden and violent storm accompanies Fangio's last hour of flight, landing at Rancho Boyeros Airport at 2:30 p.m. Fangio is awaited by a black Buick at the edge of the runway. Later, the car heads to the Hotel Nacional for a reception in honor of the pilot, before settling in at the Lincoln. Neither he nor his companions have noticed that another car, with a man and a woman on board, has followed them since the airport. At the Lincoln, he has coffee with his collaborators, then goes to his room to rest. 

fotor_2023-6-21_20_6_55-fotor-2023062120722.jpeg

For the late afternoon and the following days, the agenda is intense: official commitments, meetings with the press and television, track inspections, and tests. In the meantime, at 4:30 p.m., Amedeo and his companions, to avoid being followed, take a long route to reach Calle 21, in the heart of Vedado, a neighborhood inhabited by the upper Spanish, North American, and Creole bourgeoisie, almost bordering the Almendares River. They stop in front of a colonial-style villa surrounded by a lush garden and a spacious colonnade. The gate is open. The group climbs three steps and enters a large hall. Gino says to Amedeo:

 

"It's the house of Pablo and Anamaria Fuentes, they teach at the university and sympathize with the Movement. In these days, they're in Santa Clara for a conference, Esther will be happy to take care of you".

 

The housekeeper embraces Amedeo warmly. Afterward, the group bombards the Italian mechanic with questions about Fangio, their friendship, the world of racing, and Italy. Amedeo is kind, doesn't shy away from curiosity, but wonders why he is in Havana and why he has to meet Fangio. Irtis, the girl, at some point notices that Amedeo is uncomfortable:

 

"I suffer from migraines".

 

So, she offers to massage his temples, and to distract him, she invites him to a party at a friend's house for the evening. The words, the smiles, the loving care will alleviate the discomfort. But Amedeo would prefer not to go to the party. Shortly after, the three men bid him farewell with a handshake and a pat on the back, while the girl stares into his eyes, brushing his cheek:

 

"Tienes cuidado…" (Take care...).

 

On Saturday, February 22, 1958, at 11:00 a.m., near the Almendares River, Faustino Pérez, the leader of the July 26 Movement in Havana, left the impression on Amedeo of being a high school professor. Clean-shaven face, a bit of hair gel, full lips under a pronounced nose, dark and penetrating eyes, glasses with a thick frame, and a slender physique. After graduating in medicine, he had joined the fight against Batista, arrested and exiled to Mexico, participated in the Granma expedition, and due to the courage and determination shown in battle, his figure had become legendary in just a few months. The two arrived at the meeting place in two cars: Amedeo with the girl; Faustino Pérez along with a young driver, Francisco Pancho Avila, and Gino Doné Paro. Despite the heat, the three wear jackets that reveal a particular bulge. Faustino Pérez says to Amedeo Bignami:

 

"Fangio arrived yesterday. You need to get in touch with him; we know the number of his room".

 

But the Italian mechanic responds:

 

"I can't go to the hotel; one of his assistants might recognize me".

 

Faustino retorts:

 

"You won't meet him at the Lincoln. One of our waiter collaborators will inform us when your friend is alone, and you can call him. You have to find the right words, a brief conversation, enough time to arrange a meeting".

fotor_2023-6-21_20_5_29-fotor-2023062120558.jpeg

Pérez then hands him a yellow envelope addressed to Manuel Fangio.

 

"You must insert the three photos; they are proof that you are in Havana. You will give them to Gino, who will then have them delivered to your friend. Now we have to go; you are expected at the Hotel Riviera".

 

But Amedeo replies:

 

"I don't know where it is. I've been to the Nacional and the Deauville".

 

Then Pérez responds:

 

"Many pilots who know you are staying at the Nacional, and the Deauville is not talked about; after the shooting the other night in the nearby club, it's full of police and spies. Juana will come with you; you have to be there at six".

 

Resigned, the Italian mechanic accepts the situation.

 

"You're sending me right into the lion's den... They say the Riviera is the favorite hotel of the mafioso Meyer Lansky…".

 

And Pérez reassures him:

 

"They will never think that we can do something right under their noses. Relax…".

 

Meanwhile, the weekend of the Cuba Grand Prix starts, at Havana. During the practice, Fangio makes some laps with his Maserati 450S, but something is wrong:

 

"At a certain point in Malecon there is a hump on which the car jolts. Well: every time that I put the tyre in the asphalt, the car splashed from one side of the runway, to the other".

 

After returning to the pits, Fangio asked Guerino Bertocchi, the head mechanic of Maserati, to check the chassis. They discover that, after a crash during the Venezuela Grand Prix, while he was driving a Master Gregory, remained deformed, and the distance between the right and the left tyre had a difference of 5 cm. While they are trying to repair the damage, Fangio borrows a 300S from Pago Gioda and he turns in 2'03"2. Better than him is Stirling Moss, who drives Chinetti’s NART Ferrari 335S, and Master Gregory with the old 860 Monza of John Edgar. During the practice, there is the presence of the dictator Batista with his teenage son. He takes him to every box where he waves at every driver, especially Fangio, whom he rewarded in the same circuit the year before for his win. During the evening, Fangio will uses his Lancia to go around the little islands around Cuba, in only few minutes. The Argentine driver is meticulous. Before races, he walks the city circuits on foot: on some occasions early in his career, he had to retire due to uneven road surfaces. On the Malecón, the sun beats down hard; he observes carefully, consults with collaborators, tries to identify critical points. Every now and then, Marcello Giambertone, his manager, reminds him of the commitment with General Fernandez Miranda, Cuban Minister of War, who, as the president of the national sports commission, has organized the Grand Prix. 

fotor_2023-6-21_20_4_3-fotor-2023062120444.jpeg

They had debated at length whether to accept the invitation; Fangio wanted nothing to do with it, shy and reserved, he is not comfortable in official situations. Then, if word got out, his colleagues might think there was some trick to make him win. After much insistence, Marcello manages to convince him, and at 12:00, with a speedboat, the two reach a small island where the barracks are located, and at the pier, they are welcomed by the general's attendant and a swarm of mosquitoes. With a jeep, they arrive at a dismal and oppressive place in a few minutes. Here, the two are stopped by an on-duty soldier who asks Giambertone to enter an office where he is expected on the phone. However, Fangio's manager thinks there has been a mistake because no one answers. After giving up the call, Giambertone would like to join Fangio in the hall where Miranda has organized the reception, but two soldiers abruptly ask him for identification. The Italian manager identifies himself and shows his passport, but they burst into laughter, then order him to put his hands behind his neck and kneel, holding him at gunpoint, accusing him of being an infiltrator for the guerrillas posing as Fangio's manager. Clearly, Giambertone stammers that he has nothing to do with Fidel Castro, but the two soldiers ask him to remove his tie, shoe laces, and belt. To emphasize the order, they release the safety catches on their guns. While the Italian manager reaffirms his innocence, crude laughter emerges: it's the general with an embarrassed Fangio at his side.

 

"¿Te ha gustado la broma?" (Did you like the joke?)

 

Giambertone says:

 

"While I was entering in the great hall prepared in celebration, a military said to me that someone was asking about me. I went to the guardhouse but, probably, the other person was tired to wait for me and he dropped the receiver. I go away and I crossed the courtyard and I was going to enter in the hall, when a solemn with two armed soldiers blocked me, without making me enter and asking me where I wanted to go. I was surprised, with calm I told them that I was going to reach the general Fernandez Miranda and Fangio. After this the solemn asked my documents. So, I showed him my passport and I told him that I was Fangio’s manager. Like I never did. With a grin in his happy face: finally, we caught you. Cross your hands ahead of the head. Stop, if you don’t want to die ten minutes before the right hour".

 

He continues to tell:

 

"What? I told, but they’re black eyed and round with three machine guns and they are staring at me for too long for making just a little shy reaction. I was dragged to the prisons: we are searching for a long time spy of Fidel Castro, who tells everyone to be Fangio’s manager - the solemn explained to me - finally we got you, huh, Castrista".

 

The answer of Fangio’s manager was weak:

 

"But I... stammered. Silence - roars the other - take off your necktie and the laces of your shoes. Because I hesitated, he inserted the machine gun, with a left click. After that I started to take off the belt, it came to me a big laugh together with the one of my torturer. They start to laugh too. I raised my eyes and, from a window with bars, over my head, I saw Fernàndez Miranda, Fangio and all the other friends, that were unhooked".

 

Then he continues:

 

"Did you like the prank, Giamba? Said the general Miranda who puts his hand on his belly for the lot of laughter. Fangio stands near a friend and the other laughs too. I grin and bear it, I start to laugh too, even if I was green out of anger, I laugh".

fotor_2023-6-21_20_1_10-fotor-2023062120137.jpeg

Someone laughed less the year before: two European drivers, the Swedish Ulf Norinder and Joakim Bonnier, while they were walking, they were approached by a police car with sirens on. The two, even because they were in a Ferrari, start to play guard and thieves, after a little bit they had to stop in a closed rail crossing where they were blocked, handcuffed and taken to the station. Only after a few hours and with the help of the organizer of the race, they can go away. But they had to tell that they are both barbudos and the activity of Castro’s revolutionaries created a psychosis. In the meantime, at 12:30 p.m., Amedeo and Juana, after bidding farewell to Pérez, return with Gino to Calle 21, but they don't make it all the way to the villa. Amedeo walks the rest of the way, greets the busy Esther in the kitchen, takes the photos, and then, hurrying, heads back towards the car. He is restless and worried. Why didn't they stop for lunch with Esther? Where are they headed, and what would they have done until the appointment at the Riviera? Gino says:

 

"Too much police around. Last night they arrested one of our comrades. Seems they're squeezing him…".

 

Asks Amedeo:

 

"Did he know about Fangio?"

 

Juana reassures him:

 

"No. But it's good to take precautions…".

 

Amedeo is anxious because he still doesn't fully understand why he has to meet Fangio. At the intersection of Calle 23 and the Malecón, the group turns right and heads towards the port. After leaving the underwater tunnel behind, the car takes Paseo Alameda de Paula and stops at Dos Hermanos, a bar frequented by artists, intellectuals, and American sailors. One of the guys Amedeo had met on the Malecón emerges from the establishment.

 

"Hola Yan. ¿Todo bien?"

 

Says Juana, opening the door for him to get in. The car resumes its journey, and shortly after, it arrives in the Jesús María neighborhood: inhabited by fishermen and port workers, frequented by common criminals and prostitutes. Amedeo is struck by the degradation and squalor of some houses. The car stops in an alley full of potholes, and the group enters a hovel with a roof of palm leaves and guano. Yan greets the landlady. Then, without saying a word, the woman opens a chest, lifts some books and blankets, and pulls out four guns and five blocks.

 

"Explosives".

 

Says Gino, arranging everything in a bag.

 

"I have to take it to the university. The students are planning an attack on a police barracks right after the Operation... We can't give them any respite…".

 

After this necessary stop, the group returns to the city center to allow Juana and Amedeo to reach the Riviera.

fotor_2023-6-21_20_6_45-fotor-2023062120710.jpeg

"Listen, Bignami, the Movement has organized Fangio's kidnapping before the race. We need to avoid bloodshed, so it's essential to get in touch with him to secure his cooperation. Only a person he trusts can do it, someone who can reassure him about our intentions. We know he's a dear friend of yours, a brother".

 

In the years immediately after the war, Gino had read in the press that a fellow countryman had been hired as the chief mechanic and technical director of the Argentine Team. A newspaper had published a photo of Bignami alongside the driver. And when they started planning the kidnapping, he suggested involving him. Doné informs Amedeo Bignami about the details of the operation: he has to contact Fangio, inform him of the kidnapping, and convince him that nothing will happen to him. Amedeo doesn't have the strength to ask questions.

 

"Everything must happen without firing a single shot. Everything will unfold as planned, don't worry".

 

The car stops near the Nacional: Amedeo and Juana head to the Riviera, Yan is expected by a companion employed at the Lincoln, tasked with getting the photos to Fangio. Gino continues towards a house near the entrance of the highway towards Pinar del Rio, a safe place to hide the bag. At 6:00 p.m., at the Hotel Riviera, Alonso Gutiérrez sits with a young woman. Gutiérrez calls the waiter, but in the meantime, they are looking for him on the phone. He knows who it could be and downs a shot of rum. He already imagines the curses of the chief of secret police, furious because for several months there have been numerous sabotages against hotels and barracks. There are also rumors in the city of a major guerrilla operation, but no informant has been able to pick up any clues.

 

"Eres burro, imbecile".

 

After calling him an ass, Captain Calixto Sanchez accuses him of being too involved in his own affairs and threatens to inform Batista. He feels strong and protected precisely because he traffics to the dictator's advantage. Amedeo and Juana, punctual at the hotel, head to the bar; she just has time to point out the bartender she needs to talk to when she notices the presence of the captain. Therefore, the two quickly leave the hotel.

 

"I'll go to him and take him out".

 

After ten minutes, Juana walks away with Gutiérrez; Amedeo returns and asks that bartender if someone named Santiago has inquired about Franco Magnani: it's the agreed-upon signal. Immediately afterward, he hands him the phone: an unfamiliar voice tells him that Giambertone has just left and dictates the number to call. He hangs up and, with a pounding heart, dials. Coming out of the shower, Fangio notices an envelope slipped under the door. And with surprise, he finds the photos of him with Amedeo. The phone continues to ring, so the Argentine pilot decides to answer it.

 

"Chueco, it's Amedeo".

 

Fangio responds:

 

"Who are you?"

fotor_2023-6-21_20_6_38-fotor-202306212075.jpeg

The Italian mechanic replies:

 

"Amedeo. I'm here in Havana".

 

But the Argentine driver thinks it's a joke.

 

"Now is not the time to joke".

 

But Amedeo insists:

 

"Chueco, I can't talk right now. I have something very important to tell you; we need to meet".

 

Fangio, still perplexed, responds:

 

"And who assures me that you're Amedeo?"

 

So his Italian friend retorts:

 

"You'll receive some photos that only I can have".

 

Convinced, Fangio replies:

 

"I have them in my hands... We'll meet in half an hour at the Chinese quarter, under the archway".

 

So, Amedeo ends the conversation, saying:

 

"Alright. Come alone and don't speak to anyone".

 

And he hangs up with a slight tremor in his hands. Amedeo Bignami tries to control himself, then takes a taxi to the meeting. Fangio's pale and tense face lights up with a broad smile when he sees his friend: three years have passed since he visited him at his muffler factory in Verona. Amedeo tries to embrace him, but Fangio prudently withdraws.

 

"Tomorrow, a group of revolutionaries will kidnap you to prevent you from participating in the Grand Prix. Don't resist; nothing will happen to you. But you must keep the secret even from your men".

 

Not many words are needed; if Amedeo has traveled twelve thousand kilometers, the situation must be serious. The two part ways with a nod of the head. On Sunday, February 23, 1958, after completing the trials, the Maserati mechanics suggest to Fangio to return to the hotel on foot, but the Argentine pilot decides to go back by car. Upon reaching the Hotel Lincoln, Fangio immediately goes to his room followed by Giambertone. Around 8:40 p.m., from the reception, a man introducing himself as a journalist calls room 810:

fotor_2023-6-21_20_6_51-fotor-2023062120715.jpeg

"I am Juan Ramirez; I would like to conduct a brief interview with Juan Manuel Fangio".

 

Giambertone expresses regret; the pilot is getting ready for dinner, so he invites the journalist to call at another time. In the meantime, two cars packed with armed men carrying pistols and submachine guns lurk near Calle San Nicolas. Primitivo Aguilera, who knows the staff because he had worked at the hotel, offers to accompany Manuel Uziel, the young man assigned the most delicate task of Operation Fangio.

 

"I'll go alone".

 

Fangio exits the elevator. The waitstaff and guests recognize him and greet him. The Argentine pilot reciprocates with a half-smile and even signs some autographs while chatting with friends: the chief mechanic Guerrino Bertocchi, Maserati team leader Nello Ugolini, Argentine industrialist Alejandro De Tomaso, Gerino Gerini and the Cuban Carlos Gonzales. Fangio informs them that during the trials, his Maserati 450S had lost oil, and the road surface had some uneven sections. Said Gerino Gerini:

 

"Fangio, Ugolini, Bertocchi and I were talking. With us was also Fangio’s chauffeur that accompanied him around the city. We were talking about the outcome of the last practice and of some changes that he wanted to do on the car. We were heading to dinner when a man of small stature, of about 30 years, approached us and talking to the champion, said: you are the Argentine champion, Fangio? He replied affirmative. The man stays with us for few minutes rejoicing for his victories and for us was normal because every weekend some fan came to visit the champions before or after the practice. The stranger makes a greeting to Fangio for the race, he waves to us and went out from the hotel. So, we return to our conversation about the circuit of Melécón when we hear a rumble from a car and we see a car that stopped right in front of our hotel. From it a man came out, around 40 years old, burly. At a brisk pace he headed to Fangio’s driver that he was with us and near the door. He pulled out a gun, pointed to the driver, he ordered to raise his arm. We were shocked, we didn’t understand if it was a joke or a robbery attempt".

 

Some men, discreetly blending in with the customers, keep the situation under control to make sure they don't mistake the target. One of them asks for an autograph as a distraction.

 

"Soy yo" (It's me).

 

Uziel then approaches and points the revolver at Fangio's side:

 

"Soy del Movimiento 26 de Julio. Disculpe Juan, me va a tener que acompañar" (I'm from the July 26 Movement. Excuse me, Juan, you'll have to come with me).

 

Fangio notices the pallor of the young man and senses the tremor in the hand holding the gun. He remains calm and agrees to follow him, while De Tomaso hints at a reaction.

 

"Si se mueve otra vez, disparo. Vamos..." (If he moves again, I shoot. Let's go...).

 

Gerino continues to tell his story:

fotor_2023-6-21_20_15_2-fotor-20230621201520.jpeg

"Meanwhile, the man searched the victim and made sure that he was unarmed and levelling with the gun said to us: none has to move. So, he started to make some steps approaching to Fangio and took him by the arm and continued to said: you, you had to come with me. The champion, like us, was surprised, with a gun pointed on his hip, that he was pushed to the exit and he sent a warning towards to us: it will be trouble if you move. At the same moment, another man came out of the door and said: if you move this is your end".

 

At this point, he says that the kidnapper’s wrist was shaking; in order to avoid other repercussions, he said to this one to scream in the way out the hotel: Vamos.

 

"No one has to go out the hotel before five minutes. Outside there are five men with submachine guns ready to fire".

 

And Gerino Gerini ends his story with:

 

"Only in this moment we realized that this wasn’t a prank. We are in a place where the opposition to the government manifests itself with acts of violence".

 

The hotel staff, the other drivers and the guests in the hall were shocked, and the one who assisted to Fangio’s kidnapping without being able to react. An accomplice of the kidnapper checks the door. Under the armed threat, the Argentine reach him with big steps and he enters the car that was outside the hotel. The group quickly exits while Uziel's comrades keep watch with their submachine guns at the ready. The cars are ready with engines running. Uziel and Reynaldo Rodríguez, along with the hostage, get into a green Plymouth driven by Primitivo Aguilera. In a gray Buick, with Carlos García Villareal at the wheel, Angel Paya, Manolo Núñez, and Angel Luis Güiú take their seats. A third car follows with Oscar Lucero and his companion Blanquita. Juan Manuel Fangio will say that he was taken to Sierra Maestra (a mountain zone where there was the guerrilla) with calm:

 

"We exit the door, we’ve run 30 metres and, after we turned the corner, there was a car. I think they don’t have only one car, because we didn’t start alone. They put me into a black Plymouth. It was a 1947 model".

 

In the Plymouth there were two men, one behind the wheel and another next to him, with a submachine gun pointed against him. Fangio explained that it was unnecessary because he would not go anywhere. The three believed him but they explained that the danger was another:

 

"If they discovered us and they shot us, we had too".

 

Fangio asks for a hat, a pair of glasses, or something that makes him unrecognizable, but they do not think about this, so they do not have anything. So, Fangio decides to curl up to the seat as much as he can, but after that, another car stops in the back of a building. Everyone goes to the ground, and in the fire escape, up to an apartment where there is a woman and a kid.

 

"There is another person, maybe sick or injured, in the next room. The woman asked me for an autograph for her son. Should I have added the date? It could be very useful for us, she answered".

 

Then they went with a different car to another house. They stopped for 30 minutes and they changed another car and house. 

fotor_2023-6-21_20_2_53-fotor-2023062120315.jpeg

A beautiful house in a residential district of Havana, El Vedado, at 1060 Calle 22. When they got inside, he felt a tension between people, but with only a joke he defused the climate:

 

"You had to congratulate with my kidnapper because he has done a flawless work".

 

After he saw that everyone became relaxed, he said:

 

"I wish they let me eat something...".

 

The oldest one, the owner of the house, offered him eggs and French fries. Fangio started to eat with his kidnappers, who were hungry too. And here he understood the reason of the kidnapping and also that they would not demand a ransom for his freedom. The operation is entering the most delicate phase. It is necessary to evade the police, ensure the safety of the hostage, and reassure their family through the Argentine embassy. However, everything unfolds in an atmosphere of euphoria and excitement. Around midnight, Faustino Pérez arrives, shaking hands with the pilot almost as if apologizing, and explains the reasons behind the kidnapping. Fangio remains calm, giving the impression of being in control of the situation. Carlos Franqui will write:

 

"The kidnapping of Juan Manuel Fangio, World Champion, on February 23, 1958, from the militias of Movimiento 26 de Julio of Havana, had repercussions worldwide. Fangio said that he was treated well. The audacity of this blow wasn’t censored by the Cuban press and this is a national scandal that weakens the regime".

 

On Sunday evening, while Fangio is taken to the second floor in a comfortable bed, chaos happened in the city. Few minutes after, the hotel hall is full of screaming people. The sports manager was warmed and also the companion of Fangio, who were at the same Lincoln hotel. Marcello Giambertone, Fangio’s manager, who finds everyone paralyzed, after finding out what happened, calls the personal number of Fernàndez Miranda, who answers immediately:

 

"General, someone kidnapped Fangio. A man with a revolver came here, into the hall of the hotel Lincoln and...".

 

The general stops Giambertone with a laugh:

 

"Ah, they kidnapped him, huh? Well, they took him with a flying saucer or on a white horse?"

 

Answers the general, thinking that it was a joke, but Giambertone warns him:

 

"For God’s sake, General, it’s the truth. A young man, dark and slender, kidnapped him in the hall of the Lincoln hotel".

 

The general continues to laugh and ends the call, because he was thinking that it is a joke, like an answer to the one made to Giambertone the day before. Only after when someone else talk to him about the kidnapping, he believed it. In the hotel the police come to speak with those present, in the meantime they start to search the champion in the areas around the hotel, probably they were hiding near the hotel, in one of the friendly houses, a long trip could be dangerous. The first policeman arrived and talked to the people in the tight Calle Virtudes, where the hotel is placed. 

fotor_2023-6-21_20_2_34-fotor-2023062120259.jpeg

A newspaper seller said that, before the kidnapping, a poorly dressed man was around the Lincoln hotel, lying about the fact he was drunk and a fan of Fangio. The telephone operator of the hotel said that during the day he received some calls from unknown people, they wanted to know if it was true that the Argentine drivers Fangio and Mieres and the French driver Jean Behra were staying at the hotel. Few minutes after the kidnapping in the name of Movimiento 26 de Julio, they stated that it was a challenge against Batista’s government, and also that nothing will happen to him, and it will be released after the start of the race.

 

"We are from Movimiento 26 de Julio. Tonight at 6:00 p.m., we kidnapped Manuel Fangio".

 

At first, newspapers thought that it is a bad joke, but right after there was the confirmation that it is true. The police, at first, try to keep the secret, but then they announced the addition of some checkpoints along the streets, around the city and in the airport. Ernesto Azua, the race director, visits each hotel to check that every driver is there. Among them there is also Moss, who is indicate like one of the possible targets of Movimiento 26 de Julio. Since the first few hours the police said that there is no danger for Fangio and the kidnapping was organized by the Fidel Castro’s revolutionaries only to upset a sports event that interested the population of the capital. All of Havana is holding its breath. Informants, mobsters, and prostitutes are unleashed; the Lincoln is swarmed by police, while the Nacional, hosting other pilots, is taken over by security agents and military personnel. Some of Fangio's colleagues even threaten not to race anymore, and drivers like Stirling Moss fear being kidnapped. His manager knocks on the door to discuss the situation, but Fangio refuses to open, barricading himself inside. The deadlock only breaks when the agents, identifying themselves and slipping their credentials under the door, manage to reassure him. Batista is furious, realizing that the Grand Prix is turning into a disaster: the news has spread worldwide. In the meantime, under advice of Ugolini, Giambertone with De Tomaso went to a television studio and in front of the cameras try to move the audience:

 

“Fangio is a friend for the Cuban people. He is not involved in politics. In the name of his mother and of his wife Andreina, we want to ask to the people who kidnapped him not to hurt him in the name of sport and to let him free. It could be a gesture that everyone may appreciate".

 

In the meantime, for security reasons, Fangio is once again moved and taken to the home of Silvina Moran on Calle Norte 42 in Nuevo Vedado, an upscale neighborhood. No one would have thought to look for him in these parts. Not far away lives Manboleta, a dancer from the Tropicana and lover of Minister Rafael Díaz Balart, and there are always a few cars from the secret services stationed nearby. Silvina, unaware of the guest's identity, discusses with her daughter Agnes, an activist in the movement:

 

"We are becoming involved in a common crime".

 

The lady says, recalling the kidnapping of the famous aviator Lindbergh's son, which occurred in the United States in the early thirties. The discussion comes to a halt when they observe the calm and composure displayed by Fangio, who only requests a glass of water and the opportunity to rest. On Monday, February 24, 1958, Fangio just woke up, read the newspaper about his kidnapping, had breakfast with his kidnappers. At this moment Fangio make the acquaintance of Fausto Pérez, chief executive of Movimiento 26 de Julio of Havana, the man behind the kidnapping.

 

"I can see that you are organized".

 

Said Fangio and asked to tell his family that he was okay and nothing would happen to him. 

fotor_2023-6-21_20_2_44-fotor-2023062120310.jpeg

Fausto promised and delivered. He also added that it is already organized the year before, but they did not do anything because the day before the race, after the practice, Fangio is absent.

 

"Yes, I went to the cinema, I watched a Gary Cooper movie".

 

Meanwhile, the director of National Commission of Sports, the general Roberto Fernandez de Miranda, the brother-in-law of president Batista, after stigmatizing the rebels, announced that the race would take place. The absence of Fangio made Moss the favourite for the win, with the first prize of 10.000 $. Between the Italian competitors like Perdisa, Scarlatti and Piotti, there was also the diplomatic Porfirio Rubirosa. The Cubans, caught by the atmosphere of the Grand Prix, when they discovered about the kidnapping of Fangio, had a sensation that they never had even after the attacks and hand strikes of the previous months. By over a year, the followers of Fidel Castro are trying to cause the fall of the government of Batista. Most of this are made in the hiding place in the mountain of Fidel Castro, in the province of El Oriente. Acts of sabotage, explosions and crop fires in the last 14 months. The government wanted to find where Fangio was taken before the race. Thousands of men, soldiers and policemen, started to visit some of the suspicious houses, road, ports and airports; they made some checkpoints and flying patrols; they arrested some of alleged accomplices of the kidnappers. Meanwhile, every driver had armed escorts, because it seemed like they wanted to kidnap some other champions, and they would try to take the English Stirling Moss (even if there was no confirmation). The 16 hours of search were not enough to find Fangio. No one feared for the world champion: his brother and the business agent of the athlete, Manuel Montes, were reassured by the rebels and made the family of the Argentine stay calm, in Buenos Aires, while the kidnapping increased the interest for the race. Right before 2:00 p.m., in the 6 kilometres around the circuit there were over 100.000 people. Ugo Ugolini remembers:

 

"To prove that Castro’s followers didn’t sabotage the manifestation, Batista offered cheaper tickets and someone entered for free as well, so they can stay also in the most dangerous places".

 

The minister of internal affairs took measures so that every attempt of sabotage of the race became counter-productive, according to the authorities. The army guarded the entry accesses at the circuit, so it could happen in different points, supervising every driver and the car. At the box there is a climate of nervousness and stress. After 2:00 p.m., rumour had it that Fangio would be released, they made let him out in a car in a crossroads of the capital. Immediately, police and journalists went to that place, in the meantime the race stewards postponed the start, but Fangio was not seen and with two hours of delay, 27 cars could start. The French Trintignant drives in the Maserati of the world champion, but  Jaguar retires their car. The race is planned to last 90 laps. At the end of the first lap, the English Stirling Moss was in front, after the forced forfeit of Fangio. A very serious accident happened during the third lap, near a corner. A car went to stop against the base of the a construction crane, 15 metres away from the street, avoiding worst consequences. While the ambulances take the injured and the wounded, the organizers slow down the race and then stop it. The Grand Prix is cancelled. At the first moment it seems like this was caused by the sabotage act made by the rebels of Fidel Castro, who were between the crowd. Also, the driver Stirling Moss, the Grand Prix winner because he was first when the race was stopped, said that there were some strange spots of oil.

 

"I also asked to the other drivers and they said there’s no car who lost oil. The race was stopped after the accident. But I think it will not last however, because we already think to retire because it was difficult to control the car. In some corners there was a spot of oil to the asphalt, I don’t understand why".

fotor_2023-6-21_20_1_21-fotor-2023062120149.jpeg

However, two hours later the authorities deny any sabotage and they give the first dramatic balance of this tragedy: four deaths and twenty-eight seriously injured, one of those was the driver Cifuentes, in desperate conditions (the doctors had to cut off his legs, crushed by the scary incident), and other less injured. At this point Fangio is not released again. In the Villa del Vedado, the kidnappers asked to him if he wanted to hear the chronicle of the race, but Fangio did not want to know anything about it. After a while, they told him about the incident, so he decided to turn on the television to watch the scenes, by instinct he said to them:

 

"With this kidnapping you made me a favour".

 

About the suspension of the race with consequences of the win of Stirling Moss, it was the right decision. The crowd had invaded the circuit; even if it did not happen, the race would have been stopped because the drivers did not want to continue because of the danger. During the evening, Fangio and his kidnappers think how to carry out the release. It was impossible to do it in the streets because of a possible meeting with Batista’s men with the consequences of a firefight. Fangio refused to do it in a church, so he asked to be brought to the Argentine Ambassador. So, they accepted, and two girls went to the embassy, besieged by journalists and camera, to decide how to operate. The appointment was for 12:30 a.m.. After a little while, Fangio was in a car with 4 armed men, two boys and two girls, in his pocket he had two letters: one for himself and one for the ambassador, where the kidnappers declared that that they did not have anything against Fangio, and that they did this only for an internal question of the state and they apologize. The car stopped in a suburban neighbourhood and near a big block of apartments. The five rose up until the seventh or eighth floor and knocked the door where there was the embassy official that at that moment was in Buenos Aires. No one was there. After some moments of panic, the ambassador Raul Guevara Lynch with his secretary Julio Lopez, goes down the superior landing where he was with some panic, taking the delivering hostage. The rebels apologized and went away in the night. Tuesday, February 25, 1958, Juan Manuel Fangio was let free by the rebels who kidnapped him on Sunday evening. The champion was taken to the Argentine embassy on board of a car by an unidentified person, who let him go around 12:30 a.m. Fangio asked the ambassador to call a press agency to let them know about his release, to reassure his family, understandably in distress, his mother, his partner Andreina, his son Oscar, his brothers, his sisters and his friends. Around 1:00 a.m., the embassy secretary Julio Lopez would say to the journalist that he was not mistreated and that he was in a good state of health. This news was a fresh breath of air for the public opinion. The news of the liberation of Fangio went around the Cuban capital, who had trembled for his fate. The Argentine embassy was assaulted by the press because they wanted all the details so they decided to do a press conference, where Fangio told his emotional experience with his usual cold calm. The five times world champion said:

 

"I had to say that I can’t identify my kidnappers in the case I have to confront with one of the arrested suspect in this episode".

 

A journalist asked if they blindfolded him, Fangio answered:

 

"No, they treated me with fairness".

 

So, were they blindfolded? Asked the journalist, but the driver preferred not to answer to this, let them understand that he was not interested to the political reasons to kidnapping him. But what they said? What was their excuse?

 

“I’m not interested in their motivation and I didn’t care about what they said when they talked about politics. I’m a driver and I was thinking about the Grand Prix that I was about to miss. I was thinking to my wife who I couldn’t call, she hasn’t worried about me and soon I can hug her. My kidnappers apologized to me, with big displays of affections, about the strange episode where I was the protagonist. When I understood that they didn’t want to hurt me, I told myself that I had to wait patiently until they decided to let me free. I’ve seen worse during my career. I wasn’t in danger. I didn’t hear them talking about a reward".


instagram
twitter
youtube
whatsapp
tiktok
spotify