The Scuderia Ferrari participates in the German Grand Prix solely as a matter of honor and signature. It is known that on their home turf, the Germans will field an imposing array of forces, and there is no doubt that the contest will be confined to Auto Union and Mercedes. Five Mercedes cars with Caracciola, Fagioli, Lang, von Brauchitsch, and Geyer, and four Auto Union cars with Rosemeyer, Varzi, Stuck, and Pietsch undoubtedly form a lineup that only a fighter like Nuvolari can aim to challenge. Within a fifty-kilometer radius, large and small hotels and inns display the sign "ausgebucht" (fully booked). The Scuderia Ferrari arrives with three Alfa 3200 cars driven by Nuvolari, Chiron, and Brivio, with no prospect of success, but only to collect the agreed-upon engagement fee with the Deutsche Automobil Club. The Italian contingent consists only of the sports director Ugolini, the technician Bazzi, and a handful of mechanics. Few spare parts, no spare engines. Moreover, Nuvolari's participation was decided at the last minute after intense negotiations with the organizer. Enzo Ferrari had demanded a higher amount than what the Germans offered and, adamant in his request, had ultimately forced them to yield. Nello Ugolini, the sports director of Scuderia Ferrari who handled the negotiation, recounts:
"Over the phone, I reached an agreement with the organizers for the appearance fees of Brivio and Chiron. However, for Nuvolari, the proposals from the organizers were far from what Ferrari had told me to ask, which was the sum of 200.000 lire. So, we agreed that we would settle the matter on the Thursday before the race when the team and I would be on-site. We discussed all day and night until 3:00 a.m. without reaching a conclusion. Only at dawn, I managed to reach Ferrari by phone, and he ordered me: Today, you don't let Tazio practice. They will have to give in because they cannot afford not to have Nuvolari. We have to lose, so at least they give us some good money. As usual, he was right: we closed the deal at 170.000 lire".
In Saturday's practice session, Nuvolari surprisingly ranked third with Brivio's Alfa. He would race with that car, on which the mechanics worked all night, in the German Grand Prix. When journalists encounter Alfred Neubauer after Saturday's practice, he declares:
"Nuvolari has only a glorious past. The present and the future belong to Hitler's drivers".
Even before the race, a massive crowd begins to flow towards the circuit, continuing despite rain and wind. 200.000 spectators gather in the stands, or spread out in the meadows and woods along the picturesque track.
"Blessed water".
Nuvolari murmurs to Ugolini. With the wet track, the inferiority of the P3 should be less overwhelming. Numerous authorities are present in the VIP stand. At 11:30 a.m., the race begins with a signal using red, yellow, and green lights connected to electric timers. Caracciola immediately takes the lead ahead of Nuvolari, Fagioli, and the other competitors. Von Stuck and Pietsch start with some delay. Caracciola completes the first lap in 16'19"0, at an average speed of 112 km/h, with a 12-second lead over pursuers Nuvolari, Fagioli, Rosemeyer, Von Brauchitsch, and Chiron. Balestreri goes off the track and retires. In the second lap, Rosemeyer, driving an Auto Union, begins to push to take the lead, moving into second place behind Caracciola, followed by Von Brauchitsch. Fagioli and Von Stuck follow, with the others trailing, while Brivio retires due to a differential failure. Rosemeyer continues his pursuit, and at the end of the fourth lap, only four seconds separate him from Caracciola, who maintains the lead at an average speed of 115.2 km/h. During the fourth lap, Chiron, who had moved up to fifth place and was becoming threatening, stops at the pits and retires due to a malfunction. The Scuderia Ferrari remains in the fight with Nuvolari, and the race already seems lost for Italy, as the Maseratis have not been competitive from the start. In the sixth lap, Rosemeyer returns to the pits with a flat rear tire, losing precious time that allows the three Mercedes aces, Caracciola, Fagioli, and Von Brauchitsch, to continue united and undisturbed, followed by the rapidly recovering Rosemeyer and Nuvolari.
This situation remains unchanged for several laps. Only Pietsch and Varzi are forced to stop at the pits. Meanwhile, Nuvolari significantly accelerates and completes the ninth lap in 10'57"0, at an average speed of 124.9 km/h, moving into third place behind Caracciola and Von Brauchitsch, ahead of Rosemeyer and Fagioli, with Von Stuck in sixth place, 1'14"0 behind Caracciola. During the ninth lap, Nuvolari, continuing his progressive acceleration, overtakes Caracciola as well, taking the lead, pursued by Von Brauchitsch. In the 11th lap, Nuvolari, Von Brauchitsch, Caracciola, and Rosemeyer all stop at the pits simultaneously for tire changes and refueling, witnessing an interesting speed contest among the mechanics of the four drivers. Von Brauchitsch, who restarts first, sets off in pursuit of his teammate Fagioli, who had meanwhile passed the finish line without stopping at the pits, followed by Rosemeyer, Caracciola, Von Stuck, and Nuvolari. During this pit stop, as the Ferrari mechanics refuel the car, the crankshaft of the fuel pump control breaks, causing Nuvolari to lose 40 seconds compared to Brauchitsch and 30 seconds compared to Rosemeyer. In the 13th lap, Fagioli also has to stop at the pits for tire changes and refueling, and Von Brauchitsch then takes the lead, which he brilliantly maintains until the last lap. The gap between the leading cars continues to widen. Von Stuck and Rosemeyer have to stop at the pits for repairs. Von Brauchitsch completes the 15th lap in 10'32"0, at an average speed of 129.924 km/h, setting the fastest lap of the day. However, Nuvolari has once again accelerated, and by the 18th lap, he is only 37 seconds behind Von Brauchitsch, ahead of Von Stuck and Caracciola. This gap decreases lap after lap despite Von Brauchitsch's desperate defense, who has the advantage of having a far superior mechanical means in terms of power and speed. With four laps to go, Neubauer rushes onto the track with surprising agility for a man of his build and, as his driver passes by, signals with his hands to reduce speed since continuing at the current pace could destroy the Continental tires. Meanwhile, Carl Dietrich, responsible for Continental, uses binoculars to observe Von Brauchitsch's car until it disappears around the bend that closes the pit straight. Through the lenses, the technician notices light spots on the rear tires. Not far away, Englebert's colleague notes the same thing and understands its meaning: it's the signal that tires give when they are about to disintegrate.
What the experienced Dietrich had suspected after Saturday's practice session is about to happen. Observing the rear covers of the Mercedes driven by Caracciola, Von Brauchitsch, Fagioli, Geier, and debutant Hermann Lang, the Continental specialist had noticed alarming wear on the tires of car number 7, assigned to Von Brauchitsch. The technician had warned him: if he repeated the performance of the practice sessions in the race, Manfred would surely have to change tires twice, unlike Caracciola, who, aided by a more composed driving style, would only need one change. Before examining the tires of the Mercedes, Dietrich had ensured that those of the Auto Union did not show excessive wear. However, Porsche's single-seaters deliver less power than their Stuttgart rivals. White becomes increasingly visible on the tread of the leading Mercedes. Von Brauchitsch could stop to replace the tires; the mechanics are ready for a quick change, and he would have time to do it, rejoining the race with the chance to win. Instead, feeling pursued, he sacrifices reason. Passing by his pit, he points with his hand to the left rear tire, whose rubber covering, excessively thin, reveals the white fabric of the inner structure. Meanwhile, an unknowing young man in uniform, unaware of what is happening on the track, is ready to hoist the swastika flag on the highest pole, as ordered. The crowd prepares to greet their compatriot as the winner. Von Brauchitsch faces the last incredible lap with a 35s lead over Nuvolari. Thus, when the Italian driver emerges on the home straight behind the pits, Ugolini shows him the board with a smaller gap than the actual one to spur him on. Everyone eagerly awaits the announcements transmitted through speakers from various checkpoints distributed along the kilometers of the north loop of the circuit. The Flugplatz checkpoint announces that Von Brauchitsch has just a 30s advantage over Nuvolari. The Adenau-Fortst checkpoint reports shortly afterward that the Italian is chasing the German at only 27s. A few endless seconds pass, and then the Karrussell checkpoint (9 kilometers from the finish) announces the unfolding post-scene. The transmitter's voice, choked with emotion, reports that Nuvolari is approaching the first turn of the Karrussell, just 200 meters behind Von Brauchitsch. Shortly after, the German driver's advantage is reduced to just ten seconds.
But the crowd is unaware of the sporting drama of this German Grand Prix. The authorities, led by General Hühnlein, head of the German motorization, are far from doubting the final result of this tumultuous race, and they position themselves at the finish line to welcome Von Brauchitsch as the winner. Hühnlein holds the note with the prepared speech in his hand; the German flag is already ready at the foot of the pole, the record of the German anthem is already on the turntable, waiting only to see the silver Mercedes appear at the end of the straight to broadcast its notes through the speakers. In the stands, everyone is on their feet. Renzo Castagneto and Giovanni Canestrini, the only Italians present in the group of authorities and race officials gathered at the finish line, nervously consult their stopwatches.
"I think Brauchitsch is slowing down".
Canestrini whispers to Castagneto. Neubauer, who appears agitated, thinks the same and continues to fiddle with his stopwatch. Suddenly, a distant engine sound, followed by a car rushing fast onto the finish line: a red car. A moment of uncertainty falls over everyone present; they think that a late driver is approaching the finish line.
"But it's Nuvolari; it's Nuvolari".
Shout the two Italian journalists. Castagneto has tears in his eyes. Hühnlein changes color; he nervously looks at the speech note in his hand and puts it in his pocket. The flag bearer, disoriented, turns the flag in his hands, looking around as if to ask what he should do. The crowd, immediately recovering from the unexpected outcome of the race, erupts into a long applause, accompanying Nuvolari as he returns to the pits, while Hühnlein puts the traditional laurel wreath around his neck and presents the artistic prize from Chancellor Hitler, declaring:
"German sports always recognizes the value of a great foreign victory".
Meanwhile, the first notes of the Italian anthem, the Royal March and Giovinezza, finally found among the unused records, fill the air. Manfred von Brauchitsch exits the monoposto crying, he who was trained to hide any form of emotion. A protective arm is affectionately placed on his shoulder, a hand caresses his face. A protective gesture. The arm and hand belong to his brother Harald, who, holding him tightly, pulls him away from defeat. Tazio Nuvolari wins with the old Alfa Romeo the eighth German Grand Prix, perhaps accomplishing the most beautiful race of his career in 4 hours, 8'40"2 at an average speed of 121.1 km/h, displaying unparalleled mastery accompanied by unparalleled audacity. For the first time in a long time, the Alfa Romeo champions managed to defeat the German teams, equipped with absolutely superior mechanical means, and had always settled for honorable placements. Nuvolari breaks the spell in a race that can be considered one of the most beautiful in the history of motorsport. Luck this time was not adverse to the Italian colors, but it does not diminish the merit of Nuvolari and his Alfa, considering that at lap 13 he had a 1'50"0 gap from the leader, German Von Brauchitsch on Mercedes. Lap after lap, Nuvolari reduced this gap: at lap 16, it was only 1'23"0; at lap 18, 1'05"0; at lap 19, 40s; at lap 20, 32s; at lap 21, 27s. Nine kilometers from the end, Nuvolari was only 200 meters behind Von Brauchitsch and would have managed to overtake him before the finish line when the German, on the curves of the Karusel, had the left tire burst, followed by the right rear, giving Nuvolari the opportunity to complete his wonderful race by crossing the finish line with a 1'30"0 lead over the second-placed, German Von Stuck, on Auto Union. After the race, Nello Ugolini calls Enzo Ferrari:
"Ferrari, we've won... Tazio has won".
There's silence on the other end. Ugolini is convinced that the line has dropped after a long wait. Then, he hears sobbing. Enzo Ferrari is crying.