Nuvolari and Varzi

[TimD]

The original rivalry. Certainly the most frequently alluded to when comparing driver rivalries today with the golden era.

But how did it start? And could it really be characterised by the same vitriol as - say - Prost/Senna or Schumacher/Hill?

Your thoughts?

[WANHER]

Other period very difficult to compare I wasn't born, but if I remember the memoirs of A. NEUBAUER . The life as racing director
with R CARACCIOLA and L FAGIOLI wasn't easy with those two diva

H LANG had also a very difficult coexistence with the same
R CARACCIOLA and M VON BRAUCHITSCH . He was only a mechanic and
not an aristocrat or a well etablished driver.


Robert

[fines]

Well, in the early twenties they were much more like Valentino Rossi and Max Biaggi today!

I don't think you can compare them to Prost/Senna, they had respect for each other. Prost respected Senna, but I don't think Senna respected anyone other than himself!

[Buonfornello]

Apparently, Varzi and Nuvolari were friends when they were in their motorcyle racing days.Nuvolari was the senior and more successful motard of the two and Varzi sought to copy his success, if not his style, but Nuvolari's car racing career received a setback when he crashed the P2 on his tryout for the Alfa Romeo team and Achille actually made the transition to 4 wheels before Tazio.This may have caused some jealousy on the older man's part, but if so he suppressed those feelings and soon Varzi and Nuvolari went in together in the joint purchase of 2 or 3 Bugattis and the hiring of a mechanic, Bignami I think.

Most of the sources are biased in Nuvolari's favor, but if they are to be believed, the next source of friction was Varzi's suspicion that Tazio was faster than he.It is also possible that Varzi, being much wealthier than Nuvolari, resented the fact that Nuvolari was benefitting more from the partnership than Varzi.Whatever the reason, Varzi broke the partnership and soon started showing up at races with the only Alfa P2 in private captivity.There may have been no real animosity between the two up until then, but Nuvolari could hardly have been expected to accept these changes in good grace.

These events provided the background for the rivalry and it was subsequently kept alive by the fact that when they weren't competing on rival teams, they were competing for the top position within the same team.In addition their driving styles and their personalities were in sharp contrast to each other, Varzi being very methodical and controlled in his driving, and aloof and taciturn personally, while Nuvolari was nearly as generous and extroverted off the track as on it.

[fines]

Thanks for the nice insight, Buonfornello! I take it that you're from Italy, right? Maybe you can tell us a little more about the motorcycle days of Varzi and Nuvolari. I don't know much more than that Nuvolari won the 350cc Grand Premio delle Nazione for four consecutive years (1925-28) and Varzi the 500cc GP in 1929.

[Buonfornello]

That was just what I remembered off the top of my head about the Varzi/Nuvolari rivalry from various things I've read about them.If I could remember what I did with the Varzi bio "Una Curva Cieca" I could provide some details...but the rivalry was very real, not just something cooked-up to sell tickets and newspapers.It continued at least until Varzi became addicted to cocaine and morphine.After the war they were both very different.Personal losses and Italy's defeat had stripped them of certain types of pride and while they weren't companions again at least the ghost of their friendship returned.

Achille, born on 8 August 1904, was the youngest of three Varzi brothers. Angioletto was the oldest, born in 1900, followed by Anacleto who was three years older than Achille. His first victory dates back to 1922 at the Tigullio Circuit on a 350 Garelli. The first appearance in the 500 class took place at Monza on 8 September 1923. Varzi led on a Norton prepared by Erminio Visioli. The 500 became his class. Varzi won his first Italian title in 1923 on his 350 Garelli, when only 19. He won his second Championship three years later, 1926 on the 500 Sunbeam. (Source: Una Curva Cieca by Giorgio Terruzzi)