Alberto Ascari was the son of Antonio Ascari who was killed at the wheel of an Alfa Romeo in the 1925 French Grand Prix. He drove Maseratis in pre-war days and appeared at the wheel of Ferrari's new sports car in the 1940 Mille Miglia road race.
In 1949, his first year in a long association with the Ferrari
Grand prix team, he won the Swiss Grand Prix and the European Grand Prix at
Monza.
He is pictured here winning the International Trophy race at Silverstone driving
the first Grand Prix car to bear the Ferrari name.
The supercharged V12 Tipo 125, first appeared in the Italian Grand Prix at
Turin in September 1948. In 1949 Ferraris, now driven by Alberto Ascari and
Luigi
Villoresi, thought they would be invincible. However they were unreliable,
their handling was less than satisfactory and they proved heavy on fuel and
tyres.
Ascari was second in the Drivers' World Championship
in 1951 and won the title in both 1952 and 1953.
He left to drive for Lancia in 1954 and was killed at the wheel of a sports
Ferrari during unofficial practice at Monza in May 1955.
Ferrari Tipo 125 specification
(1948-49)
Engine: 60-degree V12 with single overhead camshaft per bank
of cylinders, single stage supercharging, 1498 cc (55 x 52.5 mm) developing
225 bhp at 7500 rpm.
Gearbox: 5 speed. Chassis: Twin-tubular with front suspension
by unequal-length wishbones and a transverse leaf spring and rear suspension
by swing-axles and a transverse leaf spring.
Wheelbase: 7ft 1in. Front and rear track: 3ft
11in.
