Giancarlo Baghetti Biography, Wiki, Height, Weight, Cause of Death, Racing Career & More

Giancarlo Baghetti Biography: Giancarlo Baghetti competed in Formula One for Ferrari, Automobili Turismo e Sport, BRM, Brabham, and Lotus.

Giancarlo Baghetti Biography

Giancarlo Baghetti Biography: Giancarlo Baghetti was born on 25 December 1934 in Milan, Lombardy, Kingdom of Italy. Baghetti is one of the few drivers to have won his first World Championship race without winning the first race of its type, like Nino Farina, who won the initial F1 World Championship race, the 1950 British Grand Prix, in 1950. Johnnie Parsons won the 1950 Indianapolis 500 just 17 days after Farina, as the race was part of the World Championship from 1950 to 1960 despite being contested by different cars and drivers.

Giancarlo Baghetti Wiki

Giancarlo Baghetti Cause of Death

Baghetti died from cancer on November 27, 1995.

Also Read: Ricardo Rodríguez Biography, Wiki, Height, Weight, Personal Life, Racing Career & More

Giancarlo Baghetti Career

In 1961, he was selected by the Federazione Italiane Scuderie Automobilistiche (FISA), a coalition of independent Italian team owners who had reached a loan agreement with Ferrari for a 156 Formula Two car to race in non-Championship Grand Prix, giving experience to promising Italian drivers. Baghetti was selected over Albino Buttichi and Lucien de Sanctis for the seat despite his poor performance in lesser categories. Baghetti qualified second and won in the only Ferrari, with the British teams and Porsche 718 flat four unable to compete with the Dino’s V6. The car debuted at the Syracuse Grand Prix, the first significant event contested under the new 1.5-liter championship regulations. A few weeks later, he drove the same car to victory at the Grand Prix of Naples.

For this World Championship event, Team FISA entered an original 60-degree V6 Ferrari 156 with at least ten hp less power for Baghetti in the 1961 French Grand Prix at Reims-Gueux. Baghetti was left to defend Ferrari’s reputation after Wolfgang von Trips, Richie Ginther, & Phil Hill retired their works 156s. He defeated Dan Gurney’s Porsche 718 to win the race, giving him three victories in his first three Grand Prix. Gurney was in the lead with 100 yards (91 meters) remaining as the cars raced to the finish line at 260 km/h.

Baghetti became the 1st Italian since 1956 to win a Formula1 World Championship race with this victory. It also ensured that he was the first and only driver in history to win his World Championship Grand Prix debut against a field that did not make up entirely of other debutant drivers. He participated in two more Championship races but retired from the 1961 British Grand Prix and the 1961 Italian Grand Prix, despite setting the fastest performance in the latter. In a Porsche 718, he also won the lightly attended Prima Coppa Italia race at Vallelunga.