Ferrari : Mille Miglia and Tribue

The 2018 edition of the Mille Miglia concluded on Saturday 19 May in Viale Venezia in Brescia. Ferrari took centre stage in this historical re-enactment with 16 cars in the regularity race for cars built up to 1957, the last year of the original race which was first held in 1927. Ninety-nine Ferraris also took part in the Tribute, in which Prancing Horse customers could drive their cars along the competition route regardless of the year they were built.

Museum on the move. The cars started off as usual from Brescia, as was the case in the historical Mille Miglia, when drivers like Tazio Nuvolari, Piero Taruffi or Giannino Marzotto battled it out with the French, Germans and British, the latter always enamoured with this competition. The oldest Ferrari to start was a 275 Sport from 1950, but the public lining the route also had the chance to admire various 250 GTs, two Testa Rossas from 1956 and two examples of the 750 Monza. Extraordinary cars that have made the history of this race, which Enzo Ferrari called a 'unique museum on the move'.

Iconic places. The first stage on Wednesday 16th, saw the caravan skirt Lake Garda down to Peschiera and then follow the course of the River Mincio to Mantua. From there, the hundreds of cars participating continued to flank the river to where it flows into the Po before heading to Ferrara and then the Adriatic Sea, with a stop in Cervia, on the Riviera Romagnola. The next day the Mille Miglia went inland, passing through the Republic of San Marino and then Tuscany, with Sansepolcro and Arezzo, and Umbria, with Orvieto, until reaching Rome, where the evening lights gave the spectators a unique view of the caravan as it passed through the city. As usual, the cars paraded through the crowd with the Ferrari drivers, whether in the race or the tribute, receiving the warmest welcome.

Return. Then, as always the race set off from the Eternal City back to Brescia, again passing through Tuscany and climbing the Apennines to reach Parma on Friday. In the last stage, before Brescia, the cars also paraded from the National Circuit of Monza, the last great temple of speed in European motorsport.

Tribute. The Ferrari Tribute also followed much of the historic car route. For Ferrari enthusiasts, the event began in Desenzano del Garda, where a crowd worthy of Brescia greeted the start of the event. The oldest car was a 1965 Dino, but there were many recent models, with the current range represented practically in full: the GTC4 Lusso, GTC4 Lusso T, 488 GTB and Spider and 812 Superfast. The first day saw the Ferraris arrive in Pesaro, while like the Mille Miglia Rome provided the finishing line for the second day. On Friday, the 99 cars stopped at Salsomaggiore, setting off again on Saturday for Brescia where the Ferraris took part in the big final party to conclude the event.