The last Italian to win a Grand Prix for Ferrari died 20 years ago

Winning a Grand Prix for Ferrari is in the eyes of many is more special than for any other team. Of course, this is especially true for Italian fans. The last Italian who succeeded in doing so died exactly 20 years ago today.

The patience of the Ferrari fans is sometimes tested to the limit. Ferrari is currently going through a period of poor performance and as a result it has been thirteen years since the team last won a world title.

Challenger of Alain Prost

Italian fans who would like to see a compatriot win in a Ferrari are in for a much longer wait. The last driver to win a Grand Prix for the Scuderia was Michele Alboreto. He won a total of three GPs for Ferrari, the last of which was the 1985 German Grand Prix, at the time the first F1 race at the new Nürburgring.

That season was the highlight of Alboreto's career. With two wins and eight podiums he finished second in the World Championship behind Alain Prost. He would go on to drive for Ferrari for three more seasons, but only managed a handful of podiums.

Success at Le Mans

After his time at Ferrari, he would end his F1 career in the early 1990s working for various rearguard teams, where qualifying for the race was already an achievement. By 1995, he had finally had enough of that.

After a poor season in the DTM, he decided to participate only sporadically in long distance races, but his desire to win remained. He won the 1997 Le Mans 24 Hours for Porsche and in the following years played a crucial role in the development of the later dominant Audi R8. He died in that car on 25 April 2001, when a blowout during a test at the Lausitzring caused the car to take off and landed upside down on the other side of the guardrail. Alboreto was 44 years old.