Editing Tazio Nuvolari (section)

====1933–1937: Scuderia Ferrari and Maserati====
{{See also|Scuderia Ferrari|Maserati in motorsport}}
{{quote box|quote="Tazio Nuvolari was not simply a racing driver. To Italy he became an idol, a demi-god, a legend, epitomising all that young Italy aspired to be; the man who 'did the impossible', not once but habitually, the David who slew the Goliaths in the great sport of motor racing. He was Il Maestro."|source=Cyril Posthumus{{sfn|Pritchard|1998|page=59}}|width=21%|align=right}}

'''1933'''

The [[1933 Grand Prix season|1933 season]] began a two-year hiatus in the European Championship, and although Alfa Romeo ceased official involvement in Grands Prix their cars continued racing with [[Enzo Ferrari]]'s [[Privateer (motorsport)|privateer]] team. For economic reasons, the P3 was not passed on to Ferrari so they used its predecessor, the Monza.{{sfn|Pritchard|1998|page=49}} Maserati, with a much-improved car, provided the main opposition.

It has been alleged that Nuvolari was involved in a race-fixing scandal at the [[Tripoli Grand Prix]]. The story is that he conspired with [[Achille Varzi]] and [[Baconin Borzacchini]] to fix the race in order to profit from the Libyan state lottery, in which 30 tickets were drawn before the race—one for each starter—and the holder of the ticket corresponding to the victorious driver won 7.5 million lire.{{sfn|Tibballs|2004|pages=103–106}} Others say the allegation was unfounded and that it originated with [[Alfred Neubauer]], the [[Mercedes-Benz]] team manager at the time, who was well known as a [[raconteur]] with a penchant for spicing up a story.<ref name="goldenage-tripoli">{{cite web|url=http://www.kolumbus.fi/leif.snellman/trip33.htm |title=Tripoli 1933: A hard look at the legend |access-date=31 May 2007 |publisher=The Golden Era of Grand Prix Racing |first1=H. Donald |last1=Capps |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070611140122/http://www.kolumbus.fi/leif.snellman/trip33.htm |archive-date=11 June 2007 }}</ref> Neubauer's version does not altogether hold true with documented records of events, which indicate that Nuvolari, Varzi, and [[Baconin Borzacchini|Borzacchini]] agreed to pool the prize money should one of them win.<ref name="goldenage-tripoli" />

For the [[1933 24 Hours of Le Mans]], Alfa Romeo teamed Nuvolari with [[Raymond Sommer]].{{sfn|Tibballs|2004|pages=107–109}} Sommer asked to drive the majority of the race as he was more familiar with the circuit and thought Nuvolari would probably break the car.{{sfn|Tibballs|2004|pages=103–106}} When Nuvolari countered that he was a leading Grand Prix driver and Le Mans was a simple layout that would not trouble him, they agreed to divide the driving equally.{{sfn|Tibballs|2004|pages=103–106}} In the race, they built a two-lap lead before a leaking fuel tank forced them to stop at the pits, where the leak was plugged by chewing gum.{{sfn|Tibballs|2004|pages=103–106}} More stops were necessary as the makeshift repair came undone several times.{{sfn|Tibballs|2004|pages=103–106}} Nuvolari, driving through to the end of the race, broke the lap record nine times and won by approximately {{convert|400|yd|m}}.{{sfn|Tibballs|2004|pages=103–106}}

'''1934'''

{{quote box|quote="Let any who say it was foolhardy at least be honest and admit it was one of the finest exhibitions of pluck and grit ever seen. By such men are victories won!"|source=[[Francis Curzon, 5th Earl Howe|Earl Howe]], on Nuvolari racing in the 1934 AVUS-Rennen with a broken leg in a plaster cast{{sfn|Pritchard|1998|page=60}}|width=21%|align=right}}

[[File:Dreyfus and Nuvolari at the 1935 Grand Prix de Pau.jpg|thumb|right|Nuvolari driving an Alfa Romeo P3 in the 1935 Grand Prix de Pau]]
[[File:Tazio Nuvolari after victory at the 1935 Grand Prix de Pau.jpg|thumb|Nuvolari after winning the 1935 Grand Prix de Pau]]

In April 1934 Nuvolari entered the [[Monaco Grand Prix]] in a privately owned [[Bugatti]] and worked up to third place before brake problems forced him back to fifth at the finish, two laps behind the winner, [[Guy Moll]].<ref name="goldenage-1934-2">{{cite web |url=http://www.kolumbus.fi/leif.snellman/gp341.htm#3 |title=VI Grand Prix de Monaco |access-date=20 August 2007 |publisher=The Golden Era of Grand Prix Racing |first1=Leif |last1=Snellman |first2=Felix |last2=Muelas |archive-date=18 December 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121218155736/http://www.kolumbus.fi/leif.snellman/gp341.htm#3 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Racing in heavy rain at [[Alessandria]] in the ''Circuito di [[Pietro Bordino]]'' race, he crashed and broke a leg: balked by [[Carlo Felice Trossi|Trossi]]'s [[Alfa Romeo P3]], he lost control of his privately entered [[Maserati 8CM]], which skidded, rolled, and hit a tree.{{sfn|Hilton|2003|page=128}} Bored in hospital, he decided to enter the [[AVUS|AVUS-Rennen]] just over four weeks later.{{sfn|Pritchard|1998|page=60}} As his left leg was too badly injured to operate the clutch, his Maserati was modified for him to work the pedals with his right foot.{{sfn|Hilton|2003|page=261}} Troubled by [[cramp]], he finished fifth.{{sfn|Pritchard|1998|page=60}}

By the time of the [[Penya Rhin Grand Prix]] in late June, Nuvolari's leg was finally out of plaster but still painful. He retired his Maserati with technical problems.<ref name="goldenage-1934-3">{{cite web |url=http://www.kolumbus.fi/leif.snellman/gp342.htm#18 |title=V° Gran Premio de Penya Rhin |access-date=20 August 2007 |publisher=The Golden Era of Grand Prix Racing |first1=Leif |last1=Snellman |first2=Felix |last2=Muelas |archive-date=20 June 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130620105040/http://www.kolumbus.fi/leif.snellman/gp342.htm#18 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

In the [[Italian Grand Prix]], he debuted Maserati's new 6C-34 model. It performed poorly and Nuvolari could finish only fifth, three laps behind the [[Mercedes-Benz W25]]s of [[Rudolf Caracciola|Caracciola]] and [[Luigi Fagioli|Fagioli]], and also trailing the [[Auto Union racing car|Auto Union As]] of [[Hans Stuck|Stuck]] and Leiningen, and the [[Alfa Romeo P3]]s of [[Carlo Felice Trossi|Trossi]], [[Gianfranco Comotti|Comotti]], and [[Louis Chiron|Chiron]].<ref name="goldenage-1934-4">{{cite web |url=http://www.kolumbus.fi/leif.snellman/gp345.htm#35 |title=XII° Gran Premio d'Italia |access-date=20 August 2007 |publisher=The Golden Era of Grand Prix Racing |first1=Leif |last1=Snellman |first2=Felix |last2=Muelas |archive-date=29 October 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131029202403/http://www.kolumbus.fi/leif.snellman/gp345.htm#35 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

At the end of September, he finished third in the [[Czechoslovakian Grand Prix]] ([[Masaryk Circuit]]), behind Caracciola and Stuck.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://auto.idnes.cz/maserati-6c-34-praha-033-/auto_ojetiny.aspx?c=A140425_161813_auto_ojetiny_fdv |title=Autofotka týdne: Vzácné maserati bylo na pár dnů v Praze |date=27 April 2014 |language=cs|work=Zdroj |access-date=20 November 2015}}</ref>

'''1935'''

For [[1935 Grand Prix season|1935]], Nuvolari set his sights on a drive with the German [[Auto Union]] team.{{sfn|Rendall|1995|page=140}} It lacked top-line drivers but relented to pressure from [[Achille Varzi]], which did not want Nuvolari in the team.{{sfn|Rendall|1995|page=140}} Nuvolari then approached Enzo Ferrari, who at first rebuffed him as he had previously walked out on the team.{{sfn|Rendall|1995|page=140}} Italy's prime minister [[Benito Mussolini|Mussolini]] helped persuade Ferrari to take Nuvolari back.{{sfn|Rendall|1995|page=140}}

This was the year that Nuvolari achieved 'The Impossible Victory',<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nivola.org/nuv2e.asp#germ35 |title=One against all |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141104024104/http://www.nivola.org/nuv2e.asp |archive-date=4 November 2014 }}</ref> which many regard as the greatest win in all of motor racing history:{{sfn|Skořepa|1980|page=191}}<ref name="alfalegend.com">{{cite web|url=http://alfalegend.com/nuvolari_page.htm |title=Alfa legend |url-status=usurped |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071229084545/http://alfalegend.com/nuvolari_page.htm |archive-date=29 December 2007 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.ddavid.com/formula1/nuvo_bio.htm | title = Nuvolari | work = Grand Prix History | access-date = 13 February 2005 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20050206004123/http://www.ddavid.com/formula1/nuvo_bio.htm | archive-date = 6 February 2005 | url-status = dead }}</ref><ref name="speedace.info">{{cite web | url = http://www.speedace.info/grand_prix_history.htm | title = The Greatest Victory of all time |work=Grand Prix History}}</ref> driving an outclassed Alfa Romeo P3 (3167&nbsp;cc, supercharged, 265&nbsp;hp) in the [[1935 German Grand Prix|German Grand Prix]] at the [[Nürburgring]], he beat all the dominant German cars—five [[Mercedes-Benz W25]]s (3990&nbsp;cc, 8C, supercharged, {{convert|375|HP|abbr=on}} driven by Caracciola, Fagioli, [[Hermann Lang|Lang]], [[Manfred von Brauchitsch|von Brauchitsch]], and Geyer), and four [[Auto Union racing car|Auto Union Bs]] (4950&nbsp;cc, 16C, supercharged, {{convert|375|hp|abbr=on}} driven by [[Bernd Rosemeyer|Rosemeyer]], Varzi, [[Hans Stuck|Stuck]], and [[Paul Pietsch|Pietsch]]). The crowd of 300,000 applauded Nuvolari, but the representatives of [[Nazi Germany]] were enraged.<ref name="speedace.info"/>

'''1936'''

Nuvolari had a big accident in May during practice for the Tripoli Grand Prix and it is alleged that he broke some vertebrae. Despite a limp, he took part in the race the following day and finished eighth.<ref name="alfalegend.com"/> In October, he traveled to the U.S. for the [[AAA Contest Board|American Automobile Association]] (AAA) sanctioned [[1936 Vanderbilt Cup|Vanderbilt Cup]]. Starting eighth, Nuvolari took the lead from [[Antonio Brivio]] on the second lap of the 75-lap event, leading from then until the finish.<ref>{{Cite web |title=1936 George Vanderbilt Cup |url=http://www.champcarstats.com/races/193604.htm |access-date=2024-03-24 |website=www.champcarstats.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Tazio Nuvolari |url=http://www.champcarstats.com/drivers/NuvolariTazio.htm |access-date=2024-03-24 |website=www.champcarstats.com}}</ref>

'''1937'''

At the beginning of [[1937 Grand Prix season|1937]], Alfa Romeo took its works team back from Ferrari and entered it as part of the [[Alfa Corse]] team.{{sfn|Rendall|1995|page=146}} Nuvolari stayed with Alfa Romeo despite becoming increasingly frustrated with the poor build quality of its racing cars.{{sfn|Rendall|1995|page=149}}

At the [[Coppa Acerbo]], Alfa Romeo's new 12C-37 car proved to be slow and unreliable. Frustrated, Nuvolari handed his car over to [[Giuseppe Farina]] mid-race. Not wanting to leave Alfa Romeo, he drove an Auto Union in the Swiss Grand Prix as a one-off. After the [[1937 Italian Grand Prix|Italian Grand Prix]], Alfa Romeo withdrew from racing for the remainder of the season and dismissed [[Vittorio Jano]], its chief designer.{{sfn|Rendall|1995|page=149}}