#GiovanniMinozzi

It is assumed that Giovanni Minozzi owner of the fiat 8V with chassis 106*000008* is the then former driver, following these findings. From the registration certificate of plate MI 467837, the former owner Giovanni Minozzi was resident in Corso Sempione 70, Milan; in the opposite building, in Corso Sempione 65, there was, at least until 1940, the garage/workshop of the Minozzi Brothers: Alessandro and Giovanni, the racing driver. Finally, a very short distance away, the champion Alberto Ascari also lived, in Corso Sempione 60. The proximity and coincidence of the addresses definitely suggests that it is the same person, owner and former driver.

Giovanni Minozzi was grandson of Grand Prix driver Antonio Ascari, cousin of Formula 1 champion Alberto Ascari. He participated in 12 editions of the Mille Miglia, from 1927 to 1950; twice (in 1928 and 1940) with Ascari. He drove an Alfa RLS at the 1925 Rome Grand Prix and later, at the same year's Italian Grand Prix at the Monza Autodrome, he finished second behind Gastone Brilli-Peri in an Alfa Romeo P2 together with Giuseppe Campari. He raced with a 2-liter Bugatti in 1928 at Montenero. In the 1930s European Grand Prix Championship, Minozzi was active mainly as a co-driver, private driver and, for example, for Eugenio Siena's Scuderia Siena on Alfa Romeo, Bugatti and Maserati. At the 1930 Monza Grand Prix he finished fourth behind the Maserati army of Achille Varzi, Luigi Arcangeli and Ernesto Maserati in his privately entered Bugatti Type 35 C. He finished second in 1931 in Alessandria. In 1931 Minozzi finished third at the Belgian Grand Prix in Spa-Francorchamps as co-driver of Ferdinando Minoia and eleventh as co-driver of Tazio Nuvolari at the ACF Grand Prix in Montlhéry.

Giovanni Minozzi was active until the Second World War and managed to obtain some notable successes with his "private use" vehicles. In 1940 he participated in the last Mille Miglia linked to the war, in an almost prototype car: the famous Auto Avio Costruzioni 815 Spider Touring designed by Alberto Massimino and built by Enzo Ferrari, as co-driver of his cousin Alberto Ascari. However, the two did not finish the race.

We'll publish a biography on him on the occasion of his anniversary or when it will be reached a sufficient number of cars.

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