19 December 1979 – 2019: 40 years of the Minardi Team

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1980 – GM77, Presentazione del Minardi Team

Wednesday December 19 forty years ago Gian Carlo Minardi’s sporting activity changed style and register. Up to that day the cars handled by the manager from Faenza ran under external “colours”, first of the Società del Passatore and then Scuderia Everest.

““On December 19, 1979 the Minardi Team was officially born, also thanks to Angelo Gallignani, President of Scuderia Everest and in 1980 we debuted on the track with our first Formula 2 racing car, the GM75 designed by Caliri and Marmiroli and entrusted to Miguel Angel Guerra, the first driver to race under the Minardi Team colours,” remembered Gian Carlo Minardi.

Despite the initial hardships the Argentine driver gained a good 9th place in the European Championship. In the following however the Minardi talent scout put under contract a certain Michele Alboreto who, at the wheel of the Minardi-Fly M281, took third place in Pergusa and the brilliant win in the race at Misano in the middle of a torrid August on the Riviera… but that is another story.

Gian Carlo Minardi e Domenico Sangiorgi

At the same time as the Minardi Team’s coat of arms- the blue trapezoid with the lion, Italian flag and yellow letters- also made its debut and accompanied Gian Carlo Minardi throughout his journey that culminated with 21 years in Formula 1 and 340 Grands Prix, numbers that today still legitimize the team from Faenza amongst the top ten teams that have raced the most grands prix in the history of F1 that next year will celebrate its 70th birthday.

“In that moment we became Constructors, certified by CSAI and FIA; and we grew from year to year until we became too big for Formula 2 but too small for Formula 1. In the 1980s F1 was everybody’s dream and it was at the peak of its fame and so taken by the decision to launch myself in that challenge to construct in 1984 the first prototype F1 car which debuted the following year in Brazil with Pierluigi Martini. All supported by a group of entrepreneurs from the Emilia-Romagna region who trusted me,” continued the manager from Faenza.

Da Sinistra: Ing. Giacomo Caliri, Bruno Corradi (Pilota), Gian Carlo Minardi, Ing. Luigi Marmiroli, Tonino Bertoni (capo meccanico)

“In all those years we built our racing cars with great pride and satisfaction and for this reason, even today, I do not view positively the possibility of having an F1 starting grid made up of assemblers and/or clones”

“I am pleased that forty years later the name Minardi still lives in the memory of the fans as they have shown over the last four years during the Historic Minardi Day. I wish you all Happy Holidays and I will be waiting for you from Friday 24th to Sunday 26th April, always of the Imola Circuit for edition number five” ”

1979 – Preparazione GM75 per la galleria del vento

F1 | Gian Carlo MINARDI “Sainz confirmed he is a top driver. 2020 a crucial year”

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With tenth place in Abu Dhabi Carlos Sainz put together his best season in Formula 1 since he began with the colours of Toro Rosso in 2015, racing the final four rounds with Renault’s colours and staying for next season.

With 96 points to his credit, the podium finish in Brazil in the penultimate round of the world championship and finishing in the points 13 times, McLaren’s Spanish driver took sixth place on the drivers’ ladder behind Sebastian Vettel and in front of Pierre Gasly who for more than half the season had his hands on the Red Bull before handing the steering wheel to Albon, starting from Spa-Francorchamps, and “giving” Toro Rosso second place in Interlagos.

This was great progress by the 26 year old from Madrid who, together with the 20 year old debutant Lando Norris, took McLaren-Renault to fourth place on the constructor’s ladder, just behind Mercedes, Ferrari and Red Bull and taking fifth place in the grands prix in Germany, Hungary and Japan as the best results before the incredible third place in Interlagos and the sixth place in Monaco, France, Great Britain and Russia.

“We didn’t only just discover Sainz Jr’s technical worth. He is a driver I have always like and the sixth spot on the drivers’ ladder is the confirmation. We are talking about a very fast, correct and modest driver. He is a top driver and will be in the centre of the drivers’ market next season if McLaren does not hurry up and renew him,” commented Gian Carlo Minardi.

“2020 will be a crucial year for the drivers’ market since of the top drivers on Leclerc already had a contract signed beyond that date,” continued the manager from Faenza, “We have seen a good championship that gave us a number of interesting pints for the future with the fiery duel between Verstappen and Leclerc. I like Norris a lot and in his debut season he contributed to McLaren’s rebirth with eleven positive results, as did Albon and Gasly who with the second place in Brazil gave a very strong sign.”

In the nine rounds raced with Red Bull the Anglo-Thai rookie “paid” a gap of only eleven points from the Dutchman who won the Brazil Grand Prix with a fourth place to his credit, four fifth places, three sixth places and only one finish outside the points, at Interlagos.

F1 | Gp Abu Dhabi, THE POINT by Gian Carlo MINARDI “An unexplainable startegy by Ferrari. A reflective pit stop is needed”

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Mercedes ended its latest triumphant season with a disarming performance in which it showed all its strength with Lewis Hamilton’s win and especially for Bottas’ comeback who, after starting from last place on the grid, crossed the finishing line at the foot of the podium in fourth place behind Leclerc.

Leclerc took his tenth pole position for the season but he paid a gap of 43” from the British driver which went up to 64” for Sebastian Vettel. These heavy figures are supported by the fact that in the 27th lap the Ferrari’s people on the wall asked their drivers to save fuel lapping constantly at 1’43” and then gambled on a strategy with one pit stop more but it paid anyway with 1” gap compared to Hamilton’s best lap.

Sincerely I did not understand the strategy adopted by Ferrari, especially with Leclerc who, after his masterpiece in qualifying with the Medium tyres, stopped in the 12th lap at the same time as Vettel who had started with the Softs. The people in Maranello must take a reflective pit stop to focus on all the corrections to be made in light of 2020 which concern the chassis, the engine and reliability to which must also be added the mistakes by the drivers and in the strategy.

As was to be expected, Verstappen brought home third place overall amongst the drivers at Leclerc’s expense. The result in Brazil played a crucial role in this direction. Red Bull Honda is certainly the name that grew most this season and the second place in the constructors’ ladder may have slipped away due to the initial choices. They were justified but they did not affect the drivers’ side with a Verstappen who was certainly extraordinary.

We must also highlight the good result by Sainz who finished in sixth spot on the drivers’ ladder which confirms his place as a top driver.
Now we have a long, but short, winter, since more than 100 days separate us from the Melbourne gp but the gap from Mercedes really is huge.

Gian Carlo Minardi