1000 Miglia 1929

About the Event

The third edition of the Mille Miglia, held in 1929, followed the same route as previous years but saw a reduced number of entrants, particularly from abroad. This was largely due to the scheduling conflict with the inaugural Monaco Grand Prix, held the same weekend. As a result, the main contenders for overall victory remained Italian: Alfa Romeo and OM, each having already won a previous edition.

Alfa Romeo entered its new 6C 1750 SS Testa Fissa Spider Zagato models, supercharged and supported directly by the factory. These cars were entrusted to top-level teams, including defending champions Giuseppe Campari and Giulio Ramponi, former winners Ferdinando Minoja with Attilio Marinoni, Achille Varzi with Gioacchino Colombo, and Gastone Brilli-Peri with Carlo Canavesi. Privateers like Cortese, Bornigia, and Pirola also ran Alfa Romeo 6C variants.

OM countered with a full works team of 665 Superba S MM Spiders, driven by notable names such as Morandi, Arcangeli, Nuvolari, and two of the race’s founders: Franco Mazzotti and Aymo Maggi. Lancia unofficially entered several Lambda 8th series spiders bodied by Casaro, including a tuned head from Romagnoni & Pirotta. These cars were driven by Strazza, Varallo, and others. Actress Mimì Aylmer also entered the race in a Lancia Lambda saloon.

The early stages were marked by high attrition: Maggi Mazzotti and Avanzo retired due to mechanical issues, and Nuvolari crashed out near Piadena. Surprisingly, the Maserati 26B MM driven by Ernesto Maserati and Baconin Borzacchini led at Bologna and Rome but retired near Terni. This opened the path for Campari Ramponi, who took the lead and maintained it despite pressure and two late-race punctures.

After 1,621 km, Campari and Ramponi won in 18h 04m 23s, setting a new record. They were followed by Morandi Rosa in the OM and Varzi Colombo in another Alfa Romeo. Fourth went to the Lancia Lambda Casaro of Strazza Varallo, and fifth to Ghersi Guerrini in an OM. Alfa Romeo 6Cs filled most of the remaining top-ten positions.

The 1929 Mille Miglia confirmed Alfa Romeo’s dominance with the supercharged 6C 1750 and strengthened its growing prestige in international motorsport.

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