Tag Archives: Testut

’55 Gold Cup Winner – Maserati 250F #2515

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Today’s featured Maserati 250F chassis #2515 made it’s debut for the works team in the 1955 Argentinian GP where it retired with engine failure after Sergio Mantovani, Jean Behra and Luigi Musso had completed 54 of the scheduled 96 laps.

Roberto Mieres, Peter Collins, Stirling Moss and Carroll Shelby all drove #2515 in 1955 with Stirling Moss recording the best result with a win in the non Championship Gold Cup at Oulton Park.

Maserati 250F, Donington Grand Prix Collection

Francisco Landi and Gerino Gerini shared the car in the 1956 Argentine Grand Prix to score a season high 4th. After Francisco finished 7th in the Brazilian Grand Prix ownership of #2515 appears to have been passed over to Scuderia Guastalla in Italy.

Gerino and Umberto Maglioli drove the car on two occasions each over the remainder of the 1956 season with Gerino’s 5th place finish in Syracusse being the best result.

Ottorino Volonterio acquired the car after it had been rebodied for the 1957 season and it was entered in three events with the best, only, finish being 11th in the Italian Grand Prix where Ottorino shared the driving with André Simon.

André Testut failed to qualify the car for the 1958 Monaco Grand Prix, as he would his own 250F #2521 in the same event the following season.

From June to September 1958 #2515 was entered in four events by Scuderia Centro Sud with Maurice Trintignant finishing seventh in the Belgian Grand Prix at Spa.

Gerino drove in the remaining three recording a best 6th place finish at Caen. Hans Hermann drove #2515, now entered by Joakim Bonnier, in the 1958 Italian Grand Prix from which he retired with a valve issue.

In 1959 Fritz d’Orey retired #2515, now entered by Scuderia Centro Sud again, from the British Grand Prix. The final known appearance of #2515 was in the 1959 Italian Grand Prix where Giulio Cabianca driving for Ottorino Volonterio finished 15th.

Tom Wheatcroft bought #2515 in 1965 and it is seen in this picture in the Donington Grand Prix Collection which he founded.

Thanks for joining me on this “Gold Cup Winner” edition of “Gettin’ a li’l psycho on tyres” I hope you will join me again tomorrow when I’ll be looking at a Delahaye. Don’t forget to come back now !

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Side Saddle With Romy – Maserati 250F #2521

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Today’s featured Maserati 250F was a new factory racer for the start of the 1956 season when Jean Behra drove it to a second place finish on it’s debut in the 1956 Argetinian Grand Prix behind the Ferrari shared by Luigi Musso and Juan Manuel Fangio.

Maserati 250F, Silverstone Classic,

Jean drove the car, identified by the #2518 chassis tag on it’s forst two appearances, at least in six further races which included 3rd place finishes in the Grand Prix run at Monaco, Reims in France, Silverstone in Britain and the Nurburgring in Germany.

Maserati 250F, Silverstone Classic,

In 1957 Scuderia Centro Sud entered the car in possibly as many as three events in September 1957 for Bruce Halford who finished 7th in the non Championship International Trophy at Silverstone and Modena Grand Prix races.

Maserati 250F, Silverstone Classic,

In October ’57 Jean Lucas drove #2521 for American entrant John du Puy to an eight place finish in the Moroccan Grand Prix.

Maserati 250F, Silverstone Classic,

In 1958 Monegasque André Testut bought #2521 he failed to finish the 1958 Syracusse Grand Prix after which he had the car rebodied before appearing at the 1959 Monaco Grand Prix where André failed to qualify for the second consecutive year.

Maserati 250F, Romy Schneider, Monaco

However cinematic feté appears to have smiled kindly on #2521 as at the time of the 1959 Monaco Grand Prix Hungarian film director Géza von Radványi was making a German Romantic Commedy called Ein Engel auf Erden, An Angel on Earth, staring Frenchman Henri Vidal as a suicidal racing driver and Romy Schneider as an air hostess and angel sent to save him.

Maserati 250F, Romy Schneider, Henri Vidal, Nice Airport

In the film Henri is depicted driving #2521, with André Testut acting as his double in the racing scenes, to victory in the Monaco Grand Prix with a little devine intervention from above, at the end of the race he stops to pick up Romy and is seen driving to Nice Airport with Romy riding sidesaddle on the back of #2521.

If you speak German you can see the film on this link, or there is a version of the film called Mademoiselle Ange in French on this link.

Tragically soon after the making of this film Henri Vidal was to die of heart attack in December 1959. Coincidentally Romy Schneider also died of a heart attack in May 1982.

My thanks to Alan Cox at The Nostalgia Forum for confirming the identity of today’s featured car.

Thanks for joining me on this “Side Saddle With Romy” edition of “Gettin’ a li’l psycho on tyres”, I hope you will join me again tomorrow when I shall be looking at the last in the current series of Bugatti’s. Don’t forget to come back now !

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