The 1956 season

In each opportunity that we consulted Juan Manuel Fangio about the differences with Enzo Ferrari in the 1956 season, he responded prudently, relativizing what happened although he recognized that it contributed to accentuating the problems that had occurred, the book written about his life by Marcelo Giambertone, his manager in that season ("La Mia Vita a 300 All'Ora").

Giambertone analyzed in this book some aspects of the 1956 tournament trying to prove that Enzo Ferrari wanted Peter Collins to win the Championship, because England was a better car market than Argentina, putting words in Fangio mouth explaining the failures and organizational problems that they hurt him. He even talked about a boycott in the first part of the Championship.

Naturally, Enzo Ferrari was quick to replicate those concepts in his book "Piloti, Che Gente ..." "When Enzo Ferrari got angry when the book was published (remembered Fangio) Giambertone did not agree to my requests for clarification and we discussed hard. Giambertone was a very light man and when he told me about the book, I accepted that he did it, convincing me that a publication about my life was necessary. But I did not intervene in it and when reading it I realized the intentionality of what was written there and the mention of my own, not true. Except for that clarification about the relationship with Ferrari. I recognize that when editing the book containing my signature, it was logical Ferrari's displeasure. I did not receive a peso for the publication of that book nor did I have anything to do with it. The only time I intervened directly in a publication was with Roberto Carozzo, only to verify the veracity of the statements in "When Man is More than Myth".

In fact, a circumstance that complicated the relationship of Fangio with Ferrari that year was the modality of the team that required the mechanics to work on all the machines of the team. Fangio had no mechanic assigned to his machine, as he had been accustomed to from Mercedes Benz, and that situation was illogical because he understood that it was almost impossible to take good care of all the cars. Faced with the appearance of minor faults in the first part of the Championship, Fangio claimed for those responsible, that were diluted in this system.

The Scuderia had Fangio, Collins, Musso, De Portago and in some competitions, Oliver Gendebien and Mike Hawthorn. The tournament began with a victory for Fangio in Argentina driving the Ferrari-Lancia de Musso, after leaving with his own, due to inconveniences in the fuel pump. It is out of the race in the 1000 km of Buenos Aires and it wins in Mendoza, a test of F1 without a score. Castellotti wins the Sebring 12 hours and is credited in Syracuse with the F1 race without scoring in front of his teammates Musso and Collins.

It is in England when the problems begin when leaving due to breakage of the clutch. In Monaco, after touching a cord he enters the pits on lap 42 and Ferrari orders Collins to give him his machine, finishing second. In the Belgian Grand Prix, the differential of his Lancia-Ferrari is motivated, which causes his abandonment, culminating his misfortune in the French Grand Prix when he experienced a loss of fuel in the dashboard, which his mechanics are slow to repair, moving him away from the tip to the fourth final place. It is when Fangio makes the decision to renounce the Team. Everything is solved by accepting the appointment of an exclusive mechanic for your machine.

Three tests were missing to complete the Championship and in them, Fangio manages to overcome the score to achieve the title in Monza. Fangio wins in Germany and Great Britain adding 30 units against 22 of Collins and 19 of Moss. Collins to overcome it had to achieve the Lap Record and win at Monza. We must remember that that year the drivers had to choose their 5 best performances adding the points obtained. This analysis is important since without underestimating the magnificent gesture of Peter Collins in Monza, when yielding its machine to Fangio, when it did not have possibilities of being champion because at that moment it occupied the fourth position, without chance of winning the race that commanded Stirling Moss, who as well had marked the lap record, removing until that moment at least, the possibility of that point in game.

Fangio also refutes Giambertone when he expressed in his book, that he had made arrangements for Collins to give him his machine: "That was not true. When Collins stopped in the pits and knowing what was happening to me he gave me his car spontaneously in front of Sculatti who was next to me. In addition, Collins knew that it had to win with a lap record and at that moment it was third behind Musso. However, the race was not over, but he also gave me his car, a gesture I will never forget. The second place achieved gave us 2 points each. In my case, it did not help me since I had to discard. On the other hand, Collins could add them ".

Fangio had achieved his fourth world title by collecting 30 points, against 27 from Stirling Moss and 25 from Peter Collins. Thus culminated that season of 1956 that left its aftermath, more for the comments of Giambertone and the way of acting of the Ferrari Team than for some strange circumstance or the desire to harm Fangio. The problems existed but Fangio clarified: "... I do not believe that things happened on purpose. That would not make sense. When in Belgium I had problems with the differential due to lack of oil, Castellotti also had them ... "

Enzo Ferrari, who always thought that the drivers won for their cars, had a very personal way of directing his team and Fangio changed the scheme. Hence the gap that arose between the two, which added to the desire of Fangio to leave it in the middle of the season, constituted a very deep fissure, augmented by the alleged statements in Giambrone's book.

Nor should we forget that Enzo Ferrari was going through a bad time with the death of his young son Dino. Time passed and 10 years later at a meeting of veteran F1 drivers, Fangio was reunited with Enzo Ferrari who invited him to lunch in Maranello. There they talked about everything, except those annoying situations. In his book, Enzo Ferrari expressed in a paragraph about Fangio: ... I think we can hardly see an ace capable of such continuity in success ... "

Two great of world motorsport. Each in his own. From there, perhaps, the differences within a mutual admiration.

LANCIA FERRARI D-50

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