He was recognizable by his first-class look, with his square glasses constantly screwed on his nose. Alongside Gordon Murray, John Barnard and other Adrian Newey to name but a few, he was one of those geniuses who left a lasting mark on the history of Formula 1. Mauro Forghieri, the man who spent three decades at the head of the Scuderia Ferrari as technical director breathed his last on Wednesday. He was 87 years old.
Incredible destiny that of this graduate in mechanical engineering at the University of Bologna. When Enzo Ferrari called him to head the technical department of the Scuderia following the palace revolution of 1961, Mauro was only 27 years old. But his work quickly bore fruit as the engineer saw one of his creations crowned world champion in the hands of John Surtees in 1964. Under his era, two other pilots won the laurels of champion: Niki Lauda (1975-1977) Jody Scheckter (1979). As a manufacturer, Ferrari will be sovereign no less than seven times.
The list of Ferraris Forghieri has looked into are as legendary as they are numerous. The mythical 250 GTO completed its development with him at the helm. He also designed many F1 cars, including the 158/1512 champions in 1964 and the 312 series started in 1966. He also developed the first transverse gearbox in Maranello and the first turbocharged Ferrari F1. At the 1968 Belgian Grand Prix, his single-seaters were the first in F1 history to feature aerodynamic fins. But his favorite is the mythical 330P4, nemesis of the Ford GT40 in sports cars.
Between brilliant creations and resounding flops, Forghieri’s career in Maranello was not a long calm river. But the Commendatore kept reminding him when necessary. However, in the mid-1980s, his influence waned as the Reds came under the rule of Williams, Brabham and McLaren. In 1984, following a reorganization of the Scuderia, he resigned from his position as technical director. However, he remained with Ferrari for three more years, the time to design a concept car that would be the very first prancing horse car to be equipped with four-wheel drive.
In 1987, the giant Chrysler had just bought Lamborghini and Lee Iaccoca (the father of the Ford Mustang) called him to head the technical department. It is he who designs the V12 which will drive the Larrousse, Lotus and other Modenas between 1989 and 1993. In the meantime, however, he has been replaced within the bull-calf firm.
He settled down at Bugatti, which had just been reborn thanks to Romano Artioli, to take over as head of the technical department. He was thus involved in the development of the EB110 supercar which immediately became legendary. The Bugatti adventure ended in 1994 and Forghieri launched a company that would take care of subcontracting for several brands, including BMW and Aprilia.
With Forghieri, one of F1’s greatest wizards is leaving. Capable of designing an entire car from A to Z, he is undoubtedly the most prolific, versatile and successful designer in the history of Italian racing motoring.