The car that put Enzo's company on the map

As Ferrari turns 70, an anniversary that's being celebrated at the Goodwood Festival of Speed with a gathering of 70 (naturally) of the most beautiful and important cars to emerge from the factory at Maranello, James Page drives the car that helped make the company famous both on and off track.

Driving any Ferrari 166MM would be special, but chassis 0058M carries with it an even greater sense of occasion because it was the first car to be raced by Italian hero Eugenio Castellotti. Born in Lodi, which lies between the northern cities of Milan and Piacenza, Castellotti came from an aristocratic family and his first outing in 0058M is thought to have been the Giro Toscana in June 1950. By April the following year he was tackling the famous Mille Miglia in the car, finishing 50th overall and sixth in class.

He also used the 166MM in the 1952 Monaco Grand Prix, which was a sports car race that year, and then signed off in style with victory on August’s Circuito di Senigallia. Then Castellotti’s career took off and he became a works driver first for Lancia and then moving to Ferrari when Enzo’s team took over the D50s from the financially straitened Turin marque.

Source: Ferrari 166MM: the car that put Enzo's company on the map