Competitiveness in racing in the past and today
02/14/2011
In most racing series these days, it is common practice to build a new racing car every year, or at least every two to three years. What used to be possible, namely winning races with equipment that was already ten or more years old , seems almost unthinkable.
But that is exactly what Willy Peter Daetwyler did with his Alfa Romeo 412.
The car, built in 1939, was kept race-ready for many years thanks to the great skill of legendary mechanic Bruno Picco from Zurich. Daetwyler and his Alfa Romeo were practically unbeatable in both national and international races between 1949 and 1954. Unbelievable but true. In 1953, Willy Peter Daetwyler - now with a twin supercharger - equaled the fast lap time set by Raymond Sommer on the Bern Grand Prix circuit in 1950 in a Formula 2 Ferrari (152.880 km/h). The car continued to be used in racing for several years afterwards.
