Piero Drogo

Piero Drogo (born in Vignale Monferrato, Alessandria, 8 August 1926 – died in Bologna, 28 April 1973) was a racing driver and coachbuilder from Italy. He participated in one Formula One Grand Prix, debuting at the 1960 Italian Grand Prix. He moved on to form a carrozzeria in Modena to service the thriving sports car industry there. His Carrozzeria Sports Cars gained some fame later in the decade. He died in a car accident aged 46.

Piero Drogo
Drogo (left) with Giotto Bizzarrini in early 1060s. They together created the ASA 1000 GTC (behind)
Born(1926-08-08)8 August 1926
Vignale Monferrato, Alessandria, Italy
Died28 April 1973(1973-04-28) (aged 46)
Bologna, Italy
Formula One World Championship career
Nationality Italian
Active years1960
TeamsScuderia Centro Sud
Entries1
Championships0
Wins0
Podiums0
Career points0
Pole positions0
Fastest laps0
First entry1960 Italian Grand Prix
Last entry1960 Italian Grand Prix

Early life

Piero Drogo was born in Vignale Monferrato on 8 August 1926 to father Luigi Drogo and mother Rosina Monzeglio. His parents were farmers. Before or immediately after World War II he moved to Venezuela,[1]:9 along with members of his family.[2][3] While in Venezuela, he began his career as a sports car racing driver. His first recorded result was at the 1956 Premio Nacional Ciudad de Maracay in Venezuela, where he placed first overall driving a Mercedes-Benz 300 SL.

In 1958, Drogo returned to Italy and began living in Modena, where he would remain for the rest of his life. In the late 1950s, he worked as a racing mechanic for Stanguellini in order to support his racing career.[4]

Drogo married Anna Pia Fornaciari, a nurse from Modena, on December 5 1959.[1]:12

Racing career

The first known record of Drogo's racing career is a first place finish in the 1956 Premio Nacional Ciudad de Maracay, although this may not have been the first event in which he participated. Drogo's racing career included numerous regional sports car races in Latin America, as well as international races such as the 1958 24 hours of Le Mans and the 1959 Targa Florio. He also drove in the 1960 Formula One season, including an 8th place finish at the 1960 Italian Grand Prix as well as several non-championship races.[1]:9–12 He scored no Formula One championship points.

Sports car racing results

Unless otherwise cited, all results below are cited from Koobs de Hartog and De Rijck, 2015.[1]

(key)

Season Series Position Team Car
1956 Premio Nacional Ciudad de Maracay, Venezuela 1st OA Club Automovil de Venezuela Mercedes-Benz 300 SL
Copa Rio Guayas, Ecuador 2nd OA, 1st IC Mercedes-Benz 300 SL
Gran Premio de Venezuela for Sports Cars at Caracas 8th OA, 4th IC Scuderia Madunina Venezuela Ferrari 625LM Touring
1957 1000 Km Buenos Aires 7th OA, 1st IC Scuderia Madunina Venezuela Ferrari 500 TR
Cuban Grand Prix 7th OA Scuderia Madunina Venezuela Ferrari 500 TR
Grand Premio de Venezuela 8th OA, 2nd IC Scuderia Madunina Venezuela Ferrari 500 TR
1958 1000 Km Buenos Aires 4th OA Scuderia Madunina Venezuela Ferrari 250 TR
Cuban Grand Prix 12th OA Ferrari 250 TR
Maiquetia - Pedro Garcia hill climb, Venezuela 19th OA, 1st IC Volvo PV444
24h of Le Mans Ret Fernand Tavano Ferrari 250 TR
XII Circuito Internacional de Vila Real, Portugal Ret Piero Drogo Ferrari 250 TR
1959 Targa Florio[5] 5th OA Scuderia Centro Sud Maserati A6G
Grand Prix of Pergusa 3rd OA Scuderia Centro Sud Maserati A6G
Circuito di Caserta 5th OA Scuderia Centro Sud Maserati A6G
Grand Prix of Messina Ret Scuderia Centro Sud Maserati A6G


Complete Formula One results

(key)

Year Entrant Chassis Engine 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 WDC Points
1960 Scuderia Colonia Cooper T43 Climax Straight-4 ARG MON 500 NED BEL FRA GBR POR ITA
8		 USA NC 0

Carrozzeria Sports Cars
Main article: Carrozzeria Sports Cars

In 1960, Piero Drogo entered into a partnership in the carrozzeria "Marchesini & Cavalieri S.d.f" alongside Lino Marchesini and Celso Cavalieri. This business would become commonly known as Carrozzeria Sports Cars, although it operated under several legal names during its existence. C.S.C. operated from 1960 to late 1971, during which time the company produced low-volume or one-off bodywork for many Italian automakers as well as racing teams and individuals. C.S.C. customers included Scuderia Ferrari, Giotto Bizzarrini, Iso, Scuderia Serenissma, ASA, NART, Ecurie Francorchamps and others.[1]:12–14, 22

From the beginning of Carrozzeria Sports Cars, Piero Drogo's role was primarily in managing business operations. His duties included sales, public relations and administration.[1]:12, 18 Although the name "Drogo" is often used as a synonym for the designs of C.S.C.,[6] Drogo did not practice the craft of coachbuilding nor was he an automobile designer.[1]:18 It is a common misconception that Drogo designed automobile bodies- in fact, the design work was carried out by C.S.C. workers during the fabrication process, often in collaboration with the customer. No single person was responsible for the automobile designs produced by C.S.C.[1]:31 In his role as the manager of C.S.C., Drogo became well known in Modena and used his contacts in the racing world to attract business. While multiple other partners joined and left C.S.C, Drogo's presence was a constant from 1960 until the company's bankruptcy in 1971.

By 1971, Carrozzeria Sports Cars was facing financial difficulties. In June 1971, Drogo published an editorial in the magazine Autosprint titled "Modena S.O.S.",[7] which appealed to private and/or public investment to assist C.S.C. and other small Modenese manufacturers facing similar economic troubles. Drogo's efforts to save the business were ultimately unsuccessful and C.S.C. declared bankruptcy on December 31, 1971.[1]:15

Later life

In 1972, Piero Drogo opened a dealership under the name "Sports Cars S.a.s. di Drogo & Vassallo", selling Ferrari, Maserati, Lamborghini, Porsche and De Tomaso automobiles. This was located on the former premises of Carrozzeria Sports Cars and shared premises with "Carrozzeria ABS", which was founded by former C.S.C. employees. In this way, Drogo maintained some continuity of business operations despite the bankruptcy of C.S.C.[1]:15

Piero Drogo died on April 28, 1973 at the age of 46, in an automobile accident. Drogo's Ferrari 250 GT LWB California Spider (chassis 1501GT)[8] collided with a truck while driving through a dark tunnel near Bologna.[1]:15[4][2] A lengthy obituary by journalist Mario Morselli was published in Autosprint.[9]

Drogo's widow, Anna Pia Fornaciari, would later marry Lamborghini test driver and development engineer Bob Wallace.[1]:12

See also

References
  1. Koobs de Hartog, Jack; De Rijck, Mark (2015). Drogo: Official Coachbuilder of the Scuderia Ferrari. Jack Koobs de Hartog.
  2. Brown, Allen (15 November 2015). "Piero Drogo". OldRacingCars.com. Retrieved 2021-01-16.
  3. "COACHBUILD.COM - Drogo Carrozzeria Sports Cars". www.coachbuild.com. Retrieved 2021-01-16.
  4. "Piero Drogo | Motor Sport Magazine Database". Motor Sport Magazine. 2017-06-12. Retrieved 2021-01-16.
  5. "1959 Targa Florio | Motor Sport Magazine Database". Motor Sport Magazine. 2017-06-12. Retrieved 2021-01-16.
  6. "1960 Ferrari 250 - GT Drogo". www.classicdriver.com. Retrieved 2021-01-16.
  7. Drogo, Piero (7–14 June 1971). "Modena S.O.S.". Autosprint (in Italian). 23.CS1 maint: date format (link)
  8. "Detail - 250 GT LWB California Spyder s/n 1501GT". www.barchetta.cc. Retrieved 2021-01-16.
  9. Morselli, Mario (May 1973). "Sapeva riplasmare le automobili di ieri". Autosprint (in Italian). 18 or 19?.
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