Un italiano disegnò l'auto che umiliò Porsche e Lancia nei rally

An Italian designed the car that humiliated Porsche and Lancia in rallies. This is the incredible story of the Alpine A110, the small French sedan born in a Normandy warehouse that managed to defeat the giants of world motorsport. It all began with a young Renault dealer in Dieppe, Jean Rédélé, who at just 24 years old dreamed of racing and winning. To make his dream a reality, he knocked on the door of a genius from Turin, designer Giovanni Michelotti, whose pencil had already adorned Ferrari and Maserati. With engines crafted by the wizard Amédée Gordini, a fiberglass body, and a weight of just 620 kilograms, the little Alpine challenged much more powerful giants. In 1971, it achieved a hat-trick in Monte Carlo, and in 1973, the overall triumph: the first-ever World Rally Championship, ahead of Porsche, Lancia, and Ford. But just at the moment of glory, the most sensational insult arrived, served up by Italy: the Lancia Stratos, designed by Bertone and powered by a Ferrari heart, won three consecutive world titles from 1974 to 1976, sweeping away the old berlinetta. A fairytale of light-heartedness, tenacity, and Italian genius, which rose from the French provinces to Formula 1 and overall victory at Le Mans. Music tracks used: Eyes of Glory by Aakash Gandhi and When Johnny Comes Marching Home by Cooper Cannell. Photographs are from archive.org and are in the public domain.