May 12, 1957, somewhere in Northern Italy. A red racing car speeds at 241 km/h down a country road. Inside is Alfonso de Portago, Spanish marquis, notorious playboy, and legendary driver. A few hours earlier, he kissed actress Linda Christian on the side of this very road. A kiss that will go down in history as the "Kiss of Death." Because in a few seconds, his tire will explode, his Ferrari will disintegrate, and with it, the most dangerous car race in the world will die forever .

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But how did it get here? How did a race born from a teenage passion become the most spectacular and deadly motoring event in history ? I'm going to tell you the story of the Mille Miglia, that crazy race where men drove at over 200 km/h across Italy, on open roads, in front of 5 million spectators crowded along the roadsides.

The Birth of Vengeance (1927)

It all began in 1922 with a humiliation . Brescia, a small town in northern Italy, lost the organization of the Italian Grand Prix to Monza. For the local notables, it was an unbearable snub. Imagine: your city loses the prestige of the most beautiful race in the country! So for 5 years, resentment mounted, mounted, until two young 24-year-old counts, Aymo Maggi and Franco Mazzotti, decided to show all of Italy what it had lost.

In 1927, they created their own race . Not just a small village race, no. Something gigantic, unprecedented, completely crazy: 1,618 kilometers in one go , from Brescia to Rome and back, on Italian public roads. The idea? To race as fast as possible across Italy, passing through towns, villages, mountains, and countryside. I swear, it's as if today someone decided to organize a Paris-Marseille-Paris race in the middle of traffic!

And you know what? It's a blast . In the first edition, 77 drivers signed up. All Italian, of course - foreigners weren't even allowed to participate at the beginning. And guess how many made it to the end? Only 51. Even in the first year, it was clear that this race was going to be special.

Tazio Nuvolari: The stroke of genius in the dark

But it was in 1930 that the legend really took on a mythical dimension . That year, a pilot pulled off a stunt so daring that it's still talked about today. Tazio Nuvolari, nicknamed "Il Mantovano Volante" - the Flying Mantuan. A completely crazy guy, but an absolute talent.

Let me set the scene: it's nighttime, somewhere between Rome and Brescia. Nuvolari is driving his Alfa Romeo 6C 1750, and in front of him is his longtime rival, Achille Varzi. The two men cordially hate each other , and Varzi is leading the race. Nuvolari is behind, and he's cursing. How can we catch up without him noticing?

And then Nuvolari has a genius idea. Or a crazy one, depending on your point of view. He turns off his headlights . Yes, you read that right. He turns off his headlights and drives in total darkness, at 150 km/h, following Varzi's taillights! Imagine the scene: Italy is asleep, the road winds through the countryside, and this madman is driving blind, guided only by his rival's headlights.

For miles, Varzi doesn't suspect a thing. He thinks he's long since lost Nuvolari. And then, with 3 kilometers to go, BAM! Nuvolari turns his headlights back on, overtakes the stunned Varzi, and takes the victory! This maneuver went down in history as the "victoria a fari spenti" - victory with the headlights off. Pure criminal genius .

The Golden Age and Impossible Feats

The 1930s and 1940s were truly the golden age of this crazy race . Each edition brought its share of legends, impossible feats, and completely crazy anecdotes. Here, I'll tell you one that sums up the spirit of the era.

One day, during a race - not the Mille Miglia but the Tourist Trophy - Nuvolari was driving along quietly when another driver lost control of his car and smashed the window of a butcher's shop . What did our national Tazio do? He stepped onto the sidewalk, stretched out his arm, and grabbed a ham as he went by! While he was driving! That was the spirit of the drivers of the time : to turn every situation into an opportunity, even the most absurd.

Because these guys weren't like us. They drove without seatbelts, without mandatory helmets, without anything . Just them, their car, and the pure madness that inhabited them. And the public loved it! Imagine: 5 million Italians crowded along 1,600 kilometers of roads, applauding these heroes of metal and speed.

But there is one race that will forever be remembered. A race that will push the boundaries of what is possible . It's 1955, and a British driver will achieve something absolutely extraordinary.

Stirling Moss: The Record of the Impossible

Stirling Moss. This name may not ring a bell, but in 1955, he was the fastest driver in the world . And that year, for the Mille Miglia, he had a plan. A completely crazy plan: to break the race's absolute record.

Moss doesn't do things like everyone else. First, he recruits Denis Jenkinson as his co-driver. Jenkinson isn't a driver, he's a journalist. But he has one thing the others don't: he knows the course by heart . For months, the two men prepare for the race with the precision of a Swiss watchmaker. They note every turn, every bump, every hazard.

On the big day, Moss climbs into his Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR. This car is literally a Formula 1 car with headlights . 300 horsepower, an ultra-light chassis, and a top speed that exceeds 270 km/h. Suffice to say, it's a bomb on wheels.

And there they achieve the most spectacular performance in automotive history . 10 hours, 7 minutes and 48 seconds to cover 1,597 kilometers. That's an average of 157.7 km/h! On mountain roads! With villages to cross! It's simply mind-blowing .

But the craziest thing is, at one point, their car literally becomes airborne for 60 meters after crossing a bridge at 250 km/h. Moss maintains control, lands, and continues as if nothing happened. This record has never been broken. And it never will be, because such a dangerous race will never again be allowed.

Besides, let's talk about this danger. Because the Mille Miglia was beautiful, it was spectacular, but it was also carnage .

Alfonso de Portago: The Kiss of Death

Alfonso de Portago. Spanish Marquis, 28 years old, handsome as a Greek god. This guy is the perfect embodiment of the 1950s playboy . Racing driver, jockey, Olympic bobsled champion, airplane pilot... He excels at everything he does. And above all, he has that extra something, that magnetic aura that makes all women fall in love with him.

In 1957, Portago arrived at the Mille Miglia with his Ferrari. He was at the height of his fame , driving for the official Scuderia Ferrari, and everyone saw him as a future world champion. But Portago was also a guy who was afraid of nothing. A guy who took crazy risks, who lived every moment as if it were his last.

On May 12, 1957, the day of the race, Portago stopped by the side of the road. There, Linda Christian, American actress and ex-wife of Tyrone Power, was waiting for him. In front of the photographers, he passionately kissed her . This photo would become iconic, but not for the right reasons. Because a few hours later, this kiss would be nicknamed "The Kiss of Death."

Portago gets back in his Ferrari and drives off. He's driving fast, very fast. Too fast. In Guidizzolo, near Brescia, his car is traveling at 241 km/h when suddenly, his front tire bursts . The Ferrari goes out of control, leaves the road, and literally disintegrates. Portago and his co-driver Edmund Nelson are killed instantly.

But the worst part is that the car mows down nine spectators, including five children . Entire families who came to admire these heroes of speed, and who leave in coffins. Italy is in shock. The whole of Europe is outraged. How could anyone have let this happen?

A few hours later, the Italian government made a historic decision: a total ban on all car racing on public roads . The Mille Miglia was over. Forever.

Piero Taruffi: The Last Victory

But before it all ended, there was one last, almost magical victory . That year, 1957, before Portago's accident, a man had won the race. Piero Taruffi, 50, nicknamed "the Silver Fox."

Taruffi is the most experienced driver of his generation . A guy who knows every stone, every bend on the Italian roads. He has participated in the Mille Miglia 13 times, and 13 times he has missed out on victory. Thirteen! Can you imagine the frustration?

But in 1957, at the age of 50, when everyone thought he was too old, Taruffi finally realized his dream . He won his Ferrari, and this time, everything went well. He won his first and last victory at the Mille Miglia. Just hours before the race disappeared forever.

I don't know about you, but it gives me chills . This old fox who waits 30 years to realize his dream, and who succeeds just before the curtain falls for good.

Of course, for me, as a collector of cars from this era, these stories resonate in a special way. When I see a 1/43 scale Ferrari 250 GT or Mercedes 300 SL in my shop, I think of all the heroes who made these cars legendary . That's why I created BernardMiniatures.fr.

I have more than 1500 miniatures in stock, mainly 1/43rd, and quite a few models from this great era of the automobile: Ferraris from the 50s, Alfa Romeos from Nuvolari, Mercedes from Moss... Well, I'm not a big site, so I often only have one or two pieces of each model, but that's also what makes it charming. Each miniature tells a story .

Shipping is free for orders over €75 in France, and I make sure to wrap everything well with bubble wrap. These little wonders break easily! Check out bernardminiatures.fr if you're so inclined.

But let's get back to our Mille Miglia. Because the story doesn't end in 1957.

The rebirth of a legend (1977-present)

For 20 years, the Mille Miglia remained a memory. A painful, bloody, but magnificent memory . And then in 1977, someone had a brilliant idea: what if we revived the race, but differently?

The idea is brilliant in its simplicity. We keep the same route, the same spirit, but we change the rules . No more speed racing, but a regularity race. No more modern cars, but only historic cars that actually participated in the original editions.

And it works! The new formula is immediately appealing . Collectors from all over the world are bringing out their Ferraris, Alfa Romeos, and Maseratis from the 1930s, 1940s, and 1950s to relive the magic of the Mille Miglia.

Today, this regularity race has become "the most beautiful car race in the world," according to Enzo Ferrari himself. Every year, 400 hand-picked teams travel across Italy to the cheers of hundreds of thousands of spectators.

But you know what? The spirit remains the same . When I see these images of the modern Mille Miglia, with these pre-war marvels parading through Italian cities, I rediscover that magic that made the hearts of millions of Italians beat faster.

The Eternal Legacy

Because that, at its core, is the legacy of the Mille Miglia. This race has created immortal legends . Nuvolari and his nocturnal stroke of genius. Moss and his impossible record. Portago and his tragic fate. Taruffi and his victory at dusk.

These men pushed all the boundaries of what was thought possible . They transformed the automobile into art, speed into poetry, and danger into absolute spectacle. Yes, it was dangerous. Yes, it was crazy. But damn, was it beautiful!

And then there's this almost mythological dimension. The whole of Italy stops for a day to watch these heroes of metal and speed pass by. Peasants abandoning their fields, workers leaving their factories, children skipping school, all gathered on the side of the roads to applaud these demigods of speed.

It was a time when the automobile was still a dream . When a car was not just a means of transport, but an object of passion, beauty, and absolute performance. The Ferraris, Alfa Romeos, and Maseratis of that era were works of art that traveled at 200 km/h.

Today, when I look at one of these miniatures in my collection, I think of all those heroes . Of Nuvolari who drove with his headlights off in the Italian night. Of Moss who smashed all records. Of Portago who embraced death by embracing life.

The Mille Miglia was more than a race. It was the symbol of an era when men dared everything . When beauty and danger mingled in a heady cocktail. When the impossible became possible through talent and audacity.

And you know what? That magic isn't dead . It still lives on in every Ferrari roaring down Italian roads. In every collector who cherishes their pre-war marvel. In every enthusiast who still dreams of these metal legends.

The Mille Miglia taught us that the wildest dreams can come true . That audacity can move mountains. And that sometimes, to create something immortal, you have to be willing to play with death.

This is the legacy of the Mille Miglia. A lesson in absolute passion, pure beauty, and boundless courage . A lesson that still resonates today, 90 years after that first race, born of a teenage tantrum in a small Italian town.

Because deep down, we all have a little bit of Nuvolari in us . That desire to push our limits, to achieve the impossible, to turn our dreams into reality. The Mille Miglia reminds us that sometimes, all you have to do is turn off your headlights and charge into the darkness to touch the light.