Maranello, 28 March

“A man of great passion and ability, a real Ferrari man.” That is how President Luca di Montezemolo described Giulio Borsari, a long time Formula 1 mechanic, who passed away yesterday.

Born in 1925 in Montale, a short distance from the Maranello factory, Giulio dedicated his whole life to his passion for racing. At the end of 1957, after ten years at Maserati, ending in the team securing the Formula 1 World Championship title with Juan Manuel Fangio, but at the same time pulling out of racing, Giulio moved from the Trident marque, first to Paganelli and then to Scuderia Centro-Sud. Then, in 1962, he made the move to Ferrari.

Giulio spent 17 years with the Prancing Horse, working alongside many Formula 1 drivers, as well as working on the Sports Prototype cars. John Surtees was particularly attached to Giulio, who was Scuderia chief mechanic when he won the world championship in 1964. His farewell to racing came in 1979, at the end of another extraordinary season for Ferrari, culminating in winning both titles with Jody Scheckter, Gilles Villeneuve and the 312 T4. In fact it was at the thirtieth anniversary commemoration of Gilles that, on 8 May last year at Fiorano, Giulio met the son, Jacques and many former colleagues, all part of the Club Meccanici Anziani, the association for former Formula 1 mechanics, which he founded in 1988.

Giulio continued to play an active role in many international motoring events and was the head of the Ferrari Shell Historic Challenge technical commission from 2000 to 2008. His in-depth knowledge of race cars meant he was a reference point for everyone who shared a passion for these cars and for the racing history of the marque that represents Italian excellence around the world.

The thoughts of everyone at Ferrari, those from yesteryear and today, as well as of the drivers who worked with Giulio, are with his family at this difficult time. They remember the dedication and expertise which he applied to his passion for racing.