From the DTM to the Super 2000, legends on stage at the Alfa Romeo Museum

From 1992 to 2007, Alfa Romeo dominated motor racing in the Touring class, first with the 155 and then with the 156, writing unforgettable chapters in the history of motorsport with dozens of championship wins in Italy, Germany, the United Kingdom, and Spain.

An epic that originated in the ‘new’ Alfa Corse, which would go on to reap the greatest rewards with closed-wheel cars, first under the guidance of Giorgio Pianta and later with the Nordauto/N-Technology team. All made possible by cars with great potential, rendered unbeatable by a team at the highest level.

The Alfa Romeo Museum decided to retrace the history of this long, extraordinary season in a Backstage lecture (Sunday, April 21) about the memories and emotions of a range of leading names: from Fabrizio Giovanardi and Giorgio Francia to Gabriele Tarquini to Monica Bregoli, naturally not leaving behind the designers, technicians, and team members. 

The first successes came way back in 1992 – a few months after the project launch – with Nicola Larini’s victory in the Italian Superturismo Championship with the 155 GTA, followed one year later by the DTM in the 155 V6 TI, beating his incredulous German rivals on their own turf and breaking all the records. Then came triumphs in the 1994 British Touring Car Championship and other victories in every part of the world. After the 155’s feats, in 1998 it was the turn of the 156 to continue on the road to success, winning 13 championships between manufacturers’ and teams’ drivers in a career spanning 10 years, and even taking victory in its last race in 2007 when the 156 had been out of production for some time.

A season of races and victories by leading technicians and drivers, many of whom hailed from or were destined for Formula 1: Larini, Nannini, Tarquini, Giovanardi, Massa, Danner, Farfus, Thompson, Alboreto, to name but a few. At the height of his success at Ferrari, in 2003, Michael Schumacher test drove Gabriele Tarquini’s Alfa Romeo 156 S2000 at the Mugello circuit.

Recordings of the lectures, in both Italian and English, are now available on the @MuseoAlfaRomeoOfficial YouTube channel.