Teodoro "Dorino" Serafini (born July 22, 1909 in Pesaro, Pesaro e Urbino, Marche, Italy – died July 5, 2000 in Pesaro) was an Italian motorcycle champion and racing driver who competed in Formula One in 1950 for Ferrari.
In motorcycling, he won domestic championships in 1933 (175cc) and 1936 (500cc), and was on his way to becoming the European champion in 1939 when the war broke out.
After the war Serafini transferred his skills to auto racing. Serafini only took part in one Grand Prix which he shared second place, and is the only driver to have scored a podium in every race he entered.
Serafini's motor racing career ended in 1951 when he lost control and crashed his Ferrari in the Mille Miglia. Serafini underwent multiple surgeries for the injuries, and never raced again. He passed away at the age of 90.
Before the Formula One World Championship[]
Serafini transferred his skills to car racing in 1947 and secured good results in a variety of cars.
In one race Serafini suffered an extremely serious accident when the steering wheel came off the car in his hands. Serafini had no control of his car and collided head on with a tree. Serafini was lucky to survive the accident.
Formula One Career[]
Serafini was called up by Ferrari to compete in the 1950 Italian Grand Prix. For the race Ferrari had a new engine which they had tested well at Geneva, but factory driver Luigi Villoresi suffered a road accident on the way home and was unable to race. When organisers would not allow Raymond Sommer to switch back to Ferrari (after being sacked mid-season), Serafini was called up.
The race was the championship decider and Nino Farina sped off in his Alfa Romeo with Alberto Ascari in the sister Ferrari in pursuit. After a stint in the lead, Ascari's engine expired leaving Serafini fourth. Two laps later championship challenger Juan Manuel Fangio's car also retired promoting Serafini to third.
As Serafini pitted, Ascari took over his car in pursuit of Luigi Fagioli, and reeled him in and secured a shared second with Serafini.
Serafini did not compete in F1 again after his 1951 accident, and his 100% podium success rate has remained unmatched since.
Formula One Statistical Overview[]
Formula One Record[]
| Year | Entrant | Team | WDC Points | WDC Pos. | Report |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pre-Formula One Championship | |||||
| 1947 | Dorino Serafini | Cisitalia Maserati |
|||
| Formula One Championship | |||||
| 1950 | Scuderia Ferrari | Ferrari | 3 | 13th | Report |
| 1951 | Scuderia Ferrari | Ferrari | Non-championship only | ||
Career Statistics[]
| Entries | 1 |
| Starts | 1 |
| Pole Positions | 0 |
| Race Wins | 0 |
| Podiums | 1 |
| Fastest Laps | 0 |
| Points | 3 |
| Laps Raced | 47 |
| Distance Raced | 296 km (184 mi) |
Career Results[]
| Complete Formula One Results | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | Pts | Pos | ||||||||||||||||
| 1950 | 
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
3 | 13th | ||||||||||||||||
| 2nd* | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Key | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Symbol | Meaning | Symbol | Meaning | ||
| 1st | Winner | Ret | Retired | ||
| 2nd | Podium finish | DSQ | Disqualified | ||
| 3rd | DNQ | Did not qualify | |||
| 5th | Points finish | DNPQ | Did not pre-qualify | ||
| 14th | Non-points finish | TD | Test driver | ||
| Italics | Fastest Lap | DNS | Did not start | ||
| 18th† | Classified finish (retired with >90% race distance) | NC | Non-classified finish (<90% race distance) | ||
| 4thP | Qualified for pole position | [+] More Symbols | |||
* Shared drive with Alberto Ascari.