Felice Bonetto (June 9, 1903 - November 21, 1953) was a courageous Italian racer who earned the nickname Il Pirata (The Pirate). He came to the attention of Italian racers in the 1930s and internationally in the 1940s, enjoying success at the Mille Miglia, and grand prix successes driving a Ferrari and a Cisitilia.
During his Formula 1 career, Il Pirata raced Italian cars, starting with a privateer Maserati team, then the factory Alfa Romeo team and finally with the factory Maserati team and achieved two shared podiums.
Bonetto's greatest successes were in sports cars, including a win at the Targa Florio in 1952, but sadly his career was cut short when he hit his head on the balcony of a house in the 1953 Carrera Panamericana.
Formula One Career[]
Before Formula One[]
1948, Felice Bonetto sideways in a Cisitilia
Felice Bonetto was a pre war Alfa Romeo driver but his career really took off post war, racing Cisitilia and Ferrari Grand Prix cars.
In 1949 Bonetto came second in the Naples GP and also took sports car success with second at the Mille Miglia.
1950[]
Championship debut for Bonetto at Bremgarten
Felice Bonetto drove the 1950 season in his Maserati 4CLT/50 under his Scuderia Milano banner in which he contested the last three of the last four races of the season.
His World Championship debut was at the Swiss Grand Prix and Felice qualified 12th but managed to battle with the factory and Enrico Plate teams to a strong 5th, one place behind the experienced Prince Bira and a place ahead of Toulo de Graffenreid. This trio finished a lap ahead of factory Maserati's Nello Pagani and Louis Chiron to pick up 2 World Championship points.
Moving onto France, Il Pirata suffered engine problems on lap 14 and his final race of the season, with a special engine, Bonetto did not start.
The highlight of 1950 came when Il Pirata won the non-championship Oporto GP, and he continued his sportscar success by leading the Mille Miglia in an Alfa Romeo.
Formula One Statistical Overview[]
Formula One Record[]
| Year | Entrant | Team | WDC Points | WDC Pos. | Report |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950 | Scuderia Milano | Maserati | 2 | 19th | Report |
| Milano | |||||
| 1951 | Alfa Romeo SpA | Alfa Romeo | 7 | 8th | Report |
| 1952 | Officine Alfieri Maserati | Maserati | 2 | 16th | Report |
| 1953 | Officine Alfieri Maserati | Maserati | 6.5 | 9th | Report |
Career Statistics[]
| Entries | 16 |
| Starts | 16 |
| Pole Positions | 0 |
| Front Row Starts | 1 |
| Race Wins | 0 |
| Podiums | 2 |
| Fastest Laps | 0 |
| Points | 17.5 |
| Laps Raced | 705 |
| Distance Raced | 4,690 km (2,910 mi) |
| Races Led | 1 |
| Laps Led | 1 |
| Distance Led | 5 km (3.1 mi) |
Career Results[]
| Complete Formula One Results | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Year | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | Pts | Pos | ||||||||||||||
| 1950 | 
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2 | 19th | ||||||||||||||||
| DNA | 5th | Ret | DNS | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1951 |
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7 | 8th | |||||||||||||||
| 4th | Ret | 3rd | 5th | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1952 |
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2 | 16th | |||||||||||||||
| DSQ | 5th | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1953 | 
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6.5 | 9th | ||||||||||||||
| Ret | 3rd | Ret | 6th | 4th | 4th | Ret | |||||||||||||||||||
| 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 | |||
Notes[]
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