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[ The CAR ]
THE LEGACY OF DON ALEJANDRO The historic De Tomaso marque has been revived in the shape of a powerful sports car clothed in timeless lines. Inspired by the spirit of the unforgettable sports prototypes of the 1960s by Diego Tamone
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[ The CAR ]
O
nce upon a time, the Argentineans created a huge splash
anniversary of the marque’s foundation. The car’s name is nod to
here in Italy and made us all dream. Oddly enough,
the De Tomaso/Shelby P70 from the mid-1960s and this rebirth of
football didn’t enter into the equation on that particular
an icon seems to suggest that history is about to repeat itself for the
occasion. Instead, the buzz was all about engines, grease and the
Italian-Argentinean factory. Exactly as the genuine sports prototype
whiff of petrol. From the 1950s onwards, motorsport brought
spirit of the past seems destined to spring back to life and with it
astonishingly gifted drivers such as Juan Manuel Fangio, José Froiláin
the unforgettable styling of the fabulous 1960s. A long sleek bonnet,
González and Carlos Reutemann to our shores and they quickly
t-tail, rounded wheelarches and flowing lines etched by aerodynamic
became synonymous with the iconic Ferrari, Maserati and Alfa
flows are all takeaways from the evocative stylistic language adopted
Romeo works teams. These formidable talents inevitably ended up
by Jowyn Wong, the pen behind the P72, to breath contemporary
as world ambassadors of sorts for a unique microcosm: Italy’s Motor
new life into the very essence of De Tomaso. A strictly limited run
Valley is an area traversed by the Via Emila and home to some of the
of just 72 as per its moniker, the sports car sits on the incredibly
world’s most vaunted and successful car and motorbike marques.
light carbon-fibre monocoque chassis borrowed from the Apollo
The result was that this tiny patch of Italy came to represent the
Intensa Emozione, Wong’s hyper car for the eponymous German
promised land to aspiring constructors. Its lure even extended across
factory. Like its illustrious forbearer, it too sports a modified
seas and oceans, captivating, in just one instance, Horacio Pagani
Ford V8 which this time unleashes in excess of 700 bhp. But pure
in the early 1990s. But well before him came Alejandro de Tomaso
performance aside, the P72 exudes all of the seductive allure of the
who, having driven for Maserati and OSCA after the Second World
sports prototypes of old. Racing machines that even the smallest
War, opened his own works to build limited-run racing and Grand
but most talented constructors turned into masterpieces of styling
Touring cars. The rest, as they say, is history. After misfortunes
and engineering on shoestring budgets. Cars that took on the big
and troubles caused it to disappear from the international scene
boys and won. That was the great epic era of tracking racing and,
in the early noughties, De Tomaso has now returned to its former
thanks to the P72, its legacy is now back on the road, together with
glory. The thanks for this goes to a model called the P72, recently
the name of one of its creators.
launched by the new De Tomaso Automobili to celebrate the 60th
www.detomaso-automobili.com
Below, the P72’s design recalls the forms and proportions of the sports prototypes that raced at Le Mans in the 1960s. Page opposite, a series of Jowyn Wong’s detailed draft designs illustrating the development of the contemporary-retro styling of both exterior and interior
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[ The CAR ]
The Ferrari Monza SP1 is one of a special limited series intended for top clients. The engine is based on the V12 in the 812, boosting performance through improved fluid dynamics. The car can reach 100 km/h in 2.9 seconds and 200 km/h in 7.9 seconds
As a strictly limited run of just 72, the P72 will naturally enough have a fully customisable interior. Its circular instrumentation and a manual transmission with exposed linkage are a clear nod to De Tomaso’s most iconic models
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