The Golden Age of Rally
Record numbers for The Golden Age Of Rally, the unprecedented exhibition that brought one of the most important collections in the world, that of the Fondazione Gino Macaluso per l’Auto Storica, to the halls of the Museo Nazionale dell’Automobile. A great journey into the golden age of the discipline, which began last October and ended yesterday, which was traveled by over 165,153 people from all over the world. Young people, the elderly, families, students, enthusiasts and the curious: this exhibition, with its different focuses, has managed to attract and involve different audiences, also offering new points of view to those who already love this sport. And the numbers give good credit to the value of the exhibition.
First of all, that of access to the museum, which almost doubled compared to the same period in the pre-pandemic period (2018-2019). And among those who visited the MAUTO during the exhibition period, there are also several prominent personalities from the world of engines and beyond. From the great pilots and navigators of the past (Miki Biasion, Jean Ragnotti, Fabrizia Pons, Tonino Tognana, Dario Cerrato, Geppi Cerri, Federico Ormezzano, Andrea Zanussi) to today’s exponents (Alberto Battistolli, Simone Campedelli, Andrea Crugnola, Rachele Somaschini), up to to the technicians, designers and engineers who contributed to shaping the legendary cars (Sergio Limone, Mario Cavagnero, Vittorio Roberti). And then many others: Alessandro Bettega, Davide Cironi, Roman Shchypkov, Andrea Adamo … In short, the world of motors has mobilized for The Golden Age of Rally.
The merit also goes to the exhibition itinerary which, from one curve to the next, guided visitors along a time-line from the origins of the discipline (1960s) up to the great successes and the involvement of the general public, which made this sport a real phenomenon of mass culture. A leap back in time also experienced through the great challenges between drivers, car manufacturers and racing teams, from the legendary duel between rear-wheel drive (Lancia Rally 037) and four-wheel drive (Audi quattro), up to the “monstrous” Group B in the Rally Talk cycle of meetings.
But the undisputed stars, photographed and posted thousands and thousands of times on social networks, were the 19 legendary cars, protagonists of legendary challenges. In chronological order, BMC Mini Cooper S (1966), Ford Cortina Lotus (1966), Ford Escort RS Miki (1969), Porche 911 st (1970), Lancia Fulvia Coupè HF 1.6 (1970), Fiat 124 Spider (1971), Alpine Renault A110 (1973), Fiat X1/9 Abarth prototype (1974), Lancia Stratos (1976), Fiat 131 Abarth GR.4 (1978), Audi quattro (1981), Renault R5 Turbo (1981), Lancia rally 037 ( 1984), Lancia Delta S4 (1986), Peugeot 205 Turbo 16 (1986 – courtesy of the L’Aventure Peugeot museum in Sochaux), Lancia Delta HF Integrale 16v (1990), Toyota Celica GT-4 ST165 (1990), Lancia Delta HF Evoluzione Safari (1992), Fiat Punto S1600 (2001).
Exemplars that have left an indelible mark on history, which this exhibition wanted to celebrate right between two symbolic anniversaries. Inaugurated on 27 October 2022, exactly half a century after that Rally Race with Raffaele Pinto which earned Gino Macaluso the European Championship, the exhibition closed in 2023, 90 years after the foundation of the MAUTO by Carlo Biscaretti di Ruffia.
“I am particularly satisfied with the contribution that, through this exhibition, we have been able to give to the museum and to the city, restoring Turin to the leading role it deserves in the history of motoring: this is precisely what our Foundation intends to do ”, explains Monica Mailander Macaluso, president of the Fondazione Gino Macaluso per l’Auto Storica. “An unprecedented proposal, much appreciated by the general national and international public, but also by industry experts, which we now intend to re-propose in other prestigious museums around the world”.
