Italian marque Ferrari threw a no-holds-barred celebration for its 70th birthday. Elizabeth Lee joined the party.
Picture this: a sea of red machines zooming past at breakneck speeds, with engines roaring to herald their quick entry and, in the blink of an eye, their exit. No, we weren’t at a Formula One racetrack, but in the quaint town of Maranello, located about a three-hour drive from Milan in northern Italy, and also where Enzo Ferrari chose to set up his Ferrari factory, after he had cut ties with Alfa Romeo.
Seventy years since the fateful day Mr Ferrari fired up the 125 S—the first car bearing his name—the Italian marque has gone on to make history, scooping up accolades and titles at international races such as the F1 world championship. As a testament to its decades of innovation and history, Ferrari decided to celebrate its 70th anniversary the only way it knew how—in style.
Of the 70 celebrations planned worldwide—this included a record-breaking gathering of 157 Ferraris, which embarked on an iconic 70km drive around Singapore in August past landmarks such as Marina Bay Sands and the Padang—the most highly anticipated party was, without a doubt, the one held in the Italian brand’s hometown.
So, how does one go about commemorating a platinum anniversary? Over a weekend in September, after flag-offs in Rome, Frankfurt, Prague and other European cities, at least 500 Ferraris made their pilgrimage to the Fiorano circuit in Maranello. Spanning 2.9km, Fiorano has been the testing ground for every road and race car created by Ferrari, including F1 models. On a regular day, one can imagine the sort of test drives to be had on this racetrack, which features a variety of corner types to mimic tricky Grand Prix tracks from around the world. But this was no normal day, as the entire grounds had been transformed to host hundreds of Ferrari owners and fans for the celebrations.