I cannot admit to have devoted my life to car racing. Speaking about devotion means a lot of effort, consistency and sacrifice in order to achieve something.  It is somehow true that I mixed these elements in the formula that led me to a career full of satisfaction but I have never found what I had to do so difficult, since I was driven by passion. In this peculiar world of car racing, I have met many people who I firmly believe would agree with me. My friends at Breda Racing's are among these.

In 1991 I was looking for a new racing opportunity. I had been racing in the Italian F3 Championship but that adventure had already come to its end. Competing in the F 3000 Championship would have meant a leap forward towards the fulfilment of my dream: F1. Nevertheless, this was not so easy: I had no sponsors and I was only endowed with great enthusiasm. I heard that former driver Giuseppe Cipriani had definitively hang up his helmet and with Giorgio Breda had decided to form a new team to compete in the International F 3000 Championship.

I did not know Giorgio very well, but we had been in the same paddock in the past. I phoned him and spoke to him of my high esteem. I am sure that I didn’t seem opportunist or condescending, since my words were simply summarizing what every sane man really thought of him. He interrupted the conversation and said: 'When can we meet and discuss things over coffee?' 'How about in 20 minutes?,’ I replied, and he immediately agreed to meet me. It was mere chance but that evening he had to meet Giuseppe Cipriani too.   Perhaps my dream was about to take shape thanks to that phone call.  

I wasn’t far away and I had the opportunity to meet them straight away: talk about good fortune! I am aware that for them it was premature to accept my visit, but their enthusiasm and their willingness to speak with me as a potential driver gave me butterflies in my stomach. I knew I was going to meet well-intentioned people but during the trip to Mestrino in the outlying area of Padua, I never would have dreamed that I was going to sign a contract for the next racing season.

That was how all this really happened. While Giorgio was talking to me, I realized that he was quizzing me up to understand if I really was technically capable of the task they were going to assign me. I think I passed the exam that day. Later, I was told that my 'candidacy' was not the result of that phone-call, but that they had already been thinking of me for a while. Perhaps our paths would have crossed all the same, but that coincidence speeded things up and, above all, it made things happen.

I felt Giorgio and I were on the same wavelength. Shortly after the items under discussions changed from springs and shock-absorbers to written contracts to be signed.That evening marked the beginning of a great adventure: we won the debut race and, only because of some bad luck, we did not manage to win the Championship as well.

I could tell you about pole-positions, victories, the outruns of that racing season but this letter is focused on telling you about something which I care about much more than that beautiful racing memories! I want to tell you about those people who helped me to create those beautiful racing memories.

“Il Barone Rampante” –IBR- was founded as a branch of Breda Racing and many of the people who took part in that project are the same who offer me a cup of coffee every time I visit them at Breda's today. Every time I go there, I am always welcomed with affectionate abuse since I always draw them away from their busy work with my unusual inventions and ideas, looking for their vast experience in milling, welding, modifying or creating a component. But, as I have already said, they are passionate about what they do and, in the end, they always become enthusiastic about my ideas.

They manufactured most of the special components which allowed me to drive my BMW car in the WTCC Championship and they also produced my 'monoski' which permits me to ski wearing my prothesis. Thanks to them, I was also successful in modifying my legs and make them resistant to the oxidizing effect of water. Last but not least, Breda's staff modified my Handbyke which permitted me, after only a month's preparation, to gain 4th position ranking in the first New York City Marathon I raced, in 2007.

Giorgio and Roberto Breda founded this company, which plays a leading role and is a 'landmark' for all who work in the motorsport.  Breda Racing is a company where accuracy and technology are at the forefront and where every single work is completed with passion but anyway, going back to my memories of 1991, besides the two Breda's brothers, I remember Paolo known as 'Ciò ascolta' ('Hey, listen!') and the mythical 'Baffo' ('Moustache'), Giancarlo. I can also recollect Graziano called 'Lele' and the beautiful smiles of Tiziana and Fiorenza, who continue to smile the same way today. I can also remember a curious kid (sometimes a nuisance) named Christian Breda,who is currently at the head of the Technical department and is the real propeller of the company as regards new projects and the programming of sophisticated machinery.

Time has gone by and the Breda Racing has grown bigger but the people mentioned above are still there and together with new ones keep on working together with the same passion and continue to manufacture components and equipment that reflect their effort and passion all around the world, with that spirit of great inventiveness that is typically Italian.

From the bottom of my heart, I thank all these friends and I am deeply convinced that the entire racing world feels the same gratitude towards them.

Thanks, guys! Thanks, Breda Racing!

Alex Zanardi website 

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