STORY OF THE DAY: Musso Brings Ferrari Home in Fourth

Luigi Musso finished fourth in the 1957 German Grand Prix at the Nürburgring aboard the number 6 Ferrari 801. The World Championship race became famous for Juan Manuel Fangio’s recovery to victory, while Musso secured Ferrari’s best result after teammates Mike Hawthorn and Peter Collins were overtaken late in the contest.

Ferrari appeared capable of controlling the race when Fangio stopped for tyres and fuel, leaving Hawthorn and Collins ahead. Fangio then produced a celebrated sequence of record laps to catch and pass both cars. Musso remained clear of the drama at the front and completed the punishing distance to collect three championship points.

The 801 was the final development of the Lancia D50 lineage. It retained a 2.5-litre V8 but used a revised tubular chassis and more conventional bodywork, with the original D50’s separate side fuel tanks eliminated as Ferrari continued to reshape the inherited design.

Luigi Musso was an Italian driver who established his reputation with Maserati before joining Ferrari in 1956. Fast and intensely competitive, he won the 1956 Argentine Grand Prix jointly with Fangio and became a regular scorer for the Scuderia; at the Nürburgring in 1957, endurance and restraint brought him a valuable fourth place.