The Legend of the Quadrifoglio Verde
While the likes of Chaucer, Shakespeare, Hemmingway and Poe tell a good tale from their respective eras, the actual history behind a number of Italian vehicle manufacturer’s tell a better tale of romance, adventure and triumph. One such account is that of the birth of Alfa Romeo’s ‘Quadrifoglio Verde’ nameplate.
The first Alfa Romeo to be adorned with the auspicious four leaf clover was Ugo Sivocci’s ‘RL’. Sivocci was regarded as a driver with an enormous amount of experience, but often hampered by bad luck and considered the eternal second-placer. To banish his misfortune, he painted a green four leaf clover on the side of his ‘RL’ for the 14th edition of the Targa Florio in 1923, which he won convincingly. This victory was the first of ten achieved in this prestigious competition.
Sivocci’s victory followed a perfect race: 432 km of the Madonìe Circuit (4 laps of 108 km each) at an average of 59.040 km/h, a speed which was amazing at the time, considering the treacherous circuit conditions under which the race was held.
Alfa Romeo’s success was so dominant that the other drivers in the team – Enzo Ferrari, Antonio Ascari and Giulio Ramponi – decided to adopt the ‘Quadrifoglio Verde’ for their cars as well, making it the symbol of Alfa Romeo race cars from that moment onward.
Almost as if to prove the magical effects of this symbol, Sivocci was killed while testing at Monza a few months after winning the Targa Florio. This time, his Alfa Romeo did not have the Quadrifoglio on its flanks.
Skip forward two years and it was the ‘Quadrifoglio Verde’ that showed in stark contrast against the dark red of Brilli Peri’s ‘P2’ when he won the first World Car Racing Championship at Monza, the first of the five world titles for Alfa Romeo.
The real highlight however came in 1950 and 1951, when Giuseppe “Nino” Farina and Juan Manuel Fangio drove their respective Alfa Romeo’s to victory in the first two Formula 1 World Championships. While in the latter part of the 20th century Alfa’s bearing the Quadrifoglio won numerous World Championships across touring and sports car categories.
This symbol of luck continues to be a part of Alfa Romeo to this very day through high performance, road-going models that have been rolling off the production line since the 1960’s. These include the current MiTo and Giulietta, whose award winning engines ensure exhilarating performance without compromising on efficiency.
In particular, the exclusive 173 kW Giulietta 1750 TBi ‘Quadrifoglio Verde’ offers the most high-performance engine in the range and an authentic sports set-up which ensures segment-leading driving dynamics.
It’s often said that one cannot be called a true petrol-head without having owned an Alfa Romeo. While I don’t necessarily subscribe to this mantra, I can tell you I’ve recently laid my hands on a pretty little red number bearing that infamous four leaf clover, proving that this legendary symbol holds weight with this petrol-head.
First published in Autodealer KZN