The Italian designed numerous legendary cars for Ferrari.
Mauro Forghieri designed the Ferrari that brought Niki Lauda two World Championship titles Zumawire / MVPHOTOS
Legendary F1 designer Mauro Forghieri has died at the age of 87. The Italian’s former employer, Ferrari, announced the sad news.
– It was an honor to make history with you. Ferrari and the world of motorsport will never forget you, the Italian team writes in its obituary.
Ferrari’s savior
Forghieri served for more than two decades as Ferrari’s technical director from 1962 to 1984. He rose to his position at a very young age when Ferrari’s F1 team saw a mass exodus to a rival team.
Forghieri, who brought new technical ideas with him, rose to the occasion at the perfect time. During the period he spent at the stable, he raised the Italian stable twice from the trough to success. They won the World Championship with cars designed by Forghier John Surtees (1964), Niki Lauda (1975 & 1977) and Jody Scheckter (1979).
In between, Forghieri was briefly sidelined from the activities of the F1 team after he drifted into disagreements with the strong-willed Mr. Ferrari. When Ferrari took over in the early 1970s, he was asked back as technical director of the F1 team, with winning results.
Forghieri followed the formulas closely until his last days. As a man of the old alliance, he had a very strong opinion about modern cars, which he considered too sophisticated.