Enzo Osella, founder of the F1 team of the same name, died at 86

Enzo Osella, one of the constructors who characterized Formula 1 in the 1980s, has died at age 86. Born Aug. 26, 1939, in Cambiano, in the province of Turin, he entered the motorsport world as a navigator in rally races and as a driver at several hill-climb races.

In 1963 he began working with Carlo Abarth as a test driver, and the following year he set up on his own, and in 1971 Abarth sold him the racing department: the team was called Osella Corse, and after his debut in Formula Ford, he debuted in Formula 2 in 1974.

In 1980 the big jump into Formula 1. In the Circus, the Piedmontese manufacturer’s cars competed for ten years, and in 1990 Osella sold the team to its sponsor Fondmetal, led by Gabriele Rumi, who also took over the name and raced for two more years.

Osella’s best results in eleven Formula 1 seasons were Jean-Pierre Jarier’s fourth place in the San Marino Grand Prix at Imola in 1982, boycotted by the British teams, and Piercarlo Ghinzani’s fifth at Dallas in 1984.