“The Dragon from Cavàrzere” (Il Drago di Cavàrzere) was already his nickname in the first 70’s when he was one of the heroes in the world motorsport scene, “swallowing” all his rivals, on the red Fulvia at first, on the green-white-red Lancia Stratos later on.
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That car would not have been born without Munari because in 1971 Lancia didn’t have an engine powerful enough to fit the new racing car. Designers considered different engines, and the most suitable was the 6 cylinder Dino Ferrari; but, although the two companies were in the meantime absorbed by Fiat, Enzo Ferrari was reluctant. They only reached an agreement when Sandro Munari was “used” as a bargaining chip: Ferrari wanted “il Drago” behind the wheel of his car for the Targa Florio in return for the supply contract of the Stratos engines.
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Sandro Munari (officially Alessandro) is well known as the first World Rally Champion in 1977 and also as the 4 times winner of the Montecarlo Rally, or the driver who put Lancia on top of the world for four times. And that’s not all: everybody knew him, he was a sort of top influencer of the time, beloved and respected; I’m not going too far when I say that Valentino Rossi could be his contemporary alter ego.
The name Sandro Munari appeared on motor-oil cans, steering wheels and sportswear.
He was so popular that he lent his face to many advertising campaigns, not just of the automotive field: from Pirelli and Goodyear tires, Omega watches, up to other Italian brands that chose him for a TV program named Carosello, which was very popular in Italy. Mike Bongiorno, a very well-known Italian TV presenter, wanted to be beside him for the famous TV ad of the “grappa Bocchino”.
The name Sandro Munari appeared on motor-oil cans, steering wheels and sportswear. A reassuring face, familiar, known by 95% of Goodyear customers; for example: in the evening he left the TV screen and “entered” Italians’ living rooms to narrate the magical world of rallies along with the excellence of Lancia cars.
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This fact could let people understand how great he was: the Lancia Fulvia Coupè, launched in 1965, after a seven-year-long career was going to leave the scene; the legendary Munari-Mannucci victory at the 1972 Montecarlo rally convinced the headquarters of the company to keep the Fulvia coupè for sale until 1976; workmen who had been sacked were truly grateful to Munari who let them get back to work.
It was a simple advertising strategy: if “il Drago” could win against a fast Porsche or the light Alpine-Renault, the little Fulvia could still be a good car.
Sandro fell in love with races when he was 10 years old, watching the cars passing by Rovigo during the 1000 Miglia.
As with other drivers of his period, Sandro fell in love with races when he was 10 years old, watching the cars passing by Rovigo during the 1000 Miglia. From spectator to protagonist it was a long and winding road: to become a race driver you needed talent, often natural, that let you be in symbiosis with a car, “driving it with your bottom”, which is the closest part of our body to the barycenter of the car. Sandro Munari had that talent, but nobody noticed at first: after some damage to his father’s Fiat 1100 TV while he was testing how to drive on oversteering, the young Alessandro began racing with go-karts and he won the first races. Well, first level completed. Munari always had a determined and rational temper, focused to reach his goal: he understood that he would have become the best driver in the world, so he started to climb up that steep way.
Flavia, a name and a destiny.
In 1965 came his official debut as a race driver with a Lancia Flavia. For the Lancia racing team he raced the 1000 Lakes rally, in Finland. Then he passed the finish line of the Pontedecimo-Giovi hillclimb in spin, hitting a wall in pouring rain. He was then brought to the hospital but, at least, he had won. Since then we all know of his great career up to the hall of fame among the world champions. Flavia is also the name of a young lady he met in 1970, whom he later married; they have now been together for almost 50 years.
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On 21 May 1972 Sandro Munari and Arturo Merzario triumphed at the Targa Florio driving a Ferrari 312P; after such an achievement, Enzo Ferrari attended Sandro and Flavia’s wedding a few weeks later. It has been one of the few – maybe the only – of his drivers’ weddings Ferrari attended. And it was the also the Lancia-Ferrari marriage, from which the mythical “bête à gagner” was born.
How could “il Drago” race with 580 hp supercar without an assistance team and without testing?
“Commendator Ferrari” held Munari in great esteem, but he never asked him to race in Formula 1: it was Williams in 1973, more or less 15 years later “il Drago” had the chance to “taste” a Formula 1 while he worked as a consultant for Lamborghini, but only for an exhibition: at the time the company was owned by Chrysler and supplied the engines for the Formula 1 Larrousse.
Sandro Munari is the mastermind of the debut of Lamborghini cars in races. Despite what you can imagine, Lambo’s debut in motorsports took place at the Raid of Greece and not on a racetrack. And it wasn’t enough: Munari even raced on a rally with the Diablo VT, specifically the 1994 edition of the Targa Tasmania; how could “il Drago” race with 580 hp supercar on some narrow and saddlebacked roads, never seen before, on the other side of the world, without an assistance team and without testing? Nobody knows, much like we don’t know how “il Drago di Cavarzere” came third overall behind two Australian rally champions. A truly magical Drago.
