Carlo Facetti

Carlo Giovanni Facetti (born June 26, 1935, Cormano, Lombardy): An Italian racing driver and engineer whose technical brilliance matched his driving talent, making him equally successful as both a competitor and innovator. Facetti first raced in 1953 with Elio Zagato in a Fiat 1100 8V before building his own Junior Formula car powered by a Lancia Appia engine, demonstrating his engineering prowess from the start. By 1961, he was competing primarily in GT races, driving an Alfa Romeo Giulietta Sprint Zagato. In 1963, Facetti participated in the inaugural European Touring Car Challenge, which later became the European Touring Car Championship.

His touring car career reached its zenith in 1979 when he clinched the ETCC title with five victories, including the prestigious Tourist Trophy at Silverstone, cementing his status as one of Europe's premier touring car racers. Between 1969 and 1974, Facetti was employed by Autodelta, Alfa Romeo's competition department, where he was hired to help develop their sports cars and race in the European Touring Car Championship. His sports car debut came at the September 1968 24 Hours of Le Mans with Spartaco Dini in an Alfa Romeo T33/2, immediately reaching the podium with a fifth overall finish and second in the P 2.0 class.

In 1974, partnered with Andrea de Adamich, he visited the podium on four occasions, with their best result being second at the 1000 km Osterreichring. From 1975 to 1976, Facetti worked as both a racer and designer for Lancia, participating in the European Championship for Grand Touring cars while simultaneously working on a 24-valve version of the Dino V6 engine. His engineering genius became legendary - he designed his own cylinder heads for a Ferrari 308 GTB, added two turbochargers, and achieved 700 bhp. He also designed and built a 1.

8-litre, four-cylinder turbocharged engine for the Alba-Giannini Group C Junior program. The Alba AR2 became a regular class winner in 1983, helping Alba win the Group C Junior Cup. Although officially retired, Facetti still enjoys working in his workshop in Bresso, tuning and preparing cars, especially sports cars, maintaining his lifelong connection to automotive engineering and competition.