A Long P Circuit
at the Temple of Speed
1938 saw the launch of a modernisation programme for the Monza racetrack, which included the reconstruction of the road surface, the construction of a new section of the circuit and a large grandstand. This was when the “Pirelli Circuit”, as it is still known today, was built. Little is known about this circuit, which appeared for the first time that year on the map of the new circuit of the Autodromo. It would appear that it was not used for racing and was most likely created, in collaboration with Pirelli, as a track to be used for testing tyres. This hypothesis is backed up by the layout of the circuit, with two straights connected by two “bends” of different radiuses and different surfaces, partly in asphalt and partly in porphyry.
The outbreak of the war led to all activities at the Monza racetrack being put on hold until 1948 and a number of variations were made to the circuit from the 1950s onwards. The straights and the partly asphalted north curve of the original Pirelli circuit, with a section of porphyry surfacing, can still be seen today. It is an important element in the history of the racetrack and of Pirelli’s research and testing activities. In 1963, track tests on Pirelli tyres in Italy were moved to the Lainate circuit, and later, in 1969, to the Vizzola Ticino track. Specially made for experimentation and complete with all the most modern equipment and technologies, the Vizzola track is still today a centre of excellence for outdoor testing of Pirelli tyres: a track with a “Long P”, just like the one created at Monza in the 1930s, in the Temple of Speed.
1938 saw the launch of a modernisation programme for the Monza racetrack, which included the reconstruction of the road surface, the construction of a new section of the circuit and a large grandstand. This was when the “Pirelli Circuit”, as it is still known today, was built. Little is known about this circuit, which appeared for the first time that year on the map of the new circuit of the Autodromo. It would appear that it was not used for racing and was most likely created, in collaboration with Pirelli, as a track to be used for testing tyres. This hypothesis is backed up by the layout of the circuit, with two straights connected by two “bends” of different radiuses and different surfaces, partly in asphalt and partly in porphyry.
The outbreak of the war led to all activities at the Monza racetrack being put on hold until 1948 and a number of variations were made to the circuit from the 1950s onwards. The straights and the partly asphalted north curve of the original Pirelli circuit, with a section of porphyry surfacing, can still be seen today. It is an important element in the history of the racetrack and of Pirelli’s research and testing activities. In 1963, track tests on Pirelli tyres in Italy were moved to the Lainate circuit, and later, in 1969, to the Vizzola Ticino track. Specially made for experimentation and complete with all the most modern equipment and technologies, the Vizzola track is still today a centre of excellence for outdoor testing of Pirelli tyres: a track with a “Long P”, just like the one created at Monza in the 1930s, in the Temple of Speed.
