The Tigress of Turin: How Lella Lombardi Broke Formula One's Toughest Barrier
Before there was talk of women returning to Formula One, before Susie Wolff, Tatiana Calderón Jamie Chadwick or Dorianne Pin, there was Lella Lombardi. In an era when motorsport was overwhelmingly male and opportunities for women were almost non-existent, the determined Italian fought her way from local club racing to the pinnacle of world motorsport. She became the first and, to this day, only woman to score a Formula One World Championship point. Yet that achievement represents only a small part of a remarkable career that spanned Formula 3, Formula 5000, Formula One, endurance racing, touring cars and NASCAR. Known as "The Tigress of Turin", Lombardi earned respect not because she was a female driver, but because she was a genuinely talented and fearless racer.
Formula One's Forgotten Pioneer
When Niki Lauda dominated the 1975 Formula One season with Ferrari's revolutionary 312T, another story was unfolding further down the grid. While the sport's biggest stars fought for victories, a determined Italian woman was battling simply to qualify for races.
Her name was Lella Lombardi.
At 34 years old, the small but fiercely competitive driver from northern Italy became only the second woman in history to compete in Formula One after Maria Teresa de Filippis. More importantly, she would become the first and still only woman to score a World Championship point in Formula One.
Yet her story extends far beyond that famous statistic.
Growing Up Against Expectations
Maria Grazia "Lella" Lombardi was born in Frugarolo, near Alessandria in northern Italy. Her father owned the local butcher shop and, although the family was comfortable financially, everyone was expected to contribute to the business.
Lella did her share of the work, but her real passion lay elsewhere.
She loved engines, motorcycles and speed. She would race local boys on her motorcycle, behavior that was considered highly unconventional for a young Italian woman in the 1950s and 1960s. In one interview she recalled that even the local priest paid a visit to tell her how a girl ought to behave.
The advice went unheeded.
When she was old enough, Lombardi drove the family delivery van, discovered karting and became determined to pursue motorsport seriously. Karting soon became merely a stepping stone toward her true ambition: racing cars.
Building a Racing Career from Scratch
In 1965, at the age of 24, Lombardi took out a loan to buy a Formula 875 car built near Monza.
Her debut came in the Trofeo Cadetti. After missing practice, she was forced to start from the back of the grid. Within a few laps she had fought her way into second place.
The result announced the arrival of an exceptional talent.
Money was always tight. Lombardi often transported the car herself, slept in her van to save costs and handled much of her own race preparation. Her parents were largely unaware of the sacrifices she was making to sustain her racing ambitions.
Supported by her partner Fiorenza as well as her sister and brother-in-law, Lombardi steadily climbed the ranks of Italian motorsport.
By 1967 she was competing in Italian Formula 3 with a Branca-Ford. She later stepped back down the ladder to race Formula 850, where she enjoyed significant success. In 1970 she won the Formula 850 championship with four victories at Monza against respected competitors such as Alberto Colombo and Giorgio Francia.
Returning to Formula 3 in 1972 with the Jolly Club and a Lotus 69, she finished tenth in the championship. She repeated the achievement in 1973 driving a Brabham BT41 for Scuderia Italia. During the same period she dominated the Italian Ford Escort Mexico Challenge, winning the majority of its races.
1969
F 850
Turning Heads in Monaco
The event that truly caught international attention came in 1973 at the prestigious Formula 3 race in Monaco.
Eighty drivers attempted to qualify. Lombardi reached the final and finished twelfth overall.
Many future Formula One stars failed to make the race, including Alan Jones, Danny Sullivan, Brian Henton and Tony Brise.
Among the spectators was John Webb, owner of Brands Hatch and one of Britain's most influential motorsport promoters. Impressed by her performance, Webb invited Lombardi to compete in the Shellsport Escort Celebrity Race at Brands Hatch.
She started from the third row and comfortably won, beating future Formula One winner Jacques Laffite and British racer Mike Wilds.
Webb was convinced he had discovered something special.
F3 in 1972 F3 Monaco 1973
From Formula 3 to Formula 5000
The Webb family arranged a test with Jackie Epstein's Shellsport Formula 5000 team in a Lola T330 Chevrolet.
The difference was enormous. Lombardi was stepping from machinery producing around 160 horsepower into a 500-horsepower Formula 5000 car.
She adapted immediately.
Not only was she quick, but she also impressed the team with her technical feedback, correctly identifying a slowly deflating rear tyre during the test.
The reward was a drive in the 1974 Rothmans Formula 5000 Championship.
Driving a bright yellow Lola T330, Lombardi improved throughout the season, finishing fourth at Brands Hatch, Monza, Oulton Park and Mallory Park while frequently scoring points. The press began calling her "The Tigress of Turin."
She also raced in the United States, where legend A.J. Foyt reportedly expressed surprise at seeing a woman competing at such a level.
Formula One was beginning to look realistic.
Breaking into Formula One
The Webb family invested the £5,000 they had received from Bernie Ecclestone into Lombardi's Formula One ambitions.
She was given a one-off opportunity with a year-old Brabham BT42 run by Hexagon Racing at the 1974 British Grand Prix.
Lombardi performed creditably, lapping within 1.1 seconds of teammate John Watson. A broken driveshaft during the crucial final qualifying session prevented further improvement and she missed the grid by less than a second.
Although disappointing, the experience confirmed her determination to reach Formula One full-time.
That opportunity came thanks to Count Giuseppe Ignazio Zanon and his wife Vladimira, associated with the Lavazza coffee empire. Their financial backing helped secure Lombardi a race seat with March Engineering for the 1975 Formula One season.
The Historic 1975 Season
March team boss Robin Herd insisted Lombardi's signing was based on merit rather than publicity.
Over the course of the season she faced constant challenges. The March 751 was rarely among the fastest cars and communication within the team was not always ideal. She also did two non-cahmpionship races.
South-Africa GP
One story highlights her struggle. After crashing during the Monaco Grand Prix weekend, Lombardi repeatedly complained of severe understeer entering corners and dramatic oversteer under acceleration.
Her concerns were largely dismissed.
Only a year later, after Ronnie Peterson experienced similar problems, the team discovered a crack in the car's magnesium rear bulkhead. Lombardi's observations had been correct all along.
Her most famous moment came at the Spanish Grand Prix at Montjuïc Park.
The race was overshadowed by tragedy when Rolf Stommelen's rear wing failed, launching his car over the barriers and into spectators. The race was stopped early, with only half points awarded.
Lombardi finished sixth.
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Because only half distance had been completed, she received half a championship point. Nevertheless, she became the first woman in Formula One history to score World Championship points.
It remains an achievement unmatched by any other female Formula One driver.
The rest of the season brought mixed results. She failed to qualify in Monaco, retired in Belgium and Sweden, struggled for pace at Zandvoort and Silverstone, but produced a strong seventh-place finish at the Nürburgring.
After disappointing races in Austria and Italy, her partnership with March came to an end.
At Watkins Glenn, she qualified in a Williams FW04, but could not take the start due to electrical problems.
A Final Formula One Chapter
Lombardi briefly returned with March for the opening race of 1976 in Brazil. However, Ronnie Peterson's arrival effectively ended her time with the team.
Later that year Count Zanon arranged a drive with RAM Racing, where she drove a Brabham BT44.
The venture was short-lived. She failed to qualify for several races and recorded a best finish of twelfth place at the Austrian Grand Prix.
Her final appearance in a Formula One car came in 1979, driving a Williams FW06 in the Aurora Formula One series at Mallory Park.
By then her future lay elsewhere.
Reinventing Herself in Endurance Racing
From 1977 onwards Lombardi focused on sports cars, endurance races and touring cars.
The move proved highly successful.
For 1975, Elf and co-sponsor Switzerland decided to race with an all-women team in the World Sports Car Championship. So Lella was teamed up with Marie-Claude Beaumont in a Renault Alpine A441.
In the 1000 km of Mugello they finished second in class and sixth overall. The fourth at Monza, the 1000km. A fine drive saw them win the 2Lclass and cross the line in 4th place overall.
They were favourites for the 24hLe Mans. They were 8th in qualifying but in the race the car went out with fuel feed problems in the 1th hour.
Lella had again in 1976 shared a Lancia Stratos Turbo with French driver Christine Dacremont at Le Mans. The pair finished twentieth and won the Ladies Trophy.
The performance attracted the attention of French manufacturer Inaltera, which entered an all-female team for the 1977 Daytona 24 Hours. Lombardi and Belgian driver Christine Beckers qualified an impressive fourth before retiring after an accident.
They returned to Le Mans later that year, finishing eleventh and once again claiming the Ladies Trophy.
Lombardi also ventured into NASCAR, accepting an invitation from Bill France to race in the 1977 Firecracker 400 at Daytona. Although her race ended early, the appearance further demonstrated her remarkable versatility.
Endurance Success with Osella
The peak of Lombardi's post-Formula One career came with Osella. She raced Osella cars from 1976 onwards.
Interserie 1976
Partnering Giorgio Francia in 1979, she drove the Osella PA6 and PA7 sports prototypes. Together they won the 6 Hours of Enna-Pergusa and the 6 Hours of Vallelunga.
Lombardi became the first woman to win a major international endurance race.
Even greater success followed in 1981. Again teamed with Francia in an Osella PA9, she won the Mugello 6 Hours and finished consistently throughout the World Endurance Championship. Their results earned them fourth place in the final championship standings.
It was arguably the finest season of her career.
Touring Cars and the Final Years
Throughout the 1980s Lombardi became a regular competitor in the European Touring Car Championship.
She did a 24h Spa race in 1978 with belgian drivers Marc Duez and Thierry Boutsen in a Toyota.
Driving various Alfa Romeo models for the Jolly Club, she remained competitive despite often racing in lower-capacity classes against far more powerful machinery.
She achieved several class victories and strong championship finishes, including sixth overall in the 1985 championship.
1983 Spa 24h 1986
By the late 1980s, however, illness began to affect her career. After withdrawing from races due to health problems, doctors eventually diagnosed breast cancer.
Unable to continue driving, Lombardi formed her own Alfa Romeo touring car team with the support of Bruno and Ciusy Remondi.
In February 1992 she was admitted to hospital. A month later, in March 1992, Lella Lombardi passed away at the age of 50.
Legacy
Lella Lombardi's Formula One record shows just 17 Grand Prix starts and half a championship point.
Those numbers tell only a fraction of the story.
She was a pioneer who carved out a professional racing career in an era when women were rarely taken seriously in motorsport. She competed successfully in Formula 3, Formula 5000, Formula One, endurance racing, touring cars and even NASCAR. Above all, she earned the respect of competitors not because she was a woman, but because she was fast.
More than three decades after her death, Lella Lombardi remains one of the most important figures in motorsport history.
Further Reading
In 2024, motorsport historian Jon Saltinstall published The Tigress of Turin: Lella Lombardi, an authorised biography produced by Douglas Loveridge Publications. Based on more than two years of research, over 120 interviews and extensive archive work, it is widely regarded as the definitive account of Lombardi's life and career.
