Legendary Ferrari Driver José Froilan Gonzalez

As the Cavallino Classic takes place next week in Palm Beach, it is a good time to remember the man who brought Ferrari their first Formula One win, José Froilan Gonzalez.

Born in Argentina in 1922, the son of a Chevrolet dealer, this was the right time to be poised for greatness as automobile racing took the world stage in the 1950’s and 60’s.  Back in the early days of racing there was a camaraderie amongst the divers, friend or foe they often ate dinner together at the end of Sunday’s race with the winner footing the bill. Also called the Pampus Bull for his aggressive driving style or El Cabezon for his chubby face, he was a kind and sharing man when it came to passing on his experience to others.  He was both an occasional teammate and often competitor of fellow Argentinian race car driver of JM Fangio. Large, strong and he used to say in his day the drivers were fat and the tires were skinny. He is known for achieving Ferrari’s first win in a Formula One World Championship race at the British Grand Prix in 1951 at Silverstone.  After a dream like season with great results with Ferrari he made an unexpected and unsuccessful switch to Maserati with Fangio for two years and would always regret this decision.

He was back with Ferrari in 1954 winning three non-championship Grand-Prix.  He lapped Fangio to win The British Grand Prix a second time.  Later that year along with Maurice Trintignant he shared a Ferrari 375 Plus* to win Le Mans 24 Hours.  He finished his racing career in Argentina though stayed connected to Ferrari making occasional works appearances as one of Enzo Ferrari’s most valued team members.  He even ran his own racing team and had his “second” career when he dropped a stock Chevrolet V8 into his Ferrari.  Shown above Suixtil sponsored car.  Suixtil outfitted Gonzalez throughout his career along with many other Grand Prix and Endurance racing legends.

After racing he had a General Motors dealership in Buenos Aires and in the end a FIAT dealership where despite his legendary and celeb-level status is has been said he was happy to share his exploits.  He passed away in Buenos Aires in 2013, a well loved icon.

*This Ferrari 375 mentioned above was auctioned off at Goodwood in 2014 and scored a whopping $18 million sale price.  Unfortunately it is now the subject of further ownership controversy, but when big funds are at stake this can’t be a surprise.

Photos: Courtesy of Suixtil Archives.