WCW: Lella Lombardi

Maria Grazia “Lella” Lombardi was a trailblazing woman on the international racing circuit at a time when there were very few women in racing.

In 1975, she became the first woman to score a World Championship point during a Grand Prix in Spain. This occurrence set goals for other women and, strangely enough, was only half a point because the race was stopped due to some race attendees being killed by a car part that went flying into the crowd. Although Lella wasn’t the first female pioneer in racing, she was one of the best at the time.

Bad Luck Seemed to Hold Her Back

Immensely few women grow up knowing there’s at least one part of their nature and desires that won’t conform to society, but Lella grew up with two. Although she was not the first IndyCar racer and wasn’t the best female racer in this car series, she could have enjoyed a much better career had she been born later or not born gay. She took advantage of all of the opportunities that came her way, starting from an early age. The desire to succeed on the track made her the Woman Crush Wednesday recipient for this article.

Lombardi Loved Cars More than Anything Else

Lella Lombardi was born in 1941 in Italy. While too young to remember World War II, she lived at a time when homosexuality was not as widely accepted as it is now. She loved cars so much that she saved all her money from driving the delivery van for her family’s butcher shop to buy her first car. This first card was one she entered in the Formula Monza races in 1965. Her first racing experience was racing karts, which she did briefly before heading to the Formula Monza race.

Several Years of Racing Accomplishments

In 1968, Lombardi finished runner-up to Franco Bernabei, and two years later, she won four of the 10 Formula 850 races in Biraghi, dominating the field. She took the championship in this series in 1971 and raced in Italian F3 races during the two years that followed. During this time, she finished 10th in the championship both times.

A 12th place finish in the Monaco F3, she impressed John Webb enough that he put her in his Celebrity Escort Mexico series. During this race, she beat some well-known drivers of this series. This result took her on to becoming a test drive for the ShellSPORT F5000 Lola T330s of the time, and then she ran in the same series again in 1974.

Lella Drove Cars that Women Weren’t Supposed to Handle Easily

The cars in the Celebrity Escort Mexico series were cars with massive 5.0-liter V8 engines, making them “real man’s” cars, but Lella Lombardi was a woman. She handled these cars exceptionally well, finishing fifth overall with four fourth-place finishes, two fifths, and three sixths. She was running her best race at Snetterton and was in the third spot when the race was halted temporarily after six laps because of rain. She ended the race in fifth after a collision during a fight for the lead.

A Driveshaft Failure Struck Lombardi in 1974

During 1974, Lella attempted to make her Grand Prix debut in the British race at Brands Hatch but ran into some trouble. The car she drove was a rented vehicle, and she raced well, but driveshaft issues caused her to miss qualifying by nine-tenths of a second. She was ahead of many other well-known non-qualifiers of this race but didn’t get to make her debut during this year.

The 1975 Grand Prix Circuit Wasn’t Kind to Lella.

During 1975, Lella Lombardi often raced, using an old car with fuel system problems during her Grand Prix debut in South Africa. She became only the second woman to qualify for an official Grand Prix in this race before heading to Spain, where she scored the half point, becoming the first woman ever to do this. In Monaco, she crashed and didn’t quality, finished seventh in the Germany race, 14thin Holland, 17thin Austria, and 18thin France. These finishes in a car that wasn’t up to the challenge.

What Was Wrong With Her Car?

When the chassis of her old 741 was stripped down, it was discovered this car had a cracked rear bulkhead that had been cracked since Monaco. This should have been found by testing drivers, but they never pushed the car hard enough to see this problem until the end of the season. Lombardi turned in quite a season during 1975 in a car that wasn’t right and should have been a lot better.

NASCAR Got a Taste of Lombardi

The 1977 Daytona Firecracker 400 was the race chosen, and a Chevrolet was shared with Janet Guthrie. During this race, Lella Lombardi and Guthrie finished 31stafter severe transmission problems caused them to end the race early. This was the first time Lombardi had professionally raced such a big car, but she took it with some humor when asked about driving it, stating, “I don’t have to carry it; I just have to drive it.”

Continuing the Racing Success with a Partner

Lella and Marie-Claude Beaumont teamed up and raced together during several races in 1975. Beaumont believes they could have won LeMans in 1975 because they had amazing chemistry and worked well as a team. Unfortunately, the team operator miscalculated the fuel needs, causing the pair to end the race early. Beaumont talked about how Lella would return the car to her exactly as it had been turned over and that the two never fought. They weren’t competing but teaming up to compete with other racers.

Lombardi had more success winning the 1979 Enna Six Hours, an event she won again in 1981. She also enjoyed some success in the European Touring Car Championship in 1982 and helped Alfa Romeo to reach the series title during this season.

Cancer was all that Stopped Lella Lombardi

March 3, 1992, only days shy of her 51stbirthday, Lella Lombardi died; she succumbed to cancer. While some during her racing career-obsessed over her gender and sexuality, Lella only wanted to race and left a legacy in a team named in her honor, Lella Lombardi Autosport. She was undoubtedly an example of how to live life on your terms and not how society expects you to live.