The Ferrari Crash That Killed Nine: The 1957 Mille Miglia Disaster

The Ferrari crash that killed nine people refers to the 1957 Mille Miglia accident in Guidizzolo, Italy, when Alfonso de Portago’s factory-entered Ferrari 335 S suffered a high-speed tire failure and plowed into spectators, killing nine bystanders and also fatally injuring de Portago and his co-driver, Edmund Nelson. The tragedy ended the Mille Miglia as a competitive road race and triggered a legal and cultural reckoning over motorsport safety in Italy.

What Happened on the Road to Guidizzolo

On May 12, 1957, during the final stages of the Mille Miglia—a 1,000-mile open-road endurance race held on public roads—Spanish aristocrat and Scuderia Ferrari driver Alfonso de Portago, with American co-driver Edmund “Eddie” Nelson, was running near the front in a Ferrari 335 S. As the car thundered through Guidizzolo in Lombardy at an estimated 240–250 km/h (150+ mph), the front tire catastrophically failed. The Ferrari veered off course, struck a roadside ditch, and tore through spectators lined along the route.

Immediate reports from the scene described a chaotic aftermath. Despite the race’s longstanding popularity and tradition, safety measures were minimal by modern standards, with crowds pressed close to the racing line. Local hospitals were quickly overwhelmed as emergency crews responded.

Fatalities and the Human Toll

The crash killed nine spectators—including several children—and both men in the car, bringing the total death toll to 11. The scale of loss, happening in a public setting and involving bystanders, shocked Italy and the international motorsport community.

Families of victims, race officials, and team personnel faced a wrenching aftermath that forced a new public conversation about the risks of high-speed racing on open public roads with limited crowd control.

Causes, Controversy, and Investigation

Italian authorities launched an extensive inquiry to determine what caused the tire to fail and who, if anyone, could be held responsible. The Ferrari was on Englebert tires, and a central question was whether the team should have changed them earlier. Some accounts suggest the crew passed a service point without swapping rubber to save time; others emphasize that a puncture or debris could have caused a sudden failure regardless of wear.

Prosecutors charged Enzo Ferrari and a tire-company representative with manslaughter. After years of legal wrangling, the charges were ultimately dismissed in the early 1960s, with courts concluding there was no criminal negligence that could be directly pinned on Ferrari or the tire supplier. Still, the case underscored systemic safety shortcomings—from tire technology to race organization and crowd protection—that would define motorsport reforms in subsequent decades.

Key Facts at a Glance

The following list summarizes the essential details of the 1957 crash and its broader impact for quick reference.

• Date: May 12, 1957
• Event: Mille Miglia, a 1,000-mile open-road race in Italy
• Location: Guidizzolo, Lombardy, near Mantua
• Car: Ferrari 335 S (factory entry, Scuderia Ferrari)
• Driver/Co-driver: Alfonso de Portago (Spain) and Edmund “Eddie” Nelson (USA)
• Cause: High-speed front tire failure leading to loss of control
• Deaths: 9 spectators plus both crew members (11 total)
• Aftermath: Criminal case later dismissed; Italy ended competitive public-road racing
• Legacy: Permanent end of the Mille Miglia as a speed race; later reborn as a regularity rally

Taken together, these points explain why the 1957 Mille Miglia crash is remembered as a turning point—both a human tragedy and a catalyst for change in motorsport safety.

End of an Era: The Mille Miglia’s Closure and Legacy

Within days of the crash, the Italian government moved to halt competitive racing on public roads. The Mille Miglia, once a national institution, was discontinued as an all-out speed event. Decades later, it returned in a limited format as a historic regularity rally, prioritizing timing and preservation over outright speed.

The disaster accelerated a broader safety movement: better tire standards, more stringent event permitting, improved spectator barriers, and, in time, a migration of top-level racing to purpose-built circuits. The crash remains a reference point in discussions about risk, responsibility, and the limits of spectacle in motorsport.

Why It Still Matters

The Guidizzolo tragedy endures in racing memory not only for its grim toll but for how clearly it exposed the hazards of high-speed racing on open public roads. The improvements that followed—while uneven and evolving—mark a crucial step in motorsport’s journey toward modern safety norms.

Summary

The Ferrari crash that killed nine people was the 1957 Mille Miglia accident at Guidizzolo, when Alfonso de Portago’s Ferrari 335 S suffered a tire failure, killing nine spectators and both occupants. The catastrophe prompted the end of the Mille Miglia as a competitive road race, led to dropped manslaughter charges against Enzo Ferrari after a lengthy investigation, and helped usher in a new era of racing safety and regulation.

Is the crash scene in Ferrari real?

Yes, the crash depicted in the movie Ferrari is based on a real-life tragedy: the 1957 Mille Miglia disaster, where Spanish driver Alfonso de Portago and his navigator, Edmund Nelson, died along with nine spectators—including five children—when their Ferrari spun out of control due to a burst tire and struck a crowd on the roadside. The film’s sequence of events is a fairly accurate recreation of the real accident, which was so horrific it led to the prohibition of racing on Italian public roads. 
Key details about the real crash:

• The incident: During the 1957 Mille Miglia race, driver Alfonso de Portago’s Ferrari experienced a front tire explosion at high speed. 
• The accident: The out-of-control car hit a telephone pole, went airborne over a stream, struck several spectators, and then spun back onto the road before coming to rest. 
• The victims: The crash resulted in the deaths of de Portago, his co-driver Edmund Nelson, and ten spectators, with five of the spectators being children. 
• The consequences: The horrific crash led to the Italian government banning all motor racing on public roads, effectively ending the Mille Miglia race as it was known. 

Accuracy of the movie’s depiction:

• Filmmakers, including director Michael Mann, conducted extensive research to replicate the events as accurately as possible, consulting forensic files, blueprints, and reports from the accident investigation. 
• The staging and duplication of the crash were based on these findings and the way similar accidents, like a 1955 Le Mans disaster, were photographed. 
• Mann sought to capture a sense of realism and horror without the use of camera trickery or flashy editing, aiming for a “ruthless, matter-of-fact approach” to the devastation. 
• The film also incorporates details from witness accounts of the event, such as the presence of residents from nearby farmhouses coming to see the wreckage. 

What was the worst crash in Ferrari history?

1955 Le Mans disaster. The 1955 Le Mans disaster was a major crash that occurred on 11 June 1955 during the 24 Hours of Le Mans motor race at Circuit de la Sarthe in Le Mans, Sarthe, France. Large pieces of debris flew into the crowd, killing spectators and French driver Pierre Levegh.

How many people died in the 1957 Ferrari crash?

Department of Sciences and Methods for Engineering, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Reggio Emilia, Italy. In 1957, 11 people died in a car crash in the Italian street circuit Mille Miglia. Of course, the car manufacturer Enzo Ferrari was investigated for homicide by negligence.

What Ferrari crash killed a bunch of people?

The Horrific 1957 Ferrari Crash that Ended the Mille Miglia Race. The 1,000-mile Italian road race came to a tragic end after a Ferrari spun out of control, killing nine spectators.