The youngest have surely forgotten it, but the 24 Hours of Le Mans has allowed many manufacturers to build their reputation for performance and reliability. This is particularly the case for Alfa Romeo, the Italian premium brand which is now part of the Stellantis group. A.L.F.A. (for Anonima Lombarda Fabbrica Automobili) was founded in 1910. Specializing in sports vehicles derived from racing cars, the company became Alfa Romeo at the end of the First World War, a period during which its management was entrusted to the engineer Neapolitan Nicola Romeo.
Although the brand experienced economic ups and downs in the 1920s - which forced it to benefit from a safeguard plan from the Italian government - its sporting results remained in good shape thanks to the talent of engineer Vittorio Jano. Father of the Alfa Romeo P2, which dominated the Grand Prix from 1924, the Piedmontese "ingegnere" was also involved in the design of the brand's sports cars, such as the 6C, launched in 1926. by a 6-cylinder in line with overhead camshafts which can be supplemented by a volumetric compressor, this model will quickly allow Alfa Romeo to dominate the road races of the time, while paving the way for the famous 8C 2300 at 8 cylinders in line. In supercharged racing version, this legendary model won practically everything during its four years of production, winning from its launch in 1931 at Monza, at the Targa Florio, and at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in the extended LM version to gain in stability and top speed.
The example with which the Biscione brand (snake in Italian) opens its prize list in the Sarthe is entered by the aristocrat and "gentleman driver" Lord Howe, who shares his steering wheel with Henry Birkin, the fastest of the "Bentley Boys" , released from its commitment to the English brand after the recent bankruptcy of the latter. The first in the event's history to be open to individuals, this edition has been a great popular success despite the economic crisis that has been raging for two years. For its first participation in the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the power and reliability of the Alfa Romeo 8C 2300 do wonders, as it sets a new distance record by covering more than 3,000 kilometers in 24 hours. To achieve this, the Howe-Birkin crew indeed won the victory at over 125 km/h on average!
The 1932 edition of the 24 Hours of Le Mans promises to be hotly contested with no less than 15 brands at the start, including Bugatti, Mercedes, Stutz, or even the ghostly Bentley, but Alfa Romeo remains favorite with four official 8C 2300 LMs, to which in addition, there are three examples entered by private crews. In fact, this time it was two Alfa Romeos that finished in the first two places, the victorious crew being made up of two beginners in the Sarthe, the Frenchman Raymond Sommer, and the Italian Luigi Chinetti, even if the latter, ill, n didn't drive much during this edition.
Italian hegemony over the event was confirmed in 1933 despite the presence at the start of a monstrous Duesenberg piloted by Prince Nicolas of Romania, which was quickly disqualified for not respecting the minimum interval between two refuelings. Dominating, the Alfa-Romeos are fighting each other for victory. The fastest crew is that made up of Raymond Sommer and the legendary Tazio Nuvolari, as proven by their lap record established at the very start of the event. Delayed by a punctured tank, the Franco-Italian duo ultimately owed their salvation only to a makeshift repair improvised by Raymond Sommer using chewing gum. Chaining the fast laps, they manage to get back on the Louis Chiron Franco Cortese pair. In the last stint, Tazio Nuvolari resists the comeback of Luigi Chinetti and crosses the finish line only 401 meters ahead of his pursuer... It will be necessary to wait until the 1960s to find such a suspenseful final!
In 1934, the Automobile Club de l'Ouest inaugurated grandstands and enlarged stands. For this edition contested under a blazing sun, the many English brands (Riley, Aston Martin, Lagonda, MG, etc.) and French (Bugatti, Amilcar, Lorraine, Salmson, etc.) intend to challenge the victory to the four 8C 2300 entered by Alfa Romeo and placed under the sporting direction of a certain Enzo Ferrari who would create his own brand a few years later. The Italians were once again the fastest, but the mechanics suffered, and Raymond Sommer's 8C 2300 had to quickly retire on fire at Arnage. In the end, it was the Franco-Italian team Philippe Étancelin Luigi Chinetti who won with their Alfa in an unusual blue color, despite a split tank which forced them to refuel more often than their rivals. This is the last of four 24 Hours of Le Mans victories for the Italian marque.
