1934 Grand Prix de Nice

In the beautiful coastal setting of Nice, France, the 1934 Grand Prix was vaguely reminiscent of Monaco.

The racers started along the Quai des États-Unis, with the waterfront and grandstands to their left, and the cityscape and pits to their right.

1934 Grand Prix Season – Grand Prix de Nice – Alfa Romeo P3Limited edition of 50 – 14.5”x 11” (36.8 cm x 27.9 cm) – $150 USD plus S/H

At the green flag, they raced off down the Promenade des Anglais, past the Hôtel Negresco, downshifting quickly at the tight hairpin curve to the right, back down the Promenade, upwards through the city, around the Jardin Albert 1e, and back to the waterfront starting point.

Three Scuderia Ferrari Alfa Romeos (driven by Louis Chiron, Count Trossi, and Achille Varzi) squared off against seven Maseratis (whose drivers included Tazio Nuvolari, Philippe Étancelin, and Whitney Straight), one Bugatti team car driven by René Dreyfus, and some privately entered Alfas, Bugattis, and Maseratis. Both the Mercedes and Auto Union teams chose not to participate.

The race start saw Varzi and Chiron leading, with Nuvolari and Dreyfus battling for third place. Dreyfus crashed out, allowing Nuvolari’s attention to shift to Chiron. But Nuvolari’s Maserati was not up to another duel and threw a piston.

After the necessary pits stops by all the racers, Étancelin’s Maserati took second place, with Trossi slipping into third position.

With Nuvolari’s retirement, there was no one to really challenge Varzi’s lead, and the somber Italian took the race.

Instrument of Racing: The Alfa Romeo Tipo B “P3” Monoposto

After the success of their P2 racer, Alfa Romeo followed it up by developing the "P3" monoposto (single-seat), also known as the Tipo B. Designed by the brilliant Vittorio Jano, it was the first genuine single-seater Grand Prix car.

Pen & ink with a watercolour pencil wash on archival white stock, 12"x 9"
© Paul Chenard 2009

Original art is available for sale, as are limited edition prints.

* The inset clover "quadrifoglio" graphic appeared on the Alfa Romeo Racing Team cars.

It was powered by a straight 8- cylinder engine, built around two 4-cylinder cast-iron blocks, each fed by a Roots supercharger. Power was transmitted to the rear wheel via twin drive-shafts.

In the hands of Tazio Nuvolari, Rudolf Caracciola, Louis Chiron, Achille Varzi, Raymond Sommer, and René Dreyfus, the P3 won countless races from 1932 through to 1935.

It’s best known victory came in the hands of Nuvolari at the 1935 German Grand Prix at the Nurburgring. With the P3’s engine bored-out to 3.2 litres, he beat out the far superior machines of the Mercedes and Auto-Union teams.