Coys Auction - True Greats
Royal Horticultural Halls
Elverton St
Westminster
London SW1
Tuesday 1st December 2009
Registration Number: N/A Chassis Number: TBC
The traffic route of the Targa and Coppa Florio, the race of "7,000 curves", led through tight mountain roads right through the mountain villages of Sicily. The Targa Florio included four rounds, the Coppa one more. Each round had a length of 108 km. Winning the Targa did not automatically mean winning the Coppa, for the chances of forfeiting all on the road – or off it – on the last lap were still enormous. Tremendous credit is due to Christian Werner in this respect, for on April 27, 1924 he won both categories in a supercharged Mercedes and also drove the fastest lap overall - supported by his co-pilot Karl Sailer. The major job of riding mechanic Sailer was to keep the manual fuel pump pressurised and to ensure that the engine was well lubricated. Werner’s team mates Christian Lautenschlager and Alfred Neubauer pl