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Jerry Garrett Juan Tonconogy and his co-driver, Guillermo Berisso, streaked toward a Mille Miglia victory Saturday in a 1927 Bugatti T40.BRESCIA, Italy — A sky-blue 1927 Bugatti T40, driven by Juan Tonconogy of Argentina, on Saturday won the 2013 edition of the Mille Miglia Storica. Mr. Tonconogy, and his co-driver, Guillermo Berisso, arrived at the finish line shortly after 10 p.m. in the re-enactment of the famed Italian road rally. They had left the start line here at 7 p.m. on Thursday, embarking along with 415 competitors on a 1,000-mile odyssey to Rome and back, through 196 cities on the Italian peninsula.
The cars, all selected from among vehicles that either did race or could have raced in the 24 editions of the Mille Miglia held from 1927 to 1957, had to perform dozens of time, speed and distance trials along the way. Mr. Tonconogy tallied 35,417 points, 576 more than the runners-up, Giordano Mozzi and Mark Gessler, in a 1933 Alfa Romeo 6C 1500 Gran Sport. That same Alfa had won the rally a year earlier, in the hands of a different team of Argentine drivers.
A 1933 Aston Martin Le Mans, driven by Giovanni Moceri and Tiberio Cavalleri, was third. Something of a surprise in fourth place was a 1933 Ford Model B roadster. One of just a handful of American cars entered, it was driven by Gianmario Fontanella of Italy, who finished just nine points ahead of the 1927 Bugatti T37 of Bruno and Carlo Ferrari.
Jerry Garrett The Bugattis of Giulio Felloni (21) and Bruno Ferrari (23) battled for dominance on a highway through Emilia-Romagna. The No. 23 Bugatti ultimately took a fifth-place finish.It is the fifth attempt by Mr. Tonconogy, 34, to win the rally, and he is now the youngest winner in the 31 years that the tribute rally version of the event has been staged. He is the developer of a winery, resort and spa in the Mendoza region of Argentina; he is also involved in his family’s business interests in Miami, according to published reports.
“I raced with the best co-pilot in the world,” Mr. Tonconogy said of Mr. Berisso on the victory podium. “We are extremely satisfied with the outcome reached, especially since this edition was packed with talented drivers and extremely competitive vehicles.”
The race has grown in recent years from something of a nostalgic, parochial remembrance for a bygone era of dubious street races to an international celebration of a golden era in automotive history.
Jerry Garrett Although rare in the Mille Miglia, a handful of American cars were entered this year. This 1933 Ford Model B roadster, driven by the Italian Gianmario Fontanella, finished fourth.Automakers supported the event — emptying out their museums in some instances — to help teams field cars. Among the manufacturer-backed participants were those driving entries from Alfa Romeo, Aston Martin, BMW, Bentley, Bugatti, Ferrari, Fiat, Jaguar, Lancia, Maserati, Mercedes-Benz and Porsche.
None of the race’s many celebrity participants — pro golfers, Olympic athletes, actors and actresses, auto executives and assorted executives — figured among the top finishers; most seemed to be, quite literally, just along for the ride. Scoring reasonably well among that group was the racer Andy Wallace in 137th place, the fashion model David Gandy in 169th and the businessman-racer Roger Penske in 202nd.
The race, organized this year by 1000 Miglia S.r.l., was plagued by almost constant rain, although no major incidents were reported. Worker and student demonstrations in Bologna — not rare occurrences — did little to disrupt the rally. It toured some areas in Emilia-Romagna that were particularly hard hit by a major earthquake that struck in the final hours of the 2012 event.
Of the record entry number, 340 were classified as finishers, even though more than a few had to be pushed across the finish line. The last stragglers did not arrive until the predawn hours on Sunday.
Jerry Garrett This 1933 Alfa Romeo 6C 1500 won the Mille Miglia last year in the hands of different drivers. On Saturday, the car clinched a second-place finish for Giordano Mozzi and his co-driver, Mark Gessler.
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