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Fast Failures: The great Le Mans robbery

After being squeezed out of grand prix racing, Alfa Romeo took Le Mans by storm in 1938 with the car dubbed Devil's Breath, only to fall short of victory. PAUL FEARNLEY looks back at the 8C 2900B Le Mans Speciale

Raymond Sommer's speed and press-on-regardless spirit made him a target for works teams, but although the chivalrous 'Coeur de Lion' obliged them on occasion, he remained a privateer at heart.

Alfa Romeo, too, wanted greater control of its motorsport destiny: in January 1938 its Scuderia Ferrari satellite was closed and in-house Alfa Corse reopened. Charging Enzo Ferrari, disgruntled at wage-slave status, with overseeing this shift was a mistake; so, too, was the release of his engineering general, Vittorio Jano.

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