Attilio Luigi Antonio Bettega (19 February 1953 – 2 May 1985) was an Italian rally driver.Autosport 50th Anniversary Issue Celebrating 50 years of the Best in Motorsport. page 173. 13 July 2000. Haymarket Specialist Magazines He won the 1984 Monza Rally Show.
Biography
Bettega was born in Molveno, Trentino. In 1982, he joined the Lancia team driving the Lancia 037 after some years with Fiat. In his Lancia years he gained four podium finishes in rallies counting towards the World Rally Championship. His last podium was also his most successful one, driving his Lancia to second place at the 1984 Rallye Sanremo.
In the 1985 season, Bettega entered the Safari Rally and the Tour de Corse. In Corsica, on the fourth stage of the rally, Zerubia, Bettega lost control of his Lancia and crashed into a tree which ruptured into the driver's seat and killed him instantly. His co-driver Maurizio Perissinot survived the crash uninjured.
Bettega's death caused the safety of Group B cars to be called into question. One year later, his former teammate Henri Toivonen and his co-driver Sergio Cresto with the Lancia Delta S4 #4 (same number as Bettega's car) died in a crash at the same event, triggering the ban of the Group B regulations.
Racing record
Complete WRC results Year Entrant Car 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Pts 1978 Grifone Genova Lancia Stratos HF MON SWE KEN POR GRE FIN CAN ITARet CIV FRARet GBR N/A N/A 1979 Attilio Bettega Fiat Ritmo 75 MONRet SWE POR KEN GRE NZL FIN CAN 19th 12 Fiat 131 Abarth ITA3 FRA GBR CIV 1980 Fiat Italia Fiat Ritmo 75 MON6 SWE 19th 15 Fiat 131 Abarth PORRet KEN GRC8 ARGRet FIN NZL ITA6 FRARet GBR CIV 1981 Fiat Auto Torino Fiat Ritmo 75 MONRet SWE 20th 12 Fiat 131 Abarth PORRet KEN FRA GRC3 ARG BRA FIN ITARet CIV GBR 1982 Martini Racing Lancia Rally 037 MON SWE POR KEN FRARet GRC NZL BRA FIN ITA CIV GBR NC 0 1983 Martini Racing Lancia Rally 037 MON SWE POR KEN FRA4 GRC5 NZL3 ARG FIN ITA3 CIV GBR 7th 42 1984 Martini Racing Lancia Rally 037 MON5 SWE POR3 KEN FRA7 GRC4 NZL ARG FIN ITA2 CIV GBR 5th 49 1985 Martini Racing Lancia Rally 037 MON SWE POR KENRet FRARet GRC NZL ARG FIN ITA CIV GBR NC 0
References
Sources