Nello Pagani

This aristocratic Italian was first and foremost a motor cycle racer, winning the inaugural 125 cc World Championship in 1949 on a Mondial and finishing second in the 500 cc class on the MV Agusta.

He was a talented car racer too, as witnessed by his wins at Pau in 1947 and 1948 in a Maserati, though his appearances on four wheels were necessarily limited.

In 1950 he drove a Maserati to seventh in his only Grand Prix appearance, at Bremgarten, and took a fourth at the Modena GP in a Simca-Gordini. Although he was to appear occasionally thereafter, taking second in class in the Mille Miglia with an OSCA in 1952, Pagani was more involved with the bike world, later managing the legendary MV Agusta team.