Saturday 26th March 1927

The inaugural Mille Miglia, the most famous long distance race of its time, run over 1,618 km (1,005 miles) from Brescia to Rome and back, began. Just 51 of the 77 starters reached the finishing post. Entry was strictly restricted to unmodified production cars, and the entrance fee was set at the nominal level of 1 lira. The winner, Giuseppe Morandi, completed the course in just under 21 hours 5 minutes, averaging nearly 78 km/h (48 mph) in his 2-litre OM. Brescia based OM swept the top three places. The Mille Miglia was responsible for popularising the Alfa Romeo, which won the race 11 times between 1928 and 1939.