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This is the story of a woman born in 1941 who chose racing over love. Her name was Maria Grazia Lombardi, although close friends and family called her Lella. She liked to help his father deliver meats in their van when she was younger. She was very good at it, everyone in town was used to seeing the Lombardis family’s van driving at full speed, with salami bouncing around in the back.
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When she turned eighteen, Lella used all her savings to buy a used racing car and started racing professionally. When people saw in the news, she had won the Formula 850 Championship, they weren’t really surprised. -
This was her ever first attempt to become a formula one driver, but it was unsuccsessful. -
Despite her success, her team replaced her -for a man- and Lella realized that Formula One wasn’t just ready to accept women drivers. Even so, she continued to race all her life.
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After her first attempt -and fail- the previous year, Lella races and finishes sixth, becoming the first-ever female driver to score points in a Formula One race. -
She continued to race all her life. Until she died short before making it to be 51 years old, victim from cancer. No other female driver has yet beaten her Formula One record, since.