Coppa Acerbo

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The Coppa Acerbo was an automobile race held in Italy, named after Tito Acerbo (the brother of Giacomo Acerbo).

The 150 mile Coppa Acerbo race was held over a 15 mile circuit, beginning and ending at Pescara, Italy, on the Adriatic coast. The course layout featured a four mile long straight running next to the sea followed by an inland route through the Abruzzo hills, that passed through several villages. The first Coppa Acerbo was staged in 1924 and won by an unheard of rookie by the name of Enzo Ferrari. Tragedy struck in the 1934 race when Guy Moll, one of the most promising young drivers of the day, was killed. In the 1930s the German Silver Arrows dominated.

After World War II, the name of the race was changed, because of its Fascist connections, and became known as the Circuito di Pescara. In 1955, as a result of the disaster at the 24 hours of Le Mans, the race was cancelled.

In 1957 it hosted a round of the Formula One World Championship, sometimes referred to as the "Pescara Grand Prix". The layout holds the record as the longest circuit to ever to host a F1 World Championship, with the Nürburgring Nordschliefer coming second. By the early 1960s, safety issues had become a major concern and the Pescara racecourse was seen as too dangerous for major international events. The race was discontinued after the 1961 event.

Bernd Rosemeyer, Luigi Fagioli, and Achille Varzi all won the race twice but Giuseppe Campari is the only driver to win it on three occasions.