Maserati marks 100 years since motorsport debut

The spotlight hasn’t faded yet on “Maserati Meccanica Lirica” and on the return of GranTurismo and GranCabrio production to the historic Viale Ciro Menotti plant, with Maserati celebrating the 111th anniversary of its founding. A milestone that makes it the longest-standing brand in Italy’s Motor Valley.

These two milestones make Maserati the epitome of Italian luxury on the global stage, guiding the Brand toward the Year of the Trident Centenary, 2026, marking 100 years of its iconic logo and, at the same time, 100 years since its debut in motorsport. It was precisely in 1926 that the Maserati Tipo 26, the first car ever to bear the Trident on its bonnet, raced in the Targa Florio and won its class.

But the story of this Made-in-Italy icon began a decade earlier, in 1914, when Alfieri Maserati and his brothers Ettore and Ernesto founded “Ditta Alfieri Maserati” at Via de’ Pepoli 1A, right in the centre of Bologna. As stated in the individual business declaration document, the new firm officially began operations on December 1, 1914 (as the document itself was filed with the Municipality of Bologna on December 14).

The Maserati brothers were passionate about mechanics and had a love for speed, and they were not averse to getting behind the wheel of a race car themselves. Another brother, Mario, contributed by designing the Trident logo, inspired by the Fountain of Neptune in the centre of Bologna, and the final brother, Bindo, joined the Officine Maserati in 1932, following Alfieri’s death.

As mentioned, the first car to bear the Trident was the Tipo 26 – a racing car that made its debut at the 1926 Targa Florio, where it took first place in the up to 1.5-litre class with Alfieri at the wheel. It was the first in a long line of achievements, including back-to-back victories at the Indianapolis 500 (1939 and 1940), four consecutive Targa Florio wins (1937, 1938, 1939 and 1940), nine Formula 1 wins, and the 1957 Formula 1 World Championship with Juan Manuel Fangio.

More recently, Maserati returned to winning with the MC12, which claimed six FIA GT international championships between 2005 and 2010: the highest expression of GT racing for production-derived cars. Since 2023, the Maserati GT2 has brought the Trident back to closed wheel competition, earning victories and becoming eligible to compete in over 20 championships worldwide.

At the end of 1939, with the arrival of the Orsi family, Maserati began its move to Modena, where the Viale Ciro Menotti plant opened on January 1, 1940, and has remained the home of the Trident ever since. In 1947, the collaboration between the Maserati brothers and the Brand came to an end, and the first road car, the A6 1500, was introduced.

Then, in 1963, the Brand debuted the Quattroporte, creating the segment of high-performance luxury sedans. After a brief period under Citroën ownership (1968–1975), during which the company introduced its first modern industrial processes, the subsequent De Tomaso era (1975–1993) saw the creation and commercial success of one of the Brand’s most iconic and best-selling models: the Biturbo.

Built on these strong historical and industrial foundations, the more recent phase of the Italian brand’s evolution has been marked by new models and major innovations, starting from 2007. The fifth-generation Quattroporte debuted at the Detroit Auto Show, followed by the iconic GranTurismo at the Geneva Motor Show. The GranCabrio arrived in 2009; the sixth-generation Quattroporte and the Ghibli in 2013; three years later came the Levante, the first Maserati SUV. In 2020, with the introduction of the production lines for the new Maserati MC20, the flagship of a new era for the Brand.

Two years later came the debut of Grecale, the new SUV that best shows Maserati’s granturismo spirit, blending performance and elegance in an unparalleled driving experience. In 2023, it was the turn of the Maserati GT2 Stradale, a street-legal super sports car that unites two iconic Maserati worlds: elegance and racing. This model embodies the brand’s racing soul while simultaneously offering comfort and driving pleasure for daily use. The following year, the spotlight fell on the MCXtrema, a track-only “beast” limited to just 62 units, equipped with an extreme version of the 730 hp V6 Nettuno engine.