Gianpiero Moretti began his famous company, Momo, making steering wheels for such elite customers as John Surtees, the only man ever to win Motorcycle and Formula 1 Championships, and Enzo Ferrari for his road and race cars.
The success of the business allowed Moretti to become more and more active in increasingly high profile race series. Moretti's cars, in their bold red and yellow Momo livery, were always crowd favorites.
1978 yielded stunning results for a feisty Italian who was often considered a gentleman racer rather than a professional driver! Four 4th place finishes, combined with four visits to the podium (a pair of 3rds and a pair of 2nds) added up to 98 points in the IMSA Camel GT Challenge, good for 3rd overall at seasons end!
Moretti, the continent hopping businessman, didn't get his 1979 IMSA Winston GT season underway until the Road Atlanta event in April. From the first green flag the Momo Porsche saw it seemed like 1979 was going to be another amazing season. A couple 4th place finishes at Road Atlanta and Hallett were followed by a hard fought 6th at Lime Rock. Then at Brainerd, Moretti showed himself as a truly skilled driver by setting the fastest race lap before the gremlins caught up with him... and stayed for the balance of the season!
There was no denying Moretti's skill, or the beauty of the Momo livery. IMSA would not have been the same without them!