Formula 1's Longest Circuit - Pescara History and Race - Assetto Corsa

[@italotracks2277]

Thanks Jake for featuring my work in this magnificently made video on your fabulous channel, it's an absolute honour for me. 😍 And thanks to all those of you who have left comments and supported my work, it means a lot! 🥰

[@BD12]

Livorno next, I'm begging you!

[@danesorensen1775]

This race also has one of my favourite Jack Brabham anecdotes - making an unplanned fuel stop at an ordinary garage! From his book, "The Jack Brabham Story": "I started my last lap 5th or 6th, and was going pretty well when I ran out of fuel. Unbelievable. I was coasting along, hearing only the clatter of grit and gravel being thrown up by the tyres, when there came into sight, on the right-hand side of the road, a filling station! There were a few spectators standing there, and I coasted into the forecourt, and pulled up at the pumps. The pump attendant just about burst with excitement. Cometh the hour, cometh the man. He was brilliant, he grabbed the pump hose, fired in just a few litres, enough to get me home, and I restarted and rejoined the race. I finished 7th, three times lapped."

[@FordHoard]

Haha, so excited he didn't even care about him not paying!

[@TrolledBy]

Gotta love the racing in the 50s. Extra fuel stop after coasting for ages, finishing 3 laps down on a 28km circuit, still finishing on points in top10 xD

[@donovanleemurphy9349]

@@TrolledByno points for 7th back then. In fact I think it was only in the 2000s that F1 started paying points down to 10th.

[@vintagemotorsportyoutube]

Italo is a good, great friend of mine in modding. He sacrified so much time into this wonderful circuit. I'm so proud of him for finishing it, and he's now getting the recognition he deserves! Bravo, Salvatore. Bravo.

[@italotracks2277]

Thank you kind Sir, grazie mille! 😍

[@NielsHeusinkveld]

Track mods like this are what's so great about modding. The time and effort that went into this make no sense commercially. The result is you just feel more atmosphere and details than in most games and sims. All buildings are unique! I know because I've crashed into all of them. If you're into historic stuff, go buy the track! For the 15 AMS1 players, I hope to release a 250F ... before the year is out. Hope.

[@GPLaps]

I eagerly await 🙂

[@ajrichar0]

My favourite type of GPLaps video - a history lesson, exploration of the course, and then a race. The track is astonishing. What a magnificent achievement by the extremely skilled modder who deserves all the plaudits he gets. 👏

[@icytower38]

The reason I first subscribed to this great channel

[@AnegloCivic]

I live in Pescara and this video celebrating this amazing mod and the circuit it references is really great, full of information I didn't even know about. In fact, most people here don't know that Pescara used to host an f1 race, let alone the longest race ever in the Championship!

[@dodge33cymru]

My absolute favourite of your content types; narrative, history, informative. A fabulous Christmas present, thank you. Thanks too to Italotracks for the incredible track mod; been driving it with sportscars for a couple of months and it's an absolute treasure. Very impressive AI for a circuit so long too.

[@arride4590]

He should be a commentator from ESPN

[@terryjacob8169]

Fitting that the 1957 Pescara GP was won by Stirling Moss, a true legend.

[@pixelghostclyde8717]

You'd be surprised to know how many Pescaresi have no idea there was a Pescara GP. Hopefully at some point Italo will tackle the Parco del Valentino circuit in Turin... It's the venue of the first ever Formula 1 GP, and literally a five minute walk from my home.

[@malthuswasright]

I think this is my favourite type of GPLaps video - the run through of the history of the circuit, of the race, then talking about the mod and then a race. Just perfect. And bravissimo Italo for this stunning piece of work. Great to see it getting some publicity.

[@DSW964]

This is what I come for to watch GPLaps! Just like the Targa Florio last year, this is a circuit on my short list still to visit, preferably to tour in a classic hired car. I’m guessing the condition of the roads will be in a lot more favorable condition than a few of the higher sections up in the Madonie.

[@NiHi557]

I hope this video attracts more people to support Italo by buying the track and enjoying it themselves as well. The insane amount of work that has gone into this, the love and passion and dedication you can feel through the entire lap, it's just a fantastic showcase of the possibilities we have nowadays with modern technology and a man with great skills and passion for this project. Thank you Italo for your work on this project, and thank you Jake for covering this circuit with a video, excellent as usual!

[@italotracks2277]

Thanks Nico ❤

[@federicotombolini_]

Last year I spent some days at the beach in a town near Pescara and the last day I decided to spend the afternoon looking for the exact roads to drive on them. I found almost ALL the hilly section without traffic: it's not necessary to say that it was impossible to go slowly... 😁 Wonderful experience, a true wonder in the history not only of F1 (after all, the only F1 Pescara GP was a replace race) but of Grand Prix racing in general! Many great victories were achieved there, some tragic event happened... Fun fact: like the indianapolis 500,the Coppa Acerbo hosted on this circuit used to have a fixed date in the race calendar: the 15th August, the Virgin Mary's Absumption day/Ferragosto!

[@MrShidPasta]

One of the best tracks ever made for AC, a true gem!!

[@OdoruCuriosidades]

I really hope this video is widely watchen. Italo deserves far, far higher recognition

[@douglasdixon524]

31:50, I'm amazed at the electric train tracks on the left complete with wires up top.

[@stenovitz]

As always stimulating and excellent presentation from our prime simracing channel. Enjoyed this Italotracks masterpiece for last couple of months in VR, mostly in the 60s Bizzarrini 5300 GT Corsa and the Iso Grifo A3/C against even and odd creatures as the Ferrari 250 TRI-61, Maserati 460S, Porsche 906/7/8, Ferrari 250 GTO Series II, Cunningham C-4R, Ford X-1, Ferrari 330 P3/4, 1973/74 Porsche Carrera RSR, 1953 Jaguar C-Type, Pantera Di Tomaso, Shelby Daytona Coupe and the like. And then as installation laps - just cruising around in VR. Taking my time for small recreational stops, stepping out of the car and noticing details. Then panning in free cam mode around in a rollercoaster of a VR experience. ...just to confirm that this....that it's truly a +5000 man hour mastodon thrilling track mod work. 5000+ hours as stated by the modder. Every penny worth it.

[@DonatProdanSimRacing]

An absolute GP Laps classic of a video. Everything you could want really. Well said at the beginning, about road racing in the early days, definitely agree and it's exactly that what makes me love historic racing. That art of travelling and racing is sadly completely gone in today's sprint-focused motorsport, even in rally, with only 300 km of running and short stages broken up by frequent visits to the service park, racing and rallying has become too much of the flatout, qualifying-like hotlap nonsense, but I'm going off topic here. I wonder if the comments about this wonderful Pescara mod and historic sportscar endurance racing communities mean something, perhaps a little tease of things to come?

[@torp95]

Absolutely love these deep history stories I never knew the Suez Crisis effected F1

[@sergioloro]

Jake vid are great, no doubt, it is like a time travel or something, keep up good work, and Pescara is a master pierce

[@jaytoppo1670]

Jake's presentations are always superb, brilliant work mate!!

[@TalesFromTheBlahSide]

I remember Jacques Villeneuve saying he liked Spa because it felt like you were going somewhere.

[@AidanMillward]

Seen this place a few times in passing when doing videos. Never seen how it actually looks. Gets a solid no out of ten here. I ain't learning that, I'll just direct people here instead!

[@JeanSuki]

I have always adored Italo's Napoli! Visited Pescara many times, excited!

[@MrHondaguy1]

Had to time the flying kilometer. You did it in 12.67 according to my phone timer with a speed of 284kph or 176Mph. Moving right along there!!!

[@jcgabriel1569]

Nice to see that the flying kilometer timed section works as well as intended!

[@chillrobots]

Please never stop making these videos Jake. You're the best

[@dieterronsberg5970]

@italotracks: BRAVISSIMO!!!!! 👏👏👏👏🙏👍

[@italotracks2277]

Grazie! 😊

[@blainvance409]

How great it is when GPLaps and Assetto Corsa get together.

[@lorddrac_dontaskmetodance]

The crazy long and technical circuits of the 50s and 60s, like this, is why I still highly regard Fangio, Clark, Brabham, and Jackie Stewart as amongst the best F1 drivers along with the F1 legends of the past 50 years. I just can't imagine many drivers on the current grid could handle this.

[@Villoresi]

Very nice! Italotracks and I talked in comments sections,and there were a few more chicanes added in the mid/late 1930s, probably to try to slow the German cars down. Also, the roads after the first right/left to start the lap used to be notably different before WWII. As for F1 and the track selection, you had Old Spa, Reims, Monaco, Bremgarten, and Pedralbes. Not of the same scale, but I guess, Zandvoort was technically a road circuit in the beginning. They'd run the short course in 1952, but I think 1957 was the 1st time the French GP was on the roughly 4-mile version of Rouen. In 1958-60, you had Porto, Monsanto Park (Lisbon), Ain Diab (Casablanca), the Berlin-AVUS, and Sebring. Even in the 1960s and into the '60s, you also had Clermont-Ferrand and Montjuich Park. When trying to get into more detail, it seems like maybe the 2 main straights are more like 3.4 miles each, but in any case, it definitely isn't a track where 2/3rds of the lap is straights. And as far as period, British F1 cars went, Aston Martin sat on the DBR4 for too long. Yeah, Sportscars definitely seem like the ticket here. And even though the last race was held in 1961, I don't think using cars up through things like the Ferrari 312 PB, Alfa Romeo Tipo 33/3, or Matra-Simca MS670 would feel out of place, because the Targa Florio itself was a round of the old FIA WSC up through 1973.

[@JAubrey11]

The best GPLaps-Video format in my opinion: Little bit of history, great views, historic context followed by a race. Keep on the good work 🙂

[@pera2524]

very cool video comment from Italy, (I live next to Pescara and I have been there many times)

[@BrotherJP333SP]

Fantastic driving on an awesome track. It's fascinating to see just how much the wheels bounce around down those very long straightaways. If you ever do HRRC again this track would be a great addition to the calendar.

[@ajnaguy]

Cheers, Jake, for featuring the work of talented and passionate modders on your channel! Always happy to buy and drive them, especially with the historical context you provide. Picked up both Pescara and Napoli (also gorgeous) based on this video. Thanks and Happy Holidays!

[@craigyirush3492]

Great video as always. Richard Williams, the British journalist, wrote a good short book on this race (‘The Last Road Race’).

[@foowashere]

Highly recommend book!

[@alejandroconzon2230]

As always, thanks for the work you put into this. I find myself constantly visiting this channel because I consider it one of the best sources of video essays on car history on KZbin - but with the added experience of being there, inside the cockpit, feeling the suspension, the grip, and the behavior of the machine. I'm a car designer; I studied in Torino, Italy, and lived there for a year and a half. These guys really capture the vibe of the place. I did a lot of mountain road trips back then, and luckily, I had a friend who owned an M235i, so we went on road trips as much as we could while studying. Italy is truly magic; it deserves to be visited and experienced. There are places that have changed almost nothing at all - it feels like going back in time. Due to current constraints, I'm only playing the latest Power & Glory mod. I kind of created a Frankenstein mix of cars, trucks… I made quite a mess, but I tried to recreate the variety of Gran Turismo 5, let’s say. My point is that thanks to this channel, I discovered that there was actually a Targa Florio map, and how good it was. I find myself doing some laps here and there with a 360 controller - I've got it quite finely tuned now. It's like my daily relaxation spot; I run the Targa almost every day. It takes me an average of 35-40 minutes to complete a run, so I just pick a specific town, close the game, and resume working. It really takes me back to Italy; they did such a good job with so much love and care. Anyways, thanks again, dude. I’ll be waiting for the next one as always.

[@anthonyrausch5708]

5:22 - These are my “FAVORITE” track type; just “A NICE” drive through the countryside……. 👍👍👍👍👍👍👍

[@petertelinde130]

Great story telling, you are like a living classic racing encyclopedia. Thank you for another masterpiece.

[@ilikecakeandbiscuits]

Cool, I actually stayed in Spoltore last November, drove some of the track in a horrific Lancia but it was a lot of fun

[@JURacing]

these type of history-lessons are just amazing. Nobody comes close to GPLaps doing videos like this. You just set another benchmark, Jake!

[@grayfool]

These amazing tracks and cars just keep coming for AC. Excellent video, thanks so much.

[@ajrichar0]

Jake, can you give us a part 2 video of the last World Sportscar Race with a full grid of cars? Showcasing this magnificent circuit across different classes of cars demonstrates how versatile this track can be for authentic historic sim racing, and we get to see you plying your trade so skilfully again. 👌

[@John-i9q1e]

Another lyrical masterpiece Jake, well done! I always look forward to your historical essays and wish you all the best for 2025 and the Holiday season :-)

[@chsinger96]

This is THE video I've been longing for since I've really gotten into old F1 tracks back when I was like barely a teenager. I'm 28 now and finally it's happening, I'm so excited!🙏🏼

[@Skumtomten1]

This is so well made, both the track and video. Masterpiece.

[@brian7591]

Your track review videos are second to none. I love them. Thank you

[@mineplow1000]

Your read-ins/intros to tracks and the like from history are genuinely beautiful. Thanks.

[@mschrappe]

Great vid! Lot's of historic info. Very nice! Thanks.

[@YoShImUrA53]

What an amazing track to drive on! Excellent job on the modders for making it so "lived-in" and authentic. I think this is my first comment on this channel. Cheers for years of great content!

[@misfortuneteller24]

Beautiful. Thank you for this!

[@XUE-pe2vj]

GPLaps you are the best yuotuber ever i watch all your videos! love em!

[@DabDabGoose]

favourite yt channel also best narrative voice ever.

[@ElAmokoLoco]

Best virtual racing channel on KZbin. Thank you very much for all the background information. Oh, and great driving as well.

[@postmax81]

Masterful presentation! Very enjoyable and educative.

[@Darkmouse20001]

Completely irrelevant to the video, but I got caught out by unforeseen weather at Pescara having transited over the spine of Italy, and ended up having to descend through 7000 feet of freezing cloud in an aircraft without an icing clearance. Fun times!

[@acetuned5242]

Thank u for keep releasing these vintage racing sim videos...u have really sparked my passion for driving the old cars and tracks in sims whenever I can. I really enjoy the history of the tracks, cars and driver's of the day which really helps to bring it life just that bit more 👍👌

[@mgrzx3367]

Have you read Mike Lang's Grand Prix! A race by race account of Formula One Championship Racing? I have three volumes covering 1950 to 1980.

[@koini11]

I really enjoyed this! Your enthusiasm for the history and culture of these races is obvious and very easy to share. GP laps is partly to blame for me doing a lap of one of the Targa Florio loops this summer. Pescara looks good fun too!

[@KeithWarrior]

As usual an entertaining, informative and beautifully crafted video. In common with many other commenters, this is my favourite type of content by Jake. Well done mate & I look forward to more masterpieces in 2025!

[@adriafitzy6459]

Great mod, and great exploration. But I do say- if you want the true spirit of those point to point races, look to Baja! The true spirit of "one start line, one finish, everyone go like hell and see you there".

[@jamestanner7340]

Great video Jake! I love all of your videos, what with the history and education, and of course the racing. Great job!! Love your channel brother!!

[@DaveAbbott-h8z]

Great video, atmospheric and informative as ever, what a course! You should definitely do an endurance event, would be fantastic in historic sportscars.

[@zerofox975]

Brilliant video! (As usual!)

[@nikbear]

Fantastic video, GT cars would be awesome to watch 👍🍻

[@TCobra190]

That was a beautiful history, Jake. Thank you for the cool history lesson.

[@DeolTheBeast]

Great video and review of the circuit's history - what a track to of held an F1 race

[@blackmac1970]

Another amazing video.

[@loicalex]

My Grand mother was from a small village close to Pescara. She was still in Italy during those years... I would've talked about it with her if she was still there 🥲

[@darioallende4191]

Beautiful mod, awesome video.

[@donleblanc2669]

Just amazing ! so cool to learn about the history .

[@mrbluetone8977]

Thanks, great, entertaining video. I struggle to complete a lap on this track!! Excellent driving

[@JCG-Alfamonza]

Weirdly, I find it much easier to memorize where the road goes in Pescara than in the Nurburgring. Though I should point out that I tested an earlier pre-release version, and I almost always fail to brake in time for the final chicane... Maybe it's because of the fact that I can use various landmarks as visual cues for braking and cornering, whereas at the Nurburgring, it is much harder to do so. I mean, apart from the marker boards, the other visual markers you can use were the trees, but it's harder to pick one when there's thousands of them...

[@heian8868]

Master video, thanks.

[@PCRacer101]

another amazing content.... thank you

[@electropneumatic]

Jake you deserve so many more subscribers.

[@alitrin04]

your videos are always so immersive

[@benovichboucharenski]

Ah! out of complete randomess i can finally be the first to comment here. Hey mate, i love you, glad to see you keep on driving our beloved pieces of history. Let me know if you want some dedicated settings to make your videos more immersive graphically from the racing point of view, or even create more aggressive opponents. Got some results with other classes, you might love them. Kisses!

[@Arkham_UK]

Wow what an amazing video. I learnt loads

[@JohnAnderson4242]

I love this course !

[@mej6519]

lovely history lesson jake.

[@summerbeeme]

just great, just great!! could you think about setting up any kind of 60' "Targa Florio Like" line-up on this same track? Wouldn't it be interesting? Thank You!!!!

[@thegreathadoken6808]

Let's all go racing down at the track to celebrate being alive! All 8 billion of us!

[@VeloSquish]

Great video but BRM V16 - everyone forgets! A car we still don't have a good model for in any sim.

[@JCG-Alfamonza]

We made the 1951 version of the V16 on rFactor a few years back...

[@VeloSquish]

@JCG-Alfamonza Amazing, would love to port it to AC

[@superferrariman]

YOU HAVE ANY IDEA HOW LONG I HAVE WAITED FOR A DEVENT VERSION OF THIS??? 😍😍😍😍

[@16jan1986]

We need some of theese races back....would force real change in f1 and bring spa back

[@ThomasDeverell]

Brilliant.

[@Nickyy64]

CLASSIC GPLAPS CONTENT

[@MegaF1guy]

You did the flying km on the second lap in 12.92 seconds.

[@GPLaps]

173mph 😎

[@mitchell-wallisforce7859]

No better way to make an event feel grand than to crank the "distance" dial all the way up. A logistical nightmare for safety & event coverage, and properly expensive to pull off, but damn has it ever been worth it. For all the era's many flaws, it had the good stuff: plucky garagisti annoying the factory teams, the majesty of scale, the variety of the machinery. Not a whole lot of any of that left, even in rallying.

[@LRSNRCNG309]

The vanwall and the 250f were the best 50s gp cars imo. Moss won silverstone in the vanwall but i don't remember if he got more wins with it than that

[@stevengabriel3269]

Great vid... great track. Kinda wish you had paced yourself... stay 2nd or 3rd until, say, 3-4 to go, then jump 'em. My 2 cents... hhehehehe

[@MsZeeZed]

As mad as it seems, welcome to the peak post-war nostalgia of the mid 1950s as Formula racing was codified on commercial circuits, but still ached for its daring golden past 😺

[@wildarms007]

If this ever came to iRacing, it would be cool to see a 24 hour endurance race here.

[@BadWallaby]

These videos are so fucking good bro. Love the deep dive and lore before the race

[@DavidCaudry]

Jarno Trulli was born in Pescara

[@JCG-Alfamonza]

Ever since it was released a few months ago, I am wondering when would GPLaps feature this gem of a circuit on his channel... And, yes, the Vanwall is known to be not as good as a 250F when it comes to handling. It is known to be an understeerer, and it didnt help that the gearbox is unfriendly for the drivers. What it does have is power, it should always be more powerful than a 6 cylinder 250F. If I remember correctly, it should have around 10-15BHP more than a 1957-spec works 250F. That and the aerodynamic bodywork should also give it another advantage over the Maserati in the form of top speed. It should be able to outrun a 250F on a fast circuit. Hence why at the Italian Grand Prix, Fangio elected not to chase Moss because he knew that in sheer pace at Monza, he will only risk breaking his car trying to chase Moss down. He basically elected to play the waiting game, as the Vanwall still had some streak of unreliability at that point, as the vibrations from the four cylinder engine tends to cause problems with the fuel lines and throttle linkages...

[@RomanShopa]

Speaking of classics - what do you think about the Macao track? I've got strange recollections of it here.

[@ILoveCaptainCommandoPlsBrngBck]

WE'VE GOT ANOTHER GPLAPS VID!

[@ArtucoDev]

BRING BACK PESCARA

[@flaviobacceli2248]

Im from Pescara 😂 i know all this places, and i know about Coppa Acerbo cuz my grandfather always went to see this motor event

[@AlasdairLowe-z3o]

Enzo didn't often say 'too dangerous!'