SPARCO HISTORY

It was 1977 when, in the Formula 1 World Championship, Niki Lauda graduated for the second time world champion with the 312 T2. In , three young rally drivers, who dreamed to give the world of motoring more safety and more style, founded SPARCO, acronym of Società Produzione ARticoli COmpetizione .

In the year following its foundation SPARCO produces its first suit - able to withstand 20 seconds on fire - and, in 1979, his first racing seat. After only a few months, SPARCO products become a point of reference for the world of automotive competitions: fireproof suits, running shoes, protective gloves and helmets become a must for pilots seeking greater safety.

In 1983, after only five years from its foundation, the first world championship arrived: Nelson Piquet, on Brabham BT52 he won the Formula 1 championship wearing a SPARCO suit. The brand continues its growth and one world after another arrives at his first twenty years that also coincides with the opening of its first factory in Tunisia, a sign of an unstoppable business expansion. Only a year earlier, in 1996, the company had landed in the United States with SPARCO Motor Sport Inc. in California: a strategic location to expand into the vast and competitive American racing market.

Thus was born the SPARCO Group which, starting from the 2000s, diversified its business entering with force in the segment of auto components in carbon fiber ("Original Equipment Manufacturer - OEM") for the most important sports and luxury supercars.

The corporate turnover in the summer of 2009 is decisive for the further company growth: Aldino Bellazzini becomes the majority shareholder and Claudio Pastoris is appointed CEO of the Volpiano company. The Group's philosophy finds new life: safety and style are the fundamental concepts around which the SPARCO world revolves.

In 2014 the company uses its cutting-edge technology to develop "Infinity", a suit unique with unlimited possibilities. With the technology and the by now consolidated skills the creativity has no limits: you can use an original drawing or your favorite images customer to create an exclusive dream suit with over 64,000 color combinations available. The strong collaboration with the McLaren Formula 1 team - started in 1997 and that continues today - it is the starting point for developing a new concept of race clothing. In 2016, thanks to the indications provided by pilots and engineers, SPARCO® launches "Prime" on the market, the lightest suit ever released by the Volpiano factory. Only 600 grams and a 2-layer structure for comfort and lightness never achieved before. As far as the OEM is concerned, the innovation and excellence achieved allow, to date, for be a partner of the most exclusive manufacturers - such as , Aston Martin, , Lotus, Bugatti and Ford.

For the structural parts instead, always in composite, the business born from the is now also extended to aeronautics through the consolidation of technical partners such as Augusta-Westland, Airbus and Sikorsky. Today the Group presents itself with further innovations: the core business of the company is always that of Motorsport but the initiatives linked to "other worlds" are not lacking. From the concept of safety - which has always been a pivotal point in the brand's history - SPARCO® Teamwork was born: the line of safety shoes with the unmistakable Racing style, a tangible expression of the strong know-how. developed in the field of personal protective equipment. From the great experience accumulated in the development of seats and composite materials is born instead SPARCO Gaming with which the company arrogantly enters the world of E-sports and SIM Racing thus becoming a reference point also for the virtual world.

SPARCO TIMELINE

1977 Sparco, an acronym for Società Production ARticoli COmpetizione, was born from the dream of two young rally drivers from Turin, Enrico Glorioso and Antonio Parisi, who understand the importance of safety in the racing world. It was in fact a period of great and serious accidents. The idea takes shape in the first fireproof suit.

1983 Nelson Piquet wins the F1 world championship wearing a Sparco suit. In the same year the 037 triumphed in the World Rally Championship equipped with Sparco seats.

1990 Start Sparco production linked to the world of car processing and tuning.

1999 Sparco enters the world of supercars and carbon technology by acquiring the composite division of Simbi-Stampal.

2002 Collaborations are born with Bugatti, Lamborghini, Bentley, Ferrari, , Alfa Romeo: the most prestigious brands use Sparco technology.

2009 Aldino Bellazzini becomes the majority shareholder of Sparco. Respecting its own tradition of technology, safety and innovation, the company begins a new period of constant growth.

2017 It is called Prime SP-16 and it is the new Sparco fireproof suit dedicated to the world of F1, the lightest in the world.

2018 New business areas are developed, such as those related to gaming products and safety shoes.

2019 Today Sparco employs around 800 people employed all over the world, from Europe to America and Africa. There are 80 countries in which our distribution is present and the presence in motorsport at the highest levels, from F1 with Alfa Romeo Racing and McLaren to the WRC, with Citroën Racing and Ford.