Lot 275: Alfa Romeo Spider "Veloce Monoposto"

Est. 140hp, 1,300 cc dual overhead camshaft inline four-cylinder engine, five-speed manual gearbox, independent front suspension with dampers, rear trailing arm and live rear axle with dampers, four-wheel Girling hydraulic drum brakes. Wheelbase: 87" Agile to drive with excellent road holding, a clean aerodynamic body and an engine with superior qualities, the Alfa Romeo Giulietta Spider typified Italian sports cars of the mid-fifties. In 1956, an upgraded Giulietta Spider Veloce, more commonly known simply as the Spider Veloce, was introduced, primarily for drivers who intended to go racing. This version was equipped with a dual-cam 1,300 cc, dual Weber-carbureted alloy engine capable of producing 90 horsepower. The gas tank was enlarged to better prepare the car for endurance racing, while the larger front brakes provided excellent stopping power. Weight was reduced by using aluminum for the doors, hood and trunk lid, ultimately improving performance. The most desirable variant, however, was certainly the Veloce Monoposto, of which only 24 were built by Alfa Romeo for direct factory-backed racing efforts. These cars were fitted with race-tuned Veloce engines, modified suspension, alloy body panels, and an aluminum tonneau cover, which accounted for the Monoposto designation. Just five examples were to stay in Europe while the remaining 19 were shipped to America. Two were distributed to SCCA Amateur racers: one went to the legendary Carroll Shelby and another to West Coast driver Bill Pollack of southern California. With Pollack, that chassis went on to win numerous events at Riverside, Pomona, Palm Springs and Monterey. The Alfa Romeo offered here was formerly owned by racing driver Al Leake, Jr. and is equipped with various sporting modifications faithful to the original factory Veloce Monopostos. It was campaigned by Leake from 1974 to 1976 and won numerous SCCA national events. While racing at Laguna Seca in 1978, however, the car was involved in an accident and had to be fully rebuilt with unibody number AR 1495-02646. It has been suggested that Al Leake's car, before its accident damage, was the original Monoposto of Bill Pollack. However, as there is no record of the original serial number, nor corroborative documentation or ownership trail to support this claim, therefore any connection to Pollack is speculative at best. Furthermore, the motor number of this particular car does not match any of the numbers listed for the Monoposto cars and is actually a 101 series 1300 cc engine built around 1961/62. Nevertheless, if Al Leake's Alfa was in fact the ex-Pollack Monoposto, it is plausible that the alloy doors, hood and trunk fitted to unibody AR 1495-02646 are from a damaged factory Monoposto. Following its restoration, Leake continued campaigning this car successfully in numerous SCCA and vintage racing events, including the historic Mille Miglia in 1991. During the mid-1990s it was treated to a complete nut and bolt restoration and was awarded Race Car Best in Class at the 1996 Alfa Romeo National Concours. It features a welded-in roll bar and safety structure, on-board fire extinguisher, safety harness and race seat. The car has also been updated with a modern fuel cell in place of its original fuel tank and is fully plumbed with modern stainless steel braided lines from front to back. Well-suited for a wide variety of vintage events, including the famed Mille Miglia and California Mille, this Alfa is also accompanied by FIA documentation and multiple historical documents, including first hand accounts of the races, repairs and restoration that occurred during Al Leake's ownership  truly a fascinating account of a remarkable Alfa Romeo.