Monza, the legendary Italian motor racing circuit is a century old, and IPZS commemorates its history with a silver coin

Anyone with even the slightest interest in motorsport will know the name ‘Monza’. Its full name is the Autodromo Nazionale di Monza, and this 5.8 km racetrack is situated near Monza, north of Milan. It’s the world’s third oldest, purpose built motorsport track (only Brooklands in the UK, and Indianapolis in the US, are older), and with only one exception, has been home to the Italian Grand Prix since 1949, with the 2022 race occurring on 11 September.

Monza actually consists of three tracks, including a recently restored banked oval, with the Grand Prix circuit the longest. It’s also home to the 1000 km Monza endurance race, and a large selection of other car and motorcycle events. In the early days, race safety was in its infancy, and while the sport is now considerably safer, accidents do occur. In all, 90 people have been killed there, 52 of them drivers, 1 a race official, and 37 spectators, no doubt exacerbated by Monza’s fast nature. The 1928 crash of Emilio Materassi killed at least 22 spectators as well, possibly as many as 27, still the worst Grand Prix accident ever.