Maserati got sold to DI Risio

A splendid Italian motorsport brand is gearing up for a comeback thanks to its recent reboot. Let's talk about OSCA, the acronym for the legendary Officine Specializzate Costruzioni Automobili, which since 1947 has written an essential page in Italian automotive history and in just a few years has become a benchmark in the racing world. Despite its success, the company closed its doors in 1967 after transitioning from the Maserati brothers to the Agusta family.

Restart OSCA
OSCA was relaunched by DR Automobiles owner Massimo Di Risio, who acquired the rights to the company's car development from Fabia Maserati, the grandson of one of the founders of the House of Trident and daughter of the late heir Alfieri Maserati. Died last January. Maserati's decision to give the job to Di Licio is based on the excellent lessons behind the Molise entrepreneur himself.

A successful ex-driver, Di Risio was also able to reinvent himself as a businessman in the automotive world and immediately established himself in the automotive market with his DR Automobiles (here we talk about the brand's exponential growth). Talking about the transformation of being an entrepreneur at 62, Fabia Maserati stressed that she sees "the same passion and tenacity" in Di Risio. "Even before he was a successful car entrepreneur, he was a successful driver. His passionate story still has a romantic vision for the world and great entrepreneurial skills," explains Maserati.

So the hopes of the time-honoured OSCA are all pinned on Di Risio, who, as Fabia Maserati reports, has thought of an industrial plan that will significantly reboot the brand (speaking of DR, it's a huge hit successful new SUV).

Entrepreneurs from Molise aren't the only ones interested in the brand in recent years, however, as Alfieri Maserati has often turned down proposals from other big names in the auto industry. Daughter Fabia stressed that the late father intended to revive the glorious brand. Still, she entrusted it to "people like him who have always believed that the smell of gasoline is the most intoxicating of all perfumes, because from the Roar to the most exciting sound, until the car becomes an integral element of one's life."

OSCA, a short but glorious history
During the golden age of 20 years, the cars of professional auto workshops flourished and became famous in Italian motorsports and beyond. In 1914, Alfieri Maserati founded the automaker, following the passion of Carlo Maserati, and within a short period of time it immediately made a name for itself in the sports car world. After Alfieri's death, the brothers Bindo, Ernesto and Ettore inherited the company, which from 1947 was renamed OSCA, Officine Specializzate Costruzioni Automobili - Fratelli Maserati.

The family business immediately made a name for itself with small-displacement racing cars, starting with the MT4, which featured a twin-shaft engine with a displacement of just over 1 litre and a power of just 72 hp, able to win prizes such as the Targa Florio (some of the legendary cars that won it will be in on display at the Heritage Center, which we discussed here). Until the early 1960s, the Maserati brothers were big names in world motorsport, and their small-capacity OSCAs were established all over the world. In 1964 it was sold to the Agusta family. However, the family decided to close the company after just three years.