After an exclusive visit to the museum, the team warmly welcomed Mr. Bloomquist to the Sala del Consiglio of the Museum in Arese, where the design of the 33 Stradale was approved in 1967, now the Bottega Alfa Romeo’s headquarters. In this symbolic place, the brand's designers, engineers and historians met and listened to the 33 owners, then created alongside them what have become unique works of art and an authentic “manifesto” of the Italian brand’s capabilities – now and in the future – in terms of style and driving experience.
Made in only 33 exclusive units, for 33 of the brand’s fans, the new two-seater coupé combines heritage and the future, and is produced according to a unique artisanal process with the highest quality standards and obsessive attention to detail, exactly the same way as in Renaissance artisan boutiques and in the 1960s workshops of renowned Italian coachbuilders. One of these was the renowned Carrozzeria Touring Superleggera, which went on to leave its mark on some of the most beautiful Alfa Romeos of all time and now plays a leading role in the production of the new 33 Stradale.
Within the historic and glorious walls of the Bottega Alfa Romeo, the U.S. entrepreneur told his story completely naturally and with great emotional involvement, showing he felt at ease in the Alfa Romeo Tribe and even more so in the small circle of owners of the new 33 Stradale, true ambassadors of the Italian brand and its values in the four corners of the Earth.
Made in only 33 exclusive units, for 33 of the brand’s fans, the new two-seater coupé combines heritage and the future, and is produced according to a unique artisanal process with the highest quality standards and obsessive attention to detail, exactly the same way as in Renaissance artisan boutiques and in the 1960s workshops of renowned Italian coachbuilders. One of these was the renowned Carrozzeria Touring Superleggera, which went on to leave its mark on some of the most beautiful Alfa Romeos of all time and now plays a leading role in the production of the new 33 Stradale.
Within the historic and glorious walls of the Bottega Alfa Romeo, the U.S. entrepreneur told his story completely naturally and with great emotional involvement, showing he felt at ease in the Alfa Romeo Tribe and even more so in the small circle of owners of the new 33 Stradale, true ambassadors of the Italian brand and its values in the four corners of the Earth.
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MotorTranscript
00:00 (soft music)
00:02 Passion for racing came when I was born
00:07 in an Air Force Base Hospital (laughs)
00:10 that had, it was a B-52 bomber base for the Air Force.
00:14 So maybe because I got it at birth
00:16 because I was born at the Air Force Base Hospital,
00:19 maybe, I don't know, not sure.
00:20 The story of learning of the 33 Stradale
00:24 is quite fortuitous for me, maybe lucky you would say,
00:27 but in that I was invited by the local
00:31 Austin Alfa Romeo dealership to attend a hot lap session.
00:35 But afterward, we visited the Alfa Romeo hospitality area
00:39 and was asking about why, with the rich history,
00:43 why doesn't Alfa Romeo have a supercar?
00:45 The lady, the marketing lady I was talking to
00:48 kind of went, "Wow."
00:49 I didn't say anything (laughs)
00:51 and came back and introduced me to Cristiano
00:54 who told me confidentially about the project.
00:57 It's very unusual in my experience
01:00 to have a horizontal stripe.
01:03 And so that struck me as very distinctive
01:05 of the T-Po 33 race car.
01:08 And so I tried to do a modern interpretation of that stripe
01:13 and of course every race car has to have a number.
01:16 And so I wanted the number 14.
01:20 14 was a special number for me
01:22 because of the, again, heritage and history of racing
01:27 for Enzo Ferrari when he drove for Alfa Romeo, number 14.
01:32 And then my American racing hero, A.J. Foyt
01:36 from Houston, Texas, of course, had number 14
01:40 and had that number when he won four Indianapolis 500s
01:43 in many, many races.
01:45 - How many Italian cars you have?
01:48 - Four.
01:49 - Are your cars jewel in the museum?
01:52 Or you like to drive them?
01:54 - No, no museum for me.
01:55 I drive all the cars, including on the track.
01:58 (car engine revving)
02:01 - You love that sound?
02:02 - Oh, of course, that's the best part.
02:04 I told Cristiano, make sure the 33 Stradale sounds
02:09 very nice.
02:10 And the Bottega process was very specialized,
02:14 very customized.
02:15 You know, I did two trips to Torino
02:18 and very detailed sessions and worked with, you know,
02:23 computer renderings to look at different angles of the car
02:28 and did subsequently Zoom calls with the team
02:33 to come up with the, you know, the final configuration
02:37 and feeling, you know, you get that's indicative
02:40 of Alfa Romeo's rich heritage that you get
02:43 that's more than a, you know, it's not really an automobile.
02:46 It's really a passion for a way of life,
02:49 really of being an Alfa customer and part of the Alfa family
02:53 which I felt through the Bottega process
02:55 that now I'm really part of the family as a result.
02:59 And I'm truly grateful and honored to be able to represent
03:04 the brand in this fashion.
03:05 (silence)
03:07 [BLANK_AUDIO]