Editorial
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Oscar Benedetti: a story of passion, engines and healthy “madness”
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Passionaccia. The copyrights of the word belong to Enrico Mentana, a famous Italian journalist who titled one of his books in this way. “Passionaccia is a fever that struck me as a young boy and never left me. It is the love for a total profession which absorbs you completely, which gives you both adrenaline and wisdom”. Words which, in his case, are dedicated to journalism but that are also perfectly suited to karting.
At least karting as understood by Oscar Benedetti, born in 1950 in Cesena (Italy), custom builder, engine designer, owner of the company Motori Seven and of the chassis brand Oberon Racing Kart. Benedetti is one of those people who have experienced and lived the passion for engines since childhood: “At 4 years of age I was already riding my dad’s motorbike – he says – running around the low-traffic streets of half a century ago. In fifth grade I put together two Garelli Mosquito auxiliary engines with roller drive [used to transform bicycles into motorized vehicles. Editor’s note] and I created what I believe remains the only two-cylinder Mosquito in history”.
Motorbikes were the main interest of young Benedetti who, as a boy, busy in his dad’s construction business, still managed to build with some friends a 50 and a 250-cc engine with which Marcellino Lucchi, who later became a test driver for Aprilia, raced. As it sometimes happens even in the most beautiful stories, however, a sudden turn of destiny reserved a terrible surprise: on May 16th, 1976, at the Nations Grand Prix at the Mugello Circuit, the weekend was fatal for Paolo Tordi (class 350, fallen from the saddle and run over by his own bike) and Otello Buscherini (class 250, who died on arrival at the hospital after a similar accident). Benedetti was on the track and witnessed the tragedy. He had known the two drivers since he was very young, when the “gangs” of Cesena and Forlì challenged each other with their mopeds along the sunny streets. “After that race I admit that I thought it no longer made sense to continue. I knew Tordi very well, I even worked for him as a mechanic. Fortunately, after some time, a friend of mine convinced me to try a kart. I liked it very much and started racing even if I was already 27 years old. Actually, I raced for quite a while, from the 125 Junior to the 125 Super. Apart from a couple of races with Rotax, I have always raced with engines prepared, modified or totally built by me. At the time, the regulations were much more lenient and allowed me to give vent to my passion for mechanics. During my first year in the 125 Super, I mounted the cylinder of a Grand Prix Harley 150 on an Asco engine. On another occasion I built five Benelli engines for me and my friends. Between the connecting rod, piston, cylinder and various modifications, I believe that the only original Benelli parts were the bearing cases”.
Born in 1950, Oscar was born in Cesena (Italy), the city where his Motori Seven is located. The company was formally founded in 1994, but Benetti’s manufacturing activity began in 1978. Currently, Benetti also manufactures chassis under the Oberon Racing Kart brand.
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