Friday 12 October 2018

Albert Divo (1895-1966)


Albert Divo was born in Paris on 24 January 1895 under the name of Albert Eugène Diwo. After service as a fighter pilot in the First World War, he worked as a mechanic. His career as a racing driver started with Sunbeam and Talbot-Darracq in 1919.

Albert Divo enjoyed rapid success and won the 1923 Spanish Grand Prix in Sitges In 1924, he moved to Delage and entered a number of sprint races in France. In 1926 and 1927, he again raced for Talbot, where he was less successful as a result of problems with an insufficiently mature design. He then returned to Delage but was not entered for any races.

When Talbot and Delage retired from racing, Divo joined Bugatti’s works team in 1928. The same year, he won the Targa Florio in Sicily driving a Type 35 B. He repeated this success the following year. He took third place at Spa in 1930. Up to 1933 he entered further races for Bugatti with the Types 51, 53 and 54, as well as hillclimbs with the Types 45 and 47. From 1936, he raced for Delahaye and Talbot.

Albert Divo retired from racing in 1939. Following the Second World War, Albert Divo worked as racing manager for Castrol. In 1962, he was a founder member of the Club International des Anciens Pilotes de Grand Prix F1 in Villars-sur-Ollon (Switzerland). Divo received the Legion of Honour.
He then lived quiet life and died in Morsang-sur-Orge to the south of Paris on 19 November 1966.