The Scuderia Enzo Ferrari was founded in 1929. Enzo Ferrari (born in 1898) had been a driver/mechanic in Alfa Romeo. The latter had turned away from car racing after the nationalisation in 1930 and left racing activities with Alpha Romeo cars to the Scuderia Ferrari. This caused immediate success but led to conflicts as well because Ferrari did not always immediately get the cars he wanted. They went their own ways again when Alpha Romeo resumed control of racing activities in 1939. Although Ferrari had committed himself by contract not to be active in racing for four years, he successfully drove in races again the next year. Not under his own company name of course, but under the name 'Auto Avio'.

Because of the destructions from World War II the company was not reopened in Modena, but in Maranello and in 1947 the first three Ferrari 125 models were presented. From the beginning the name Ferrari was connected with racing victories and, notwithstanding a few years of failure, it is till today (2005). Up to his death in 1988 Enzo Ferrari kept his authority of the racing department.