Susanna Raganelli

Susanna "Susy" Raganelli is an Italian former racing driver and kart racer. Raganelli won the Karting World Championship in 1966 with Tecno, and remains the only female to have won a four-wheel World Championship.

Early and personal life

Raganelli was born on 21 February 1946 in Rome, Italy. Her father, Cesare Raganelli, was a local Alfa Romeo car dealer.
From the 1970s until his death in 2021, Raganelli was married to fellow racing driver Giancarlo Naddeo, who won the Italian Formula Three Championship in 1971. She encouraged Naddeo to retire from single-seater racing after an accident saw him suffer a broken leg and fractured skull.

Career

In 1965 she won the karting Italian 100cc Super championship, and in 1966 helped her countrymen win the European Nation's Championship.

1966 CIK-FIA World Championship

Raganelli won the 100 cc Karting World Championship in 1966 in a Tecno–Parilla, beating Leif Engström and Ronnie Peterson, and remains the only female to have won a four-wheel World Championship.

Alfa Romeo

She also raced for Alfa Romeo, driving the Alfa Romeo GTA. She was the "first Italian buyer" of the Alfa Romeo 33 Stradale, of which only 12 were produced.