• Ridden in the Italian Senior Championship in period
• Restored in the Morbidelli Museum workshop
• Fairing and rear enclosure left un-restored and original

Few marques have achieved so fine a competition record in so short a time as Mondial. Founded in Bologna in 1929 by the Boselli brothers (FB = Fratelli Boselli), Mondial concentrated on the manufacture of commercial vehicles at first, only turning to motorcycles in 1948. Flying in the face of accepted wisdom, engineer Alfonso Drusiani believed that it was possible for a four-stroke to compete against the two-strokes - fielded by MV Agusta and Morini - then dominating the ultra-lightweight class. After a successful debut season in 1948 which saw works rider Nello Pagani win the Italian Grand Prix, the little Mondial was further improved for 1949, and Pagani duly brought Mondial its first World Championship. Mondial's dominance of the 125-class remained just as overwhelming for the next two years, Bruno Ruffo taking the title in 1950 and Carlo Ubbiali in 1951, before Cecil Sandford struck back for MV Agusta in 1952.

The 175cc class was an important one in continental Europe and the 125 was duly bored-out from 53mm to 66mm to achieve the required extra capacity. Revving to 9,000rpm, it produced 20bhp-plus. Riding one of the new 175cc Mondial singles in 1954, rising star Tarquinio Provini won the arduous eight-day 1,989-mile Moto Giro d'Italia to start his debut season as a works rider in fine style. But even Provini's prodigious talent could not make up for a lack of machine development, and the mid-1950s would prove to be relatively lean years for Mondial.

Then, in 1957, Drusiani drew up an entirely new 246cc bialbero (twin-cam) single and revamped the existing 125. The result was a magnificent return to former glory, Provini ending the season as 125cc World Champion while newly recruited Cecil Sandford took the 250 crown. Sadly, what should have been the dawning of a new golden age for the Bologna marque was not to be: Mondial, along with Moto Guzzi and Gilera, withdrew from Grand Prix racing at the season's end, and although the firm built a number of - mainly two-stroke - racers in the 1960s, it never achieved the same heights.

This 175cc Mondial is an ex-factory machine ridden in the Italian Senior Championship in 1955/1956 by Tarquinio Provini among others. The machine was restored in the Morbidelli Museum workshop with the exception of the original fairing and rear enclosure, which retain their original factory paintwork. There are no documents with this Lot.