Uploaded October 2025 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
The first racing Guzzi 350 made its appearance in 1950. A 350 cm³ horizontal single-cylinder (78x73 mm = 348.8 cm³) was mounted on a Gambalunghino chassis, the 250 with which Bruno Ruffo had won the world title in 1949. with double camshaft bevel gear distribution with four needle springs, mounted in a cross pattern, for each of the two valves, magneto ignition and five-speed gearbox. The bike debuted that year on the international circuit of Mettet, in Belgium where, ridden by Enrico Lorenzetti, it held second place until the penultimate lap, when it was forced to retire due to a broken oil pipe. Mysteriously, after the positive debut, this prototype was put aside and replaced, on the occasion of the Tourist Trophy, by a 320 cm³ which was nothing other than an oversized Gambalunghino. Brought to the race by the English champion Maurice Cann, after a colorless race it was stopped by a broken valve. It was most likely this bike that was resurrected in 1953 following Moto Guzzi's decision to officially participate in the 350 class World Championship. Beating the three English brands, Velocette, Norton and AJS, which had held the monopoly on this displacement for decades, was not an easy task, but challenges like this enhanced the Mandello company's desire to win. The 1953 Guzzi 350 was therefore a Gambalunghino with a single-cam version engine increased to 317 cm³ (72x79 mm), a "long stroke" that delivered 31 HP at 7700 rpm and was mounted on the most recent chassis, wrapped in a beak fairing of bird developed in the wind tunnel with which the Italian industry had equipped itself, the first in the world among motorcycle manufacturers, already in 1950. Even lower in power than the English ones, but clearly superior in aerodynamics, this Guzzi 350 debuted victoriously in the international GP at Hockenheim, then placed third in the Tourist Trophy. Certain that he had taken the right path, engineer Giulio Cesare Carcano, designer and technical director of the Mandello racing department, presented the new version during the same season. The engine was completely rebuilt with a bore and stroke of 75x78 mm, then 75x79 mm for a full displacement of 349 cm³; powered by a 35 mm carburettor, it delivered 33 HP at 7500 rpm. In this configuration, Mandello's 350 became invincible: the World Championship was contested exclusively by Fergus Anderson, who won it with three victories, and Enrico Lorenzetti, who placed behind him in the final ranking with two victories. Even in the final GP, in Spain on the Montjuic circuit, Anderson raced in the 500 with the 350 and sensationally imposed himself on the four cylinders of Carlo Bandirola (MV) and Dickie Dale (Gilera).
The first racing Guzzi 350 made its appearance in 1950. A 350 cm³ horizontal single-cylinder (78x73 mm = 348.8 cm³) was mounted on a Gambalunghino chassis, the 250 with which Bruno Ruffo had won the world title in 1949. with double camshaft bevel gear distribution with four needle springs, mounted in a cross pattern, for each of the two valves, magneto ignition and five-speed gearbox. The bike debuted that year on the international circuit of Mettet, in Belgium where, ridden by Enrico Lorenzetti, it held second place until the penultimate lap, when it was forced to retire due to a broken oil pipe. Mysteriously, after the positive debut, this prototype was put aside and replaced, on the occasion of the Tourist Trophy, by a 320 cm³ which was nothing other than an oversized Gambalunghino. Brought to the race by the English champion Maurice Cann, after a colorless race it was stopped by a broken valve. It was most likely this bike that was resurrected in 1953 following Moto Guzzi's decision to officially participate in the 350 class World Championship. Beating the three English brands, Velocette, Norton and AJS, which had held the monopoly on this displacement for decades, was not an easy task, but challenges like this enhanced the Mandello company's desire to win. The 1953 Guzzi 350 was therefore a Gambalunghino with a single-cam version engine increased to 317 cm³ (72x79 mm), a "long stroke" that delivered 31 HP at 7700 rpm and was mounted on the most recent chassis, wrapped in a beak fairing of bird developed in the wind tunnel with which the Italian industry had equipped itself, the first in the world among motorcycle manufacturers, already in 1950. Even lower in power than the English ones, but clearly superior in aerodynamics, this Guzzi 350 debuted victoriously in the international GP at Hockenheim, then placed third in the Tourist Trophy. Certain that he had taken the right path, engineer Giulio Cesare Carcano, designer and technical director of the Mandello racing department, presented the new version during the same season. The engine was completely rebuilt with a bore and stroke of 75x78 mm, then 75x79 mm for a full displacement of 349 cm³; powered by a 35 mm carburettor, it delivered 33 HP at 7500 rpm. In this configuration, Mandello's 350 became invincible: the World Championship was contested exclusively by Fergus Anderson, who won it with three victories, and Enrico Lorenzetti, who placed behind him in the final ranking with two victories. Even in the final GP, in Spain on the Montjuic circuit, Anderson raced in the 500 with the 350 and sensationally imposed himself on the four cylinders of Carlo Bandirola (MV) and Dickie Dale (Gilera).
