There will be only 33 examples in the world. And one of them has just been delivered in the USA, in Texas, to an American entrepreneur with a passion for Italian automobiles: Glynn Bloomquist. The businessman, now Chief Investment Officer of premium spirits company High Basin Brands, has just received his Alfa Romeo 33 Stradale at a ceremony held in a dealership Alfa Romeo in Austin.
For Alfa Romeo, this is no insignificant delivery. The 33 Stradale is much more than an ultra-exclusive supercar: it's a manifesto for the return of Italian craftsmanship applied to the modern automobile. And Glynn Bloomquist is one of only 33 customers selected to take part in this adventure.
From IndyCar to Alfa Romeo: the birth of an Italian passion
Glynn Bloomquist's history with Alfa Romeo goes back a long way. Born into a family passionate about muscle cars and American motor sport, he grew up to the rhythm of American racing, before spending an entire decade traveling around the world in the world of IndyCar.
Among his most vivid memories, he cites Jimmy Vasser at the 1992 Indianapolis 500, when the driver broke the speed record for a rookie at over 222 mph. But it was above all the discovery of a biography of Enzo Ferrari that changed his vision of the automobile. Discovering the historic links between Ferrari and Alfa Romeo, Bloomquist gradually fell in love with the Biscione. A passion that quickly turned into a collection. In addition to a number of American muscle cars and Ferraris, his garage contains a 1958 Alfa Romeo Giulietta Spider Veloce once owned by Bobby Rahal, and a 100th Anniversary Alfa Romeo Giulia Quadrifoglio.
In 2023, invited by Alfa Romeo to the Circuit of the Americas in Austin, he met Cristiano Fiorio, head of the 33 Stradale project. It was at this precise moment that everything changed.
«The passion for motor racing came to me as soon as I was born, because I was born in a hospital located on an air base that was home to US Air Force B-52 bombers. Maybe that's where it came from, since I was born in that hospital on the air base... maybe, I don't know, hard to say.
The story of how I discovered the 33 Stradale is quite incredible for me, almost a stroke of luck you might say. In fact, I had been invited by the local Alfa Romeo dealer in Austin to take part in a session of fast laps around the circuit.
Afterwards, we visited the Alfa Romeo hospitality area and I asked why, with such a rich heritage, Alfa Romeo didn't have a supercar. The marketing manager I was talking to reacted a bit in “wow” mode... I didn't say anything more, then she came back to introduce me to Cristiano, who told me about the project in confidence. And it immediately reminded me of the TIPO 33 racing car.
So I wanted to make a modern interpretation of it, and of course every race car has to have a number. And I wanted number 14. The 14 is a special number for me, again because of the heritage and history of racing. When Enzo Ferrari drove for Alfa Romeo, he wore number 14. And then my American motorsport hero, A. J. Foyt, from Houston, Texas, also wore the number 14, notably when he won the Indianapolis 500 four times, as well as many, many races.
I own four Italian cars. I drive all my cars, including on the racetrack. I said to Cristiano: make sure the 33 Stradale sounds great. I made two trips to Turin with very detailed sessions, and we worked from computer renderings to observe different angles of the car. Then we continued with video calls with the team to arrive at the final configuration. It's more than just a car.
It really is a passion, an art of living, being an Alfa Romeo customer and a member of the Alfa family, that's how I felt thanks to the Bottega process. Now I really feel part of this family. And I'm truly grateful and honored to be able to represent the brand in this way.»
«On one condition: it had to be red.»
When Cristiano Fiorio asked him to become one of the 33 owners of the new Alfa Romeo 33 Stradale, Bloomquist immediately accepted. With just one requirement: the car had to be red.
A few months later, in May 2024, he personally visited the Alfa Romeo Museum in Arese to finalize the configuration of his example. The location is not insignificant: it was in the famous Sala del Consiglio that the design of the original 33 Stradale was approved in 1967. Now transformed into the “Bottega Alfa Romeo”, this room is home to the brand's designers, engineers and historians, who work directly with the 33 customers to create totally unique cars.
Inside, Glynn Bloomquist commissioned a special upholstery inspired by the world of high-end furniture, with magnificent leather. The number 14 is embroidered on the headrests and affixed to the doors. A double tribute to Enzo Ferrari, who used this number on his Alfa Romeos in the 1920s, and to A.J. Foyt, four-time winner of the Indianapolis 500.
A supercar that won't stay locked up
Unlike many ultra-limited hypercars destined to end up in private collections, this Alfa Romeo 33 Stradale is expected to hit the road regularly. As Glynn Bloomquist himself has assured us, this car won't be sitting in an air-conditioned garage. The roads of Texas and the circuits around Austin are already waiting for the roar of its 3.0-liter twin-turbo V6 engine with over 620 hp.
And in a way, seeing such a rare Alfa Romeo rolling freely on the roads of Texas is particularly symbolic: that of an Italian manufacturer that continues, despite market changes, to inspire enthusiasts on both sides of the Atlantic.
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