Julio González-Pola Sicura (born in Madrid on 23 March 1916, but was of Asturian origin – died April 4, 1974 at a clinic in Caracas). His father, Julio González-Pola García (1865-1929), was a native of Oviedo and a recognized sculptor who ended up settling in Madrid.
Julio Pola started racing on motorbikes, but the Spanish Civil War (1936-1939) and WW2 stopped his career.
In 1948 he entered the Penya Rhin Grand Prix at Pedralbes Barcelona in Ferrari 125 rented from Raymond Sommer. He would share the car with José-Juan Pérez de Vargas. Pola started the race but at the pit stop to refuel and give over the wheel he refused to do so and rejoined the race eventually crashing out…..
His performance had not gone unnoticed, and Julio himself presumed that Ferrari had made him an offer. But that exciting perspective was distorted, because a while later he ran over a cyclist in Madrid. The cyclist died and González-Pola spent time in prison. However he did not serve the entire sentence because he managed to escape, or, more likely, because his political contacts managed to free him although on condition that he left the country.
So in 1951 he went into exile in France, fleeing justice and shortly after emigrated to Venezuela, In his new country he did not use his full name anymore , being known thereafter as Julio Pola. Under that name he will participate in numerous races, expanding his field of action to the international endurance races.
Close to the end of his career he was entered in a Maserati for the Argentine GP of 1960 being the reserve driver to Ettore Chimeri. He actually drove the car in the second practice session but did not race.
Pola passed away, ill from cancer, on April 4, 1974 at a clinic in Caracas.
(Based on a Spanish bio written by Jose Luis de Otero)
