DUESENBERG’S FIRST RACING TRIUMPH

On 3 October 1912, Mortimer Roberts drove a Mason to victory in the 220-mile Pabst Blue Ribbon Trophy Race at Wauwatosa, Wisconsin, marking the first professional race win for a car powered by a Duesenberg engine.
The engine was developed by brothers Fred and August Duesenberg while they were associated with Mason Racing Cars in Iowa. Their 230-cubic-inch, four-cylinder design featured advanced engineering for its era, helping establish the brothers’ reputation as serious racing innovators.
Roberts completed the race in about 3 hours 45 minutes at an average of roughly 58.8 mph, overcoming a field of eight starters, only three of whom finished.
The victory came before the Duesenbergs began building complete cars under their own name. Their racing operation developed rapidly, leading to a St Paul plant in 1913 and, eventually, the Duesenberg marque. Racing success would later underpin a legendary luxury-car reputation, culminating in the celebrated Model J.