6000 km di paura (1978)

The older Paul Stark and the young Joe Massi, two rally drivers, are rivals on the course—and not only there: Sandra, Paul’s wife and co-driver, was once involved with Joe, and her love for him has never completely faded. Joe is recovering from a serious accident in the Monte Carlo Rally; despite his severe injuries, he gets well in time to compete in the Safari Rally in Kenya. Paul and Joe are teammates, but Joe, being the younger man, is subordinate to Paul, whose car is always the first to receive technical upgrades—a fact that irritates Joe considerably. At a certain point, Joe resigns and leaves the team. After finding a new car in record time, with help from his friend, journalist Lucile Davis, Joe is able to enter the rally, finally free to compete on equal terms with Paul. Before long, the two are no longer in contention for the lead, but are effectively racing against each other, until the tragic conclusion: a large crowd watches the race in a disorderly mass along the roadside, and Paul and Sandra, trying to avoid running over a child, go off the road. The car rolls over several times and, at the end of the terrible crash, catches fire, leaving the two no chance of survival. Joe stops and watches the tragedy helplessly, remembering the happy moments he shared with Sandra, while the race meanwhile comes to an end.