Mattia Colnaghi: an interview to the Spanish F4 (16 year old) driver from Italy!

From karting to spanish F4, the italian 16 year old Mattia Colnaghi is here with us today to talk about his racing career and to give us some behind the scenes of the motorsport world. We'll be talking about his experience with Ferrari Driver Academy, his plans for the future, and many more! But before we start, let's get to know Mattia better.

---

A (me): first of all, tell us more about yourself, mattia.

M (Mattia): I'm Mattia Colnaghi, an italian driver born in Monza. I was born in 2008 and I started karting when I was 11 years old. At the moment, I race for the spanish F4 with MP Motorsport.

A: when and how did you start racing?

M: I started karting when I was 9 and I had my first real race when I turned 12, in 2020. I've always had an enormous passion for motorsport and that's why I watch F1 since I was 2 years old. I started karting in Singapore, since I lived there for 5 years, and as soon as I got to Italy again I started with the Easykart championship's races. Then, I got into more important championships; and I got to the world championship last year.

So Mattia has been through a long journey to get where he is now. From Singapore to Italy, from karting to F4. For those who don't know what Easykart is: it's a project conceived by Birel in the late '90s with the intent to sustain base karting, and the youth sector in particular.

A: you were selected by Ferrari Driver Academy, right? Reaching these goals at 16 must be wonderful. How does it feel like? Do you think you'll get to F1 some day?

M: Yes, I was a part of the shootout Ferrari Driver Academy last year. But because of a lack of experience I couldn't show my potential and my speed. After some more tests though, I won the Richard Mille Young Talent Academy, which is sponsoring me this year to race for MP. I'm happy to have the opportunity of being in this position and I'm sure I'm on the right road to get to F1.

A: what do you feel when you're racing?

M: racing for me is like a unique emotion. The sensation of driving the car to its limits is too satisfying for me. And also racing against other drivers, overtaking and testing my abilities every time I get on that car are just some things I love about this sport.

A: being an athlete surely isn't easy. Tell us more about how the motorsport world works from a driver's point of view and about what your training routine is!

M: even if it doesn't seem like it, motorsport is a lot physical. You need a lot of training and resistence, especially in superior categories like F3, F2 and F1. Because of aerodynamics, the drivers are subjected to really high lateral g forces, so you have to keep in control. Besides the physique, motorsport is also a lot mental. You need training to stay at the car's limits in every lap and you also have to be lucid in a race when there are decisions to make. The simulator helps a lot with this. In particular I use iRacing, since you only have two qualification laps you're forced to train to stay at the limit and to never make mistakes. This surely helps to take out my performance in the real quali as well.

Mattia gave a really good explanation about his training and what it takes to be a driver. There was one question on my mind though, that I never asked anyone. And it appeared to be this:

A: what's a car you dream of driving? M: As a racing car, my dream one is the Audi R8 LMS EVO II GT3. And as a road car, I would say the Audi R8 as well.

A picture of the Audi R8 LMS EVO II GT3

A: what would you change of the motorsport world? Is there anything you don't like?

M: sometimes the motorsport world is not very meritocratic. You could've raced amazingly all weekend and during the finals your engine could break. It's not right but unfortunately it's like that and nobody can change this thing. The machine has quite a lot of responsibility for a driver's performance.

I wanted to ask Mattia something else, which hasn't anything to do with his racing career. But it was quite curious to read his answer, and I'm sure you'll find it interesting.

A: how do you keep up with school? M: I'm currently attending online A-levels (which is an english school). When I'm away, I can't really attend every lesson. But when I get back home, since the lessons are online and recorded, I can watch them to understand the concepts better.

A: what plans do you have for the future? Who do you dream of becoming?

M: At the moment I'm really focusing on the present. We're so close to the end of the season so I'm putting all the effort into it to get ready for it. In the future, I dream of becoming like Kimi Raikkonen. Never annoyed by the little things and always with a steady head, without panicking.

This was our final question. But, as always, I asked Mattia to give some advice to his fans. What would Mattia tell someone who wants to start racing like him? And this is what he said.

"Always remember that with effort and talent, you can get really far. It's not an easy road, but if you dedicate yourself entirely to it, it is possible." - Mattia Colnaghi

---

This interview has come to an end! First of all, I want to thank Mattia for being so nice and for agreeing to do this interview. And then, I want to thank you guys for reading this article. Make sure to follow me on instagram! (@aleinsidef1)