«I started from the Playstation, now I dream of F1»- Corriere.it

In the Formula Regional paddock, one of the most competitive motorsport series (dedicated to young people gaining experience on single-seaters) they talk about him as Nico Rosberg’s little brother: for the physical resemblance, for the well-groomed and combed blond hair in a certain way , for the polite and kind manners, for the desire to cultivate his dream.

But Giovanni Maschio is neither German nor the son of a Formula 1 world champion like the former Mercedes driver. very Italian, he comes from a family with an industrial tradition, specialists in Made in Italy: father Andrea, one of the owners of Maschio Gaspardo, a leading group in agricultural and tillage machinery, has offices and production sites in China, India and Romania ( in addition to the Italian plants: the main one in Campodarsego, province of Padua). In 2022 it closed the financial statements with revenues of 460 million, the accounts are running high-tech products that are strong on foreign markets. returned to shine after the death of the founder, a story of resilience. An Italian story.

Giovanni races with the Maschio logo on the single-seater with Tatuus chassis and 270 HP Alpine engine, of the Monolite team. Small racing cars to grow future champions, the Formula Regional is an environment frequented by people like Andrea Kimi Antonelli, one signed by Mercedes for less than ten years. From Emerson Fittipaldi junior, son of the two-time Brazilian champion.

Giovanni, 16, however was attracted by the lure of engines much later. Alone. Around 2016-2017 I discovered F1, I went to see the GP in Monza and the passion was born. The beginnings weren’t easy, jump in the car in 2020 the year of Covid, with all the limits imposed by the pandemic. Last year the single-seater debut in the Italian Formula 4.

To learn he relied on Ivone Pinton, a highly experienced coach who brought several drivers to F1: Pantano, Chandhok, Di Grassi. My father follows me in this passion, he tries to be present at the races as much as possible. Mom, on the other hand, is afraid, I understand her, and she would like me to study more. The program includes two years of Formula Regional and then a further leap towards an even higher competitive level, perhaps completed by moving to an Academy. Giovanni studies applied sciences, lives in the province of Pordenone, has always been promoted (for the sake of the cuff) despite the fact that he now leads the life of an athlete: constant gym sessions, simulators, tests and European trips, technical meetings. A crash course to recover what other peers have done in several seasons.

It all started in front of the Playstation: I went to a friend’s house and we played the Formula 1 videogame all day long, and from then on I also started following it on TV. We were at the Monza GP in 2019 – Pinton recalls -, I managed to get him a paddock pass: he got autographs from all the riders, today and yesterday, including Jackie Stewart. Giovanni grew up in the legend of Sebastian Vettel: he ran for Ferrari when I approached racing, he was a four-time world champion and it was easy to be impressed. Especially in that two-year period, 2017-2018, in which he had come to fight for the title. I saw the races with the same desire to finish a good book.

The path to get to Formula 1 is very difficult and complex, why should he do it? Why shouldn’t I? – he replies calmly -. I see the commitment, I am attentive, even if sometimes I have to repeat something ten times before I put it into practice. But then I do it right. If he didn’t go on the track, he could always devote himself to the family business, to the company: For now, a second option, I’ll put motoring first.