By Carlo Platella
From his debut in go-karting to his arrival at Ferrari, passing through the climb up the minor formulas with Prema, over time Robert Shwartzman has established a special bond with Italy. In 2024 Robert holds a dual role with Ferrari, continuing to be reserve driver for the Formula 1 Scuderia and debuting in the WEC with AF Corse’s private 499P. On the eve of his absolute debut at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the twenty-four year old talks about himself in the video interview with FormulaPassion,.
From Formula to Endurance
The transition from single-seaters to endurance races is a transition that always requires a change of mentality from the drivers, who are called upon to internalize an important concept. “When I arrived in the Endurance world, I understood that races are not won in the first hour,” Robert explains in fluent Italian. “You have to be aggressive, but at the same time intelligent. If you don’t take a risk and seize the moment, you risk getting behind a car, killing your tires and losing a lot of time. On the other hand, you can’t be a kamikaze and destroy your race. It’s always a question of balance. You have to be ready to seize every opportunity, but always with a little margin. I come from single-seaters, where one contact is enough to retire and here it is even more important because the race is still long. Everything must be balanced.”
Shwartzman shares the yellow 499P #83 with another exceptional formula driver, Robert Kubica, for whom he has deep admiration: “Robert is like an engineer for me, a mentor. It’s a shame for him, because he could still do a lot in Formula 1. In any case, I am very happy to be at his side, given his experience. Being a team, we talk to each other. I can’t say he’s right about 100% of things, but he is right about most. He is someone who works and cares.”.
Having fun in traffic
One of the big cultural shocks that Formula riders experience when making their debut in endurance racing is traffic management. For Shwartzman, however, dubbed films become a source of entertainment: “I honestly enjoy it. Since go-karting, throughout my career I have learned to be on the ball when it comes to overtaking. Overtaking and always being in a fight is fun for me. GT3 traffic can sometimes change the game a bit. It happens, from that point of view nothing can be done.”
“In general though, all this reminds me of what Senna said: ‘If there’s a gap, you have to squeeze in’. He is my idol and that was his mentality. If I see a hole, I always have to be on the lookout to get in.” The twenty-four year old adds: “In the WEC there are many more battles and brawls than when I raced with single-seaters, because with the aerodynamics it was difficult to get close and for this reason you played a lot with strategy. Here, however, as a driver you can do more things to attempt an overtaking. From this point of view I have a lot of fun.”
The love for Italy
During the interview Shwartzman does not fail to underline the affection that binds him to Italy, which can be understood from his mastery of the language: “I moved to Italy in 2009, where I lived for 12-13 years. Now I have moved to Dubai, but I often return to Italy. It’s like a second home for me, I’ve always considered it that way since I was little, when I raced go-karts. I have lived longer in Italy than in any other country. I’ve lost the wow effect, because I’ve seen everything there is to see and I’m now used to it, but at the same time I feel very comfortable with the people and the environment.”
Being a Ferrari driver inevitably leads him to receive a lot of attention from Italian fans, but not only: “Even around the world. Even in Dubai there are people who know me. If I go for a walk in the Dubai Mall, one of the largest shopping centers in the world, there is someone who stops me, asks me if I am the Ferrari driver and asks me for a photo. It’s always nice to be recognizedbut in Italy there are many fans and this occurs even more often.”
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