Dubai // Pietro Fittipaldi’s future was probably decided long before he first sat behind the wheel of a kart as a seven year old at one of the kartdromes in Miami.
Born into the first family of motorsport in Brazil, his genes had already made the decision for him.
Pietro's maternal grandfather, Emerson Fittipaldi, is one of the most revered names in motorsport, a winner of two Formula One world championships (1972 and 1974), the Cart title in 1989 and the legendary Indianapolis 500 in 1989 and 1993.
Emerson was 25 in 1972 when he became the youngest F1 world champion (25 years, 273 days) – a record he held for the next 33 years until Fernando Alonso (24 years, 58 days) broke it in 2005. Lewis Hamilton (23 years, 301 days) and Sebastian Vettel (23 years, 133 days) have rewritten that record since.
Emerson's brother, Wilson, was also a Formula One driver and the two got together to form Fittipaldi Automotive in 1974, the only F1 team and constructor ever to be based in Brazil.
Wilson’s son Christian Fittipaldi was a highly rated young F1 driver in the early 1990s, taking part in 43 grands prix for Minardi and Footwork Arrows before moving to CART and later Nascar in the United States.
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One of Pietro’s uncles, Max Papis (Emerson’s son-in-law), was also a regular at the F1 paddocks in the mid 1990s, testing for Lotus and driving for Footwork before moving to the ovals and road courses in the US, where he earned the nickname “Mad Max” for his stunning drive at the 1996 24 Hours of Daytona in a battered Ferrari.
“It’s just a privilege for me to have not only my grandfather, but I have my uncle Max Papis, who has raced Formula One,” said Pietro, 19, dismissing suggestions that the Fittipaldi name could add to the burden on his young shoulders. “My mum’s cousin, Christian, is from Formula One as well.
“To have these people around me is a privilege to learn from. They motivate me and pass me their experience. So I don’t feel pressure from the name. I am just like any other driver trying to chase their dream.”
With such influences around him, it should hardly be a surprise that the Miami-born Pietro chose motorsport.
Rising quickly through the karting ranks in the US, he earned a seat with Lee Faulk Racing in the Nascar Whelen All American Series in 2011, where he became the first Latin American Nascar champion in the Limited Late Model, winning the series on his debut as a 15 year old.
Emerson was at the Hickory Motor Speedway in North Carolina that September evening in 2011 to congratulate his grandson on his first big success, and Pietro still remembers that moment.
“He has always been supporting me,” said Pietro about the support from his grandfather. “After every race weekend, practice, he is calling me to know how it goes. And if I need any advice from him, he is always there – just a phone call away or sometimes even at the race weekends with me.”
Emerson, of course, has not been a source of inspiration for Pietro alone. His world title with Lotus in 1972, according his grandson, opened the gates for legends such as Ayrton Senna and Nelson Piquet to follow.
The likes of Rubens Barrichello and Felipe Massa have carried that torch in recent years.
“My grandfather was the first Brazilian F1 champion, so he kind of opened the doors for everyone else,” Pietro said. “I think after that, it just started a passion for it. Everyone would wake up early Sunday morning and eating breakfast, they would turn on the TV and watch Formula One.
“They followed my grandfather, then they followed Ayrton Senna and Nelson Piquet. So it just became a tradition.”
According to Pietro, Formula One started competing with the Brazilians’ first love, football, for attention. People would “usually watch the F1 races in the morning, because they are happening in Europe, then soccer in the lunch time,” he said.
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Pietro also had to decide between those two sports and he is glad his father, who has no motorsport background, supported his decision.
“My father wasn’t into racing,” Pietro said. “He did other things, but he always supported me. He has always supported me with whatever I wanted to do. I wanted to play soccer and he said ‘OK’. But I always wanted to race and so he supported me with that.”
With his father’s support and the financial backing of Mexican business magnate Carlos Slim and his Escuderia Telmex team, who boast Mexican Formula One drivers Esteban Gutierrez and Sergio Perez on their roster, Pietro moved to Europe in 2013 to pursue his dreams, competing in the British Formula Renault and Formula 4, and European Formula 3.
“It was difficult because in the US I was racing ovals and big cars in the Nascar,” Pietro said. “Then when I came to Europe, it was circuit tracks with open wheels. So very different. I had to basically start from zero again. Learn everything. Both oval and circuit racing are very technical, but in different areas. It’s hard to explain. It’s like playing ping pong on the table and playing lawn tennis – it’s very different.
“It’s like playing soccer on the grass and playing soccer on the sand – it’s the same principles, but when you play it, it is very different.
“But in my first year [in Europe], I was already winning races and then in my second year, I won a championship. So I adapted really well and I am continuing to learn and to improve.”
Pietro cruised to the title in the Formula Renault Championship in 2014 and by the end of January, he could have more shiny silverware in his possession.
The Brazilian will head into the final leg of the MRF Challenge in India with a 16-point lead at the top following three podium finishes in four races, including victory, at the Dubai Autodrome last weekend.
“I really like the circuit,” said Pietro about his experience in Dubai. “A lot of different types of corners – fast, medium and slow speed ... Many places that you can make mistakes and many places that you can overtake as well. A really technical circuit.”
This season was Pietro’s first experience of the circuits in the Middle East. Earlier, the MRF Challenge had taken him to the Formula One circuits Bahrain and at Yas Marina Circuit, and he is relishing the experiences.
“There’s like 17 to 18 cars [in the MRF Challenge] and the racing tracks are all in the Middle East,” he said. “So it’s a good championship because you get to learn these tracks, where you never come. Also, it’s more of a winter championship in a way, even though its hot here. So it kind of keeps you up to speed while it’s off season in Europe, which is good.”
It is easy to understand why staying up to speed is so important for Pietro. For he has set some pretty high goals for himself.
“The goal is to reach Formula One and win a world championship,” he said, without any hesitancy.
Given his confidence, it would be safe to say the Fittipaldi legacy is in safe hands.
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