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In Profile: Matías Zagazeta
Jenzer Motorsport rookie Matías Zagazeta has certainly made quite a name for himself since making the step to FIA Formula 3 grid this season.
So, why not get to know more about the Peruvian driver’s background, such as his racing hero and style, as well as how he spends time away from a track.
FIRST RACING MEMORY
“That's a good question. I think one thing I remember as a child was watching Sebastian Vettel win the Formula 1 Championship at Red Bull in Abu Dhabi. That was such an amazing race. I think that's probably my main first memory I have from racing in general.
“For myself in go karts, my first ever memory is of course the first time I jumped into a real go kart, not the rental ones but the real ones. It was such a nice feeling of adrenaline and happiness and that just got me up into the racing world straight away.”
HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE YOUR RACING STYLE?
“I think I would describe myself as very calculated, I am a very calculated driver. I know when to be aggressive, when to be a little bit more conservative, so I think I am very clever.”
WHO IS YOUR RACING HERO?
“Of all time? For sure it has to be Ayrton Senna. I just love his style, and love his personality. But also, I really like Fernando Alonso currently. He is a driver I really aspire to be like and actually my first helmet design was more similar to his design so he's a driver I really look up too as well.”
READ MORE: Jenzer Motorsport aiming for more points after strong performance in Barcelona test
WHAT IS YOUR BIGGEST RACING ACHIEVEMENT SO FAR?
“I think it has to be the Formula 4 season in 2021, where I was really close to winning the British F4 Championship but came up just a little bit short. It was a very memorable season. I think I got 11 podiums, four wins, so it was a very nice year."
WHAT’S THE BEST THING ABOUT BEING A RACING DRIVER?
“The best thing I would say is I just love driving cars really, I think that is just the best part of it. There is a lot of hard work that goes behind the scenes, you have to train hard, you have to stay healthy, you have to do a lot of stuff but I just love the adrenaline. I just love the you never know what's going to happen next feeling, it's just a unique feeling to be driving a race car.”
HOW DO YOU RELAX AWAY FROM RACING?
“I really enjoy spending a lot of time with my family. I love just going back home, being with my friends, my family, eating good Peruvian food as well, so that's pretty much the way I like relaxing, just spending time with my family.”
DO YOU HAVE ANY SECRET TALENTS OUTSIDE OF RACING?
“Not really. I mean in other sports I am really bad, so I am not sure. I mean like a standard from South American drivers is we can all dance well, but I am not a dancer.”
WHAT IS YOUR FAVOURITE TRACK ON THE FORMULA 3 CALENDAR?
“I really like Spa in Belgium, it's such a unique track, it's very, very nice. But also, the glamour in Monaco is just incredible and it's really hard to beat. In a Qualifying lap when you go out and of course you have all the walls nearby, it's really fun.”