Teodoro Cotumaccio is a young Italian driver who gave up football to pursue a career in motorsport, starting with karts. Here is the conversation we had with him.
FP: "Hi Teodoro, thanks for your availability. I'll start right away by asking you to tell us about your path, your transition from football to karting in short".
TC: "Well, I've always played football, ever since I was little. I started playing when I was four, and by the age of thirteen I was already out of town. I live in Naples and I went to play with Cosenza, in Calabria, in the youth team. From there the ‘boom’ of my career began a bit. I did a couple of years there, moved to other teams such as Pontedera, near Pisa, in Serie C; then I also went to play in Spain, near Alicante and then I came back here to Italy with Monterosi, and finally the last year I played in Serie A at San Marino. Let's say I did mine, I had fun, even if I was a bit penalised by COVID, because it was the year I had to move from the youth teams to the first team. Lately I'd been a bit dulled by this passion I had as a child, that's all. While I was playing in San Marino, I tried karting for the first time in Riccione and let's say that this passion started from there, this love at first sight, due to the adrenalin that it transmitted to me. Characteristically, I'm a competitive guy, so it all started out as a game and then very quickly turned into a competitive one: I had to be the best there. I made a bunch of friends and acquaintances in the industry and I gave up football to give 100% in one thing, which is karts. I even bought a simulator to train on. I started on this path with kart racing, I trained for two/three months to prepare myself for the races and to understand the situation a bit. I did two stages: the first stage, at Battipaglia, where I had an accident, and the second stage where I finished on the podium. I'm also getting proposals from teams, because strangely enough I'm inclined, let's say even the results would say so".
FP: ‘All clear. I wanted to ask you, on the other hand, on a physical level, since you've always been an athlete, have you noticed any big differences between training for football and training for karts?’
TC: "A lot of people say that karting is very tiring, for the arms and shoulders, but coming from a physical training background in football, I felt it right at the beginning. However, I have a fairly well-trained physique coming from football, so it was an easier transition than expected, maybe".
FP: "On the other hand on a mental level you said you're very competitive, and I'd say that's also a big advantage".
TC: "In my opinion it's a strength of mine. I say that because I always handled the pressure well, even when there were 7-8 thousand people, 10 thousand people watching the matches. On the pitch the pressure is strong and I tell you that managing that kind of pressure is very similar to managing the kind of pressure you have on the track, it's very similar".
FP: "You said you have already received several proposals. So I'm asking you what plans you have in the short term and maybe what your long-term goals/dreams are".
TC: "Honestly, I don't preclude anything. In the short term, considering that I've just started, I'm just concentrating on continuing on this road, but of course I would like to switch to cars and or some other kind of championship in the future, that's for sure. I'm aiming to gain some experience at the beginning and then maybe jump into a slightly more competitive championship. My dream would be to win at Monza, it's the track that's closest to my heart".
FP: "Speaking of motorsport, before approaching karts were you already a fan of Formula 1 in particular, or of motorsport in general?"
TC: "To tell you the truth not at all, until I was twenty-one I didn't really follow it. Since I got into it, however, I've started to get a bit more into the environment and I've become even more passionate about it".
FP: "And since you entered, what idea have you gained? Do you have a favourite driver, someone you would steal something from, someone who inspires you in particular?"
TC: "Let's say I don't really have an idol. If I had to name a Formula 1 driver, I would probably say Verstappen. I feel like he asks a lot of himself, just like I do. Football has taught me that to be at certain levels, you either want to do it at all costs or you stop, because you have to give 100 per cent every day".
FP: "Earlier on, you said you bought a simulator: how do you manage there? Have you done any races yet?"
TC: "No, not races yet, to tell you the truth, but I tried all kinds of tracks, because I was starting from scratch anyway and I aimed to learn as many things as possible. I can tell you that in my opinion the physical level has affected me a lot, also the mental level, because the change of sport required things that, if you don't have a good physical structure, are difficult to deal with. I'm talking about certain training sessions, a good test to face a certain type of competition".
FP: "If you wanted to give advice to a guy who maybe finds himself interjected in your situation a little while ago, maybe he finds himself there wondering “what do I do, do I continue this path or take another one?”, what advice would you give him?"
TC: "My advice to anyone would always be to do whatever they prefer. According to my personality, the important thing is to give 100 per cent. So yes, I guess I would tell him to give 100 per cent in whatever he likes best".
FP: "Teodoro, it was really a pleasure. Good luck as you continue your career!"
TC: "My pleasure, thank you".
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