“I don’t chase hero laps. I chase smaller gaps.”
This is Tommaso’s story—seen in the early mornings, the school days,
and the quiet drawings that always begin on paper.
Tommaso grew up Italian, since 4 years old at home in Switzerland, with insane passion for running and a simple habit: wherever he saw a flat surface, he imagined and drew a racetrack.
His favorite color has always been red. They were red his Ferraris and of course “Saetta”, Lightning McQueen. He would push his cars around corners he pictured everywhere: brake here, turn now, go early on the throttle. Long before a stopwatch ever noticed, his brain was practicing.
His talent for karting was noticed in 2020 by Paolo Liceri, a former Italian Rally driver, owner of the kart track in Sardinia (pistadeicampioni.com), but the Covid and very limited budget didn’t help, so he parked his talent. In December 2023 we found a chassis for a very good price, in April 2024 a Rotax Max engine, so he could jump on a real racing kart and in October he asked to take part into his first ever race. He wasn’t the fastest, and that was fine, but he decided to reach the Top!
The first step has been the 2025 Rotax Max Junior Challenge, and he set one goal that felt honest for a beginner: close the gap.
Not just once, but every training, every race weekend. Corner by corner. Session by session.
Twelve months later, after eight official race weekends, the graph says what words can’t: his median gap to the Top-5 fell from +2.05s to +0.01s**.
** Source: official Rotax Max Challenge 2025 results – rotaxmax.ch, karting.ch
That last number doesn’t make him a champion; it makes him aware and ready.
Aware that keep doing simple steps can make the difference. Aware that racing experience is fundamental. Ready to push more in physical and mental training. Ready for the next challenge: the Rotax Max 2026 season and adding European events for the next level: race among the best in Europe… closing more gaps!
Raising the level means of course more trainings days on tracks, improve physically and mentally, and Tommaso can’t wait to start the new season, not anymore as Junior.
Why #51?
- 5 like Sebastian Vettel, because intelligence wins and because after he “retired” he’s active on remarkable sustainability projects.
- 1 because is the number you earn, every weekend.
Tommaso is 15, in his final year of secondary school, with strong results. School matters in our house. So do manners. So do commitment. He likes math because it is fair—just like the clock.
He loves drawing and designing – his logo, his helmet are his own creations -and his dream was to become like Hermann Tilke. His plan was to study architecture and design, and one day draw circuits for real—like the ones he has carried in his papers since he was small. But after this first ever racing season, he wants more… move forward to drive Formula cars, dreaming Formula 1.
Behind him there is a family that believes in honest and steady work. We handle what a teenager can’t: the paper you’re reading, travel, training schedules, nutrition, and the unglamorous logistics. We try to keep the path clear so he can focus on learning and improving. No shortcuts, no big promises—just progress you can read in a line on a chart.
This is Tommaso Grigolato. From drawing to racing. From idea to lap time. From a red toy car to a real finish line—one smaller gap at a time.
We are looking for sponsors which shares our values to support Tommaso’s GT51 project.
