Exclusive interview: Edoardo Mortara shines for Mahindra Racing this season, says “important to keep your feet on the ground”

Edoardo Mortara has been a force to be reckoned with ever since he started the season with a bang. The Mahindra Racing driver has delivered top-notch performance so far and is currently leading the championship from the front row, just eleven points behind Porsche’s Pascal Wehrlein. What makes the Swiss racer dominate the scene this season is his consistency on track after having finished among the top six in last five races and bagging two podiums among them, one in Mexico City and the other in Jeddah.

Needless to say, Mortara is proving he is no easy mortal among his competitors as he keeps his eyes glued on the prize. In an exclusive interview with TimesofIndia.com, Mortara opened up about his success so far and what lies behind such a grit and determination. He also spoke about his other interests in life and his views on retirement, which is not on his mind right now. Excerpts:

With two back-to-back poles and two podiums in just five races, you are already on a roll this season. You are even close to leading the championship. Describe the feeling.First of all, I’m very happy that we had a strong start to the season. It’s always nice to compete at the front and to be able to score a good amount of points, for me but also for the team.
Good results also boost everyone in the team. For me personally, it’s very rewarding because it proves that the entire team, myself included, is going in the right direction with the development that we have been implementing over the last three years.


You missed out on the title twice. What’s the vision for this season? Are we already talking to the winner of Season 12?We’ve only done five races, so it’s still a very long season. As I said, we’ve had quite a strong start, but most of the races are still ahead of us. In championships like Formula E, it’s very important to stay with your feet on the ground and try to maximize every race weekend. What matters is being among the top guys at the end of the season, not after five races.
Have you made significant changes to your driving style or behind-the-scenes work, the results of which are now evident on the track?As drivers, we are always trying to maximize the performance of the package that we are driving. It’s very important to adapt your driving style based on what you have at your disposal in order to extract the maximum from it. So every year, every race, every corner, I am trying to adapt rather than stick to one specific driving style. To be a good racing driver, you need to be able to adapt to whatever is given to you.
How is Mahindra Racing treating you as a driver? How much credit goes to the team when a driver shines on track?In motorsport, the package has a very strong influence on the results you are able to achieve. Mahindra Racing is treating me well, especially this season because we’ve been able to perform quite strongly. Without a strong car and a strong team, it’s impossible for a driver to shine.
And often the opposite is also true: when the package is not the best, it becomes difficult for the driver to shine as well.
You are one year short of 40. How long do you aim to continue competing, and what would you like to do after retirement?For me, it’s not really about age, it’s about performance. I still feel that I am competing at a very high level, and I think the results show that as well. What is important for me is to keep training the way I am and make sure my motivation stays high. If I can do those things, I believe I will keep performing well.
I haven’t really thought about retirement yet because I’m very involved in the Mahindra Racing project, and what would make me happiest right now is to be successful with the team.
What do you like to do when you’re not racing?When I’m not racing, I spend quite a lot of time training; that’s a big part of my life outside racing. I’m also involved in a few other projects. Over the past few years, I’ve been working a bit in real estate, and I have a financial background as well, so I stay quite busy even when I’m away from the track.

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