From making his debut in Spanish F4 to an unplanned Brazilian F4 comeback, Fernando Barrichello has had a rollercoaster 2023. The 17-year-old sat down with Feeder Series at Interlagos and Velocitta and opened up about the newest chapter of his life.

By Maria Clara Castro 

When it comes to their careers, young Brazilian drivers face three different paths: going to Europe, going to the United States, or building a career in Brazilian national motorsport. It’s almost a canon event: once they’ve chosen their path, there’s no going back.

For many of them, returning to Brazil after racing internationally but before building a name for themselves abroad means failure. Fernando Barrichello, who returned to the F4 Brazilian Championship after competing in the Spanish F4 Championship, is an exception to this idea.

Barrichello made his single-seater debut with Full Time Sports  in the inaugural season of the F4 Brazilian Championship last year. With two wins, both at Interlagos, and four podiums to his name, he finished the year seventh in the standings. Then, he received the opportunity  to race in the 2023 Spanish F4 Championship with Monlau Motorsport. 

Barrichello didn’t think twice. He packed his bags and left Brazil.

A new life in Spain

“It’s been a completely new experience, but something I’ve been dreaming of since I was little, you know? The opportunity to go to Europe came up, something I’ve always wanted. At the beginning of the year, I went there [to Spain]. I live there alone and am still very young. I’m getting used to it,” he said.

Living alone for the first time in a new country is not easy, but Barrichello made the best of it.

“[There are] many ways of looking at it. I like to look at the positive side of things. I’ve always dreamed of living alone. I like being alone because I can put myself together, put my thoughts into the right place, understand them and study. I study a lot about motorsport, but also about other things. I’m spiritual, I study religion, and I dig it a lot. I’ve used that to work on my own head and be the best I can be. I’ve found a nice place to live, and I’m having fun in my own way.”

Moving abroad alone also meant facing the new challenge of working with a team without the presence of his father, F1 race winner Rubens Barrichello.  The young Brazilian felt he had to prove that being the son of a former F1 driver didn’t mean he required special treatment.

“At the beginning, the team saw me as the former F1 driver’s son, as some sort of star. I had to prove to them I wasn’t that. I had to show I am equal to all human beings on the planet. So what I do is, when I arrive at the team, I treat everyone, from the cleaner to the owner, the same. For me, that doesn’t, and shouldn’t, change at all.”

Treating everyone equally was not the only way Barrichello  showed  the team that he was ‘normal’. 

“Another thing is getting my hands dirty. On the first day working there, I dismantled the brake, which is the part that gets dirty the most. I got my face dirty, my hands dirty, my clothes dirty, so I reckon they started to understand a bit that I’m not prissy. I arrive at the race track, I go under the car, I have a look at it and, if I need to, I stay up all night together with the team, because we lose and win together,” he said. 

“I’m working as a mechanic for the team. It’s something I’m doing for my own pleasure. I want to learn more about the car I’m driving. I want to understand what I’m doing. I want to chase my dream the old-school way. I’m willing to learn the way that people I admire have done.” 

Barrichello is trying to write his own story. But, as with any good story, there have been ups and downs. 

With more than 30 cars on the grid, Spanish F4 is one of the most competitive F4 championships in Europe, and Barrichello suddenly found himself swimming in an ocean of big names and potential. In Brazilian F4, he was a regular points scorer, but his best result after three rounds of Spanish F4 was seventh in race three of the opening round at Spa-Francorchamps.

How could he find his way and improve his results? The answer was a step back.

Returning to Brazil

In June, he received a call from Beto Cavaleiro, the Cavaleiro Sports team principal, who offered him the opportunity to return to Brazilian F4 and race in the championship’s five remaining rounds.

Contrary to last year, Barrichello would have a season of experience under his belt, as would his new teammates, Lucca Zucchini and current championship leader Vinícius Tessaro.

“It wasn’t in my plan to come back here this year, but I received a very nice call from Beto. He gave me a lot of confidence, said he trusted me and wanted to make it happen. Soon after, the sponsors came along, who were very supportive of this project, and there was no way out. It wasn’t something that was in the plans, but the approach I received was perfect. It’s a dream again.”

Barrichello’s return hasn’t been easy. During his comeback round, his car suffered from brake problems, and in race two, which he started from the back of the grid, it was uncertain if he’d be able to compete at all. In the end, after four overtakes, eighth was the best possible outcome.

“I think we have a hard time understanding why things happen. It’s very easy to win and thank God for this opportunity, but it’s very difficult to thank him for the bad moments. I have tried to make my happiness not depend on results. Of course, I get out of the car, and I get frustrated. I’m starting to understand that you must be grateful even in the bad moments.”

The sun seemed to shine brighter for Barrichello during round three at Velocitta.  He finished all races in the top 10 and claimed a second-place finish in race two.

“It was important to achieve good results at Velocitta. We still had a few problems, which made it impossible to win. Nonetheless, it was a great weekend overall for the results, and also for the race pace on the track,” he said.

Same championship, different approach

In his first year of formula racing, “Fefo” stuck very close to Rubens. The former F1 driver’s experience was the best possible source of learning, or so his son believed.

Now, with the intention of making his learning more independent, the younger Barrichello has been working with Marcelo Ferreira, who is a coach, engineer and friend to him. 

“I think one thing my father and I have learnt over time is that, whether we like it or not, he has a lot of experience, and I don’t. So sometimes having him around a lot can be difficult because he sees something I don’t, and he ends up doing [the necessary adjustment] for me. There’s a good side to this, but the truth is that I don’t learn, I can’t identify problems on my own.

“We’re increasingly getting me to work more without him. I make a car set-up with Marcelo, and at the end of the day, I tell my father what happened, and he gives his opinion,” he said.

“I really believe in my own path, in my own process, that everything happens for a reason. I’ve been going through my difficulties on and off the track, but everything will fall into place one day.”

Header photo credit: Bruno Terena