In the fall we said that 16-year-old Finnish racer Tuukka Taponen became a new student of the Ferrari Racing Academy and will make his debut in Italian Formula 4 in 2023. But in fact his debut has already taken place, because last weekend Tuukka had a fairly successful first weekend in the UAE F4 Series in the Middle East, where he finished second twice.
However, he himself is not inclined to overestimate the first successes in formula races, since he is only interested in winning.
“The first task was to climb the podium, and I accomplished it right away,” Finnish newspaper Iltalehti quoted the young rider as saying. “Of course we have to win next time. The goal is to finish in the top three this winter series and be the best rookie.”
Taponen has performed well in international karting, he has many victories to his name, but now a new phase in his career begins and from this week he will already change his residence to Maranello.
Time will tell what his sporting success will be, but for now one thing can be said for sure: he will receive financial support. The fact is that one of the richest people in Finland, billionaire Antti Aarnio-Vihuri, has long been paying attention to him. It was thanks to this businessman’s money that Valtteri Bottas ever got into Formula 1.
“This is not charity, because ultimately we expect to generate revenue and draw attention to our brand,” said Aarnio-Vihuri. “I’m not doing this just because I have a good heart. But of course behind all this lies the love for motorsport in the first place. Although I have always said that the race is a kind of lottery, and to get to the level of Formula 1 you need a lot of luck.
We followed Taponen’s career for two or three years, watched him progress. In such a case, of course, it is important that the rider shows strength of character – in order to achieve success, he must have a strong will and be a goal-oriented person. But gradually everything turned out fine and we realized that Tuukka had a chance.
And now you have to pay a lot more than we paid for Valtteri when he just started his career. Although Bottas’ support then had to allocate very serious amounts. But we must understand that Taponen is just at the beginning of the journey, and so far no one knows what level we can rise to with him. But we think he has good prospects.”
Source: F1 News
I am Christopher Clyde, an experienced journalist and content writer with a passion for sports. I have been writing about Formula 1 news for the past five years and am currently employed as an author at athletistic.com, one of the top sports websites in the US.
