You might know Mahaveer Raghunathan when he came into the spotlight after his debut season in Formula 2. After that, the spotlight on him toned down but he has been busy testing different machineries and transitioning to GT cars.
Since his 2019 Formula 2 season, Mahaveer has done a Formula 1 test with Alfa Romeo in 2021, becoming only the third Indian to drive a Formula 1 car. In 2022 he took part in the WEC rookie test with Algarve Pro Racing testing their LMP2 machinery. 2023 brought another opportunity to test a Formula 1 car with McLaren along with a full season in Italian GT with Imperiale Racing in the Lamborghini Huracan GT3 Evo where he scored a podium in Monza.
This year, Mahaveer did another year in Italian GT, this time with Lazarus Corse driving the Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT3. He was teammates with MotoGP World Champion Jorge Lorenzo and part of the Aston Martin Young Drivers Academy. End of the season he took part in his 3rd WEC Rookie test with Vista AF Corse driving the Ferrari 296 GT3.
Raghunathan went into detail about his campaign this year and his future plans, here’s the full interview:
Mahaveer, first of all, how are you, are you back in India from Bahrain?
“Yeah, I am good, I am back in India now. The test was good, it was my first time with the team and the car. I found the Ferrari GT3 car much better compared to other GT3s I have driven. So yeah, the test was very good.”
You said the Ferrari was much better, you’ve had a chance to drive other GT3 machinery from Lamborghini and Aston Martin, what’s the characteristic difference between them?
“Yeah, actually the engine in the Aston Martin is in the front, so the car tends to understeer quite a bit, whereas in the Lambo it’s quite big it’s a mid-engine car. The handling is good but not as good as the Ferrari, in the Ferrari the engine is comparatively small and the weight is also less comparatively so the car is very agile and nimble, in the high-speed corners it’s very easy to drive and you take it to the limits very quickly.”
How would you say your 2024 season was?
“2024 was a bit difficult because we had the new team so we didn’t have any data or information when we go to a track. In 2023 the team was very experienced with lots of data and information. Also, the teammates in 2024 had less experience compared to 2023 so comparatively it was a tougher season.”
You were a part of the Aston Martin Young Drivers Academy as well this year so how was that experience?
“It was good, it helped me get a seat in Italian GT that too with Jorge Lorenzo. It doesn’t involve much, it helps you prepare in the sim and get ready for the race weekend, but yeah, apart from that not much.”
You’ve done your fair share of single-seaters including multiple F1 tests, how’s the general feel of GT cars compared to them?
“The Aston Martin and the Lamborghini felt quite different compared to a Formula car because it’s very heavy and you need to drive it in a completely different way. Ferrari was quite similar to a Formula car in general because you can attack the corners hard.”
How did it feel when you drove the Formula 1 car for the very first time?
“Yeah, it felt special because the power was really high, so the first few laps I felt like I had to underdrive the car a bit. The main point was to get your braking and the high-speed corners right. In an F1 test, you also have 8 sets of new tyres so it’s physically very exhausting and I feel I got used to it.”
You’ve driven the LMP2 and now the GT3 in Bahrain in the rookie test, what would you say felt different?
“The engine power was quite less in the GT3, the LMP2 I drove in Bahrain the lap times were the same as Hypercar now because of the regulations. But handling the Ferrari felt really good, even the team was very professional set up wise, they were the winning team on Saturday so of course the expectations were very high to perform.”
What was your run plan for the WEC Rookie Test this year?
“In the Rookie test, the first run I did on used tyres. But the degradation was quite a lot because after 10 laps the drop-off was around 3-4 seconds. You have to use the peak of the tyre well, I didn’t use it in the first two runs but on the second run I used a fresh tyre where I could improve a lot and before lunch, we used a fresh tyre so I had a feeling of the car on fresh tyres. Then after lunch on a new set, I set my fastest time of the day but theoretically, I think there was half a second more if I put all my fastest sectors together so yeah there’s room for improvement of course.”
Read more about the 2024 WEC Rookie Test here
In Italian GT you use Pirellis and in WEC it’s the Goodyear, what difference did you feel in those two tyres?
“In WEC it’s a very ‘peaky’ tyre whereas in Italian GT you can push the Pirelli’s for a longer time. Delivering a lap time in the first few laps is important in Goodyear. Also in Bahrain, the temperatures are comparatively higher so that changes things a lot too.”
Mahaveer, till now we’ve spoken about the current year, but what are your plans for the future?
“My plan is to get a season in WEC in the GT3s, hopefully it’s with Vista AF Corse. If not, then another team in the GT3 category. If WEC doesn’t work out, I would like to do another championship but in the Ferrari car because I want to do a championship where I can seriously challenge and I feel I can do that with the Ferrari GT3. The team was also quite happy with the test so now we are discussing the options for next year so hopefully I can do the season and I can perform well.”
These are plans for the immediate future, what would you say your goal is in the long term?
“I hope to come back to Formula Cars in the future, I think one season in WEC will give me a lot of track time and improve myself and come back to Formula Cars. Go back to F2 and then hopefully F1”
This concludes our conversation with Mahaveer Raghunathan, who offered us a glimpse into the mind of a determined racer who’s continually evolving. His aspirations to return to single-seaters and eventually reach Formula 1 reflect his unyielding dedication to his craft. With his diverse experience across single-seaters and GT racing, Mahaveer’s journey is far from over, and he remains a talent to watch in the racing world. We thank him for sharing his insights with us and wish him the very best as he chases his Formula 1 dream.
