Stocks, schoolwork and the racing driver balancing act: Behind the Visor with Brando Badoer

PREMA Racing’s Brando Badoer is embarking on his rookie campaign in the FIA Formula 3 Championship, all while completing high school.

On the side, he’s been getting into stocks and the stock market, all while completing his homework and learning to drive a road car.

So how does all of this go alongside the extensive effort of a racing driver’s career? Here’s what the Italian is up to in his spare time alongside his racing exploits.

“So, my life is a lot about racing. It’s all oriented around it, but I’m still a student. I still have to complete high school and I’m in the last year now, so I have exams coming up at the end of this year.

“When I’m at home, I’m studying a lot, trying to make up for the time over the last four months I’ve not been there. I could only attend school like four or five days, so it’s a really busy time in life at the moment. That’s the main thing I have going on and that I’m doing in my free time.

“That’s of course apart from training and going to the gym and following my programme. When I have time, I like to get back to my roots, do some karting in KZ karts, they’re good for training for Formula 3.

“They’re physical and it’s also good to keep up momentum when you can’t drive the actual car. I’m actually studying for my driving license too at the moment, which I still don’t have, but those are the main things I get up to.

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“I have to pass the theory exam first, then I have actual driving lessons to do. It’s something to look forward to. I hope that by the end of the summer break, I’ll have it all done.

“I also like the stock market. I follow that quite a lot. I enjoy the theory behind it. If I ever get the chance to go to university, which right now would be tricky, but if I did get the chance, I think I’d go and study economics.

“It’s something I started picking up an interest in by myself. I remember once I went karting, and I was speaking to some friends and then it started this interest in the stock market. It’s a bit of a passion now.

“I’m still young so I have a lot of things to think about, and I don’t have as much time to spend on it as possible. But time to time, I’ll look at the news, check the progression of the markets, I quite enjoy it.

“Balancing everything alongside racing is not really easy, because racing takes up a lot of my time. The step this year is even bigger compared to previous years, I have to put a lot of effort in whatever I do.

“I have exams to take while I’m not attending classes, it makes things even more difficult at home to fully understand what you’re studying. So next month I have those to do. I hope I pass. I think I’ve always been pretty good at school, but now the free time is less, let’s see. If not, my mother won’t be happy.

“I have a lot on, but I think it’s the same for all the drivers. It’s what I love to do, so I’m very happy to have a life like this. You have to sacrifice some things, but it’s worth it.”