For all the roaring engines and on-track fury, Formula One is a sport built upon subtleties. The factors that feed into deciding who climbs the podium and who loses their seat — the novel training methods, the last-minute strategy calls, even the more nutritious food — are rarely on full display. The Athletic’s new F1 coverage is designed to throw light on all of them, and that’s what we’ll be doing in Untold Stories. Follow along as we take you beyond the headlines (and the headliners) to understand how teams and drivers climb the pinnacle of motorsports.
In the scarce weeks off on the Formula One calendar this year, most of the paddock will be using the time away from the race track to rest and recharge through the relentless schedule.
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But not Mario Isola, Pirelli’s motorsport director, who oversees the Italian manufacturer’s F1 tire supply. When he’s not at the race track, the typically behind-the-scenes figure spends many nights behind the wheel in his local Milan, serving as a volunteer ambulance driver and emergency first responder.
“When you have a call, you can find anything,” Isola told The Athletic. “It can be a road accident, it can be somebody feeling not well at home. We are coordinated by the emergency system, so when we have a call, we have to go and check, and make an evaluation of the patient.”
Isola is part of a volunteer ambulance service called Croce Viola Milano, one of 112 associations within Lombardy that provide important support to the emergency services. Volunteers typically complete one night shift per week, working from 7 p.m. to 7 a.m.
The buzz Isola got from the training made him consider a career in medicine at one stage. Motorsport remained his biggest passion and the path he wanted to follow, but he found satisfaction by continuing his volunteering. (Courtesy of Pirelli)The work of Croce Viola goes beyond the ambulance volunteers. In response to the recent flooding in Emilia Romagna that forced Imola’s grand prix to be canceled earlier this month, the group is helping to support those in the region by delivering materials such as shovels, mops, water suction pumps and first aid boxes to assist the clean-up effort.
‘A different spirit’
September will mark 35 years since Isola first volunteered for the service as an 18-year-old. He was initially reluctant to do so, only for a friend to encourage him to at least do the training as a way to learn some basic first aid skills.
“I did the training, I passed the exam, and then I stopped,” said Isola. “But then I started thinking that’s completely useless, because if you don’t apply what you learn, after a few weeks or months, you lose everything.” The same friend suggested he take the next step and join the volunteer service. “I decided to try,” said Isola. “And when I tried, I never stopped!”
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The buzz Isola got from the training made him consider a career in medicine at one stage. Motorsport remained his biggest passion and the path he wanted to follow, but he found satisfaction by continuing his volunteering.
“You do that with a different spirit,” he said. “I’m happy to do this. When there is a call, I’m happy to feel useful, to bring my own experience and support.”
To handle the demands of such a serious role, Isola said it was important to be able to separate the experiences from the other parts of his life. “You see situations that are bad, and you have to find a way not to take it home,” he said. “Otherwise, it becomes too heavy.” (Courtesy of Pirelli)Isola worked his way through all of the levels of training, meaning he can either be the team leader on each “mission”, as he calls it, to see a patient, or behind the wheel of the ambulance. He prefers to be the team leader if there is another driver as part of the crew, allowing for a closer connection to the patient they are visiting.
“We have the same training as those who are first responders as a profession,” Isola said. “There is no difference in the training that you have to follow. That’s why sometimes, it’s a bit demanding.”
To handle the demands of such a serious role, Isola said it was important to be able to separate the experiences from the other parts of his life. “You see situations that are bad, and you have to find a way not to take it home,” he said. “Otherwise, it becomes too heavy.”
The virus
One of the toughest periods in Isola’s service came at the start of the Covid-19 pandemic. Italy was the first European country to be hit hard by the virus, leaving the emergency services struggling to cope with the high number of patients. It made the work of organizations such as Croce Viola all the more important.
When the 2020 F1 season opener in Australia was canceled two days before the race, putting the season on hold, Isola returned home to Italy and prepared to focus on volunteering.
“At the beginning, it was scary,” said Isola. “Nobody knew the virus. Nobody knew how to face it.”
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The F1 season resumed in early July, but Isola continued his work between the race weekends, helping combat the second wave that hit Italy and Europe through late summer. The demands on the emergency services meant those in Milan were often called to cities out of their usual region to ease the strain on the number of ambulances.
Feeling useful
Isola’s work as a volunteer is a world away from F1. The contrast of discussing such heavy matters – literally life and death – while sat in Pirelli’s motorhome overlooking Monaco’s yacht-filled harbor is not lost on either of us. But the separation he mentioned earlier remains key to balance both walks of life.
“It’s a completely different situation,” said Isola. “My job here is stressful, because you have a lot to do. But it’s a different type of stress. My activity as a volunteer is something that I decided to do, so it’s my choice.
“Sometimes, you have to face situations that are not normal. But I still enjoy doing that.”
But what has been Isola’s secret to prolonging that enjoyment for close to 35 years, running alongside his career with Pirelli and life in F1?
“You start feeling useful for other people,” he said. “You realize when you do something for other people, what you get back is more than what you gave.”
The “Untold Stories” series is part of a partnership with Michelob ULTRA. The Athletic maintains full editorial independence. Partners have no control over or input into the reporting or editing process and do not review stories before publication.
(Lead image: Alessio Morgese/NurPhoto, Dan Mullan – Formula 1/Formula 1 via Getty Images; Design: Eamon Dalton)
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