Marlon Stockinger: From racing karts in Cavite to winning in Monaco

Before you easily dismiss him as just another good-looking half-Filipino celebrity, know that he is the first Filipino to be taken in as a junior driver for a Formula One team. After winning the GP3 series of 2012 in Monaco, he is now one step away from being the first-ever Filipino racing driver in the prestigious F1. Here are 10 things you should know about Marlon Stockinger.

1. Marlon grew up on the streets of Malate playing patintero and tumbang preso.

He was born and raised in Malate, Manila, finished high school in the British International School, then moved to Europe when he was around 16 years old. “We lived in an apartment building on Syquia. We usually just ran up and down the stairs then played out on the streets. We’d come home really dirty and my mom would be so angry,” Marlon fondly recalls. He also spent a lot of time with his grandparents on his mother’s side in La Huerta, Parañaque. “In the beginning we really didn’t have much. It’d be me, my sister, my tito all in one bed. It’s not like we had separate rooms. We didn’t have hot running water, we’d have to heat water up first before taking a shower. It was really simple. I had so much fun growing up and being in that environment taught me a lot.”

He currently lives in Switzerland, but divides his time between the Czech Republic where his team is based, and London where F1 is based. Plus, he comes home to Manila around 10 times a year. 

2. He placed sixth in the first karting race he joined when he was 10 years old, and remembers proudly placing his glass trophy on top of their TV set at home. 

“I was nine years old. My father had started racing in go-karts and I honestly didn’t know anything about the sport. I went, he just put me in a really small go-kart that I didn’t even own. I didn’t even do one lap, it was straight lang, I didn’t even do any corners. I stopped, I looked at him and I said, ‘I wanna race.’ That was it,” Marlon recalls. “It just has this stereotype that it’s elitist, it’s unpopular, because people can’t relate, but I truly believe it’s more popular and has more of a following than what most people think.

“I came home with my first trophy, I was happy,” he recalls of his first Philippine Karting Championship experience. Every day, I looked at it and I was like, ‘Yeah, I got that!’ It wasn’t like a win or anything, but it just felt really cool that you could take these home after a race.” Marlon says he enjoyed karting not just because it was a hobby he shared with his dad, but also because it’s where he got a taste of “independence.” “To be out there on your own in your little go-kart, you just get to do your own thing. No one is telling you that you can’t do that, you can’t go this fast.”

3. On his first car: “It was not very impressive, I didn’t like her a lot.”

“It was a 1.2-liter Polo Volkswagen, parang mukhang paa ni Voltes V. It was incredibly small. I got it when I moved to England,” he shares. His first passenger? His dad. That was the start of his living alone and abroad. “It was quite a scary experience being out there and trying to learn everything. I’m really thankful, I learned things beyond my own, and it gave me a lot of responsibility.”

He was juggling college at CATS Cambridge with his racing career when he decided to quit stop school. “Unfortunately, I couldn’t handle both because it was like falling between two stools. Neither of them were doing really well. I was always away from the racing, and when I would come back I was always behind in school. So I told my parents, ‘I know it’s a risk but give me a chance to really commit myself to it,’” he reveals. He admits being somewhat jealous of his sister Audrey who is currently taking up law, saying, “She’s on campus, she has friends, she’s out every night!”

4. Marlon Stockinger in numbers:

11: Age when he won his first championship at the Cadet Class Philippine Shell Super Karting Series.

350: Measurement in kilometers per hour of the fastest speed he’s ever driven.

11,000: Number in kilometers of the farthest distance he’s driven in one day. “From Switzerland to the South of France. It was tough, I was with a friend so we shared the drive. We played music and games, and I like eating small chocolates to keep the energy up.”

0: Cash prizes from all the tournaments he’s won. “Its the respect, the name, and the prestige. And hopefully with that you get endorsements and sponsors. The drivers of F1, their salaries can be anywhere from 250,000 euros to 25 million euros a year.”

30: Approximate number of people on his team, the Lotus F1 Junior Team. “On my car, there are two mechanics, the engineer, two data engineers, then another set for the other car. Then our team manager, physical trainer, press officer, and others.”

5. On his biggest flaw: “I’m a really bad loser.”

“I’ve lost a lot, definitely. Obviously, in the media, people only see your highs. If I didn’t go through that process of losing and accepting that people on their day can be better than you, I don’t think I’d be able to win also,” he shares. “I think it’s important that you not only learn how to win but learn how to lose at the same time.”

On what he’s like the day after a loss: “It’s terrible! Sometimes I have to watch myself, honestly. Every time I have a really bad race, I can’t talk to anyone. I sometimes carry it even until the next race, which is two weeks after. I hate it. I think everyone hates losing, but I’m quite tough on myself.” He says that he usually gets out of a rut by cycling or running. “Just doing physical activity takes your mind away from it. I think in anything, it’s one of the best ways to feel good about yourself.”

6. His life has flashed before his eyes twice: once during an accident, and the other time during a big win.

“It actually happened in my high, when I won in Monaco. I remember the start. I mean, it was Monaco and I was starting in pole position, it’s such a historic event. For whatever reason, when I lined up on the grid with all the lights illuminated, I suddenly felt all the pressure that was on me. I swear to God, I was so nervous, my left foot was shaking on the brake. I was waiting for the lights to go out and I almost stalled it,” he recalls. “After the race, when I won, I thought to myself, ‘Sh*t, Marlon, if you messed up that start, you would’ve missed your biggest opportunity.’ And my life just flashed before my eyes. Imagining one day from being in Carmona, Cavite, just racing karts, to winning on the streets of Monaco. I mean, it’s just been this incredible journey.”

And the other time? “Also, when I had my big accident in Barcelona. I was driving then suddenly saw a car that stopped. I hit the car in third place and I was at 260 kilometers per hour. The whole car just blew up. I was closing my eyes, and I thought I could keep going because I didn’t feel anything. But then I felt liquid spraying on my face, so I jumped out of the car.”

Marlon shares that as racing drivers, they experience G-forces of four to five, which is around five times your body weight at one point. Would he ever go skydiving? “Oh, never. No way. I’d pee my pants, honestly. Just because I’m a control freak. If I died because of someone else’s mistake, then that’s my fault for trusting him,” he says, laughing.

7. On romancing cars and girls: “I don’t understand how a guy could ever like a car more than a girl.”

“Not always, no,” he says when asked if his girlfriends understand the kind of career he has. “Because you’re always traveling, and you have to devote yourself a lot more than people think,” he says of racing. When asked if he’s in a relationship right now, he says: “Technically, no.”

“The only relationship I have right now is with my car,” Marlon reveals. “I have yet to name her. There was Serious Sally, she looked quite serious and her colors weren’t so vibrant. She has to have some character. My car now is black and gold... maybe she’s Black Beauty.”

8. He’s been caught by the MMDA on EDSA.

Marlon says he hardly drives himself when in Manila. “Just because I’m always driving by myself. So when I’m here I just like to chill out and drive the least I can,” he explains.

On his driving speed: “I drive normal, simply because racing gives you a perspective. I’ve had many accidents and I understand how much I’d be putting myself at risk, and also other people on the road. At the end of the day it’s not just your life, and to risk harming someone else, it’s not worth the risk of going fast on the road.”

On driving violations: “I came from an event and was just coming out on EDSA. Driving out, I forgot to put on my seatbelt, not because I didn’t want to but because we had just come out. My car wasn’t tinted and literally as we got out of the hotel they stopped us. They were writing a ticket, and I said, ‘Oh, what did I do?’ ‘Sir, no seatbelt.’ And my tito was like, ‘Don’t you know who he is?’ Because he didn’t want the ticket, he was like, ‘Marlon, this is stupid. Don’t you know him?’ ‘No, sorry,” they said. ‘Haven’t you seen those Tattoo advertisements? That’s him!’ They said, ‘Oo nga,’ and they crumpled up the ticket and said to go on. I was lucky.”

On Manila traffic: “I’m used to it, I grew up here. If you’re gonna stress yourself you’re just going to make it worse. You can’t do anything about it so might as well just sit there and tweet or go on Facebook.”

9. He loves cooking. His best dish: “Honey-glazed salmon with sesame seeds and parmesan risotto.”

“I live alone,” he shares, “so as much as I can, I cook for myself and learn new dishes. I like quite a lot of Jamie Oliver’s 30-minute dishes. It’s nice also after a race, just to be at home in the quiet. I don’t feel like going out and I just cook myself a meal.”

He’s also into sport fitness (“The triathlon type of training, not necessarily to compete, but just doing the long distances for cardio”) and he loves traveling (“Nice thing is that because of racing, I can do it on my own. I enjoy being out there, seeing new places and experiencing it”).

10. He has very specific routines before going into a race, one of which is going to Baclaran Church to pray.

“I always have a certain ritual. I have to sleep a certain number of hours, wake up a certain way. I have to shave, I don’t know why, maybe because you never know when you’re gonna be on the podium so you you gotta look good. I always organize my suit, when I’m gonna warm up, when I’m gonna talk to the engineers,” Marlon explains. “Professional athletes, whether they know it or not, they’re actually superstitious. We hang on to things that we think will bring us good luck. I think you need that because mentally, it’s so easy to be negative.

“My mom always says, ‘You need to pray.’ I don’t go to church every Sunday but I’d like to think I have my own special relationship with God,” he says. Marlon reveals that it has been his habit to go to Baclaran before he leaves, and that every time he goes there, either they get a good race or secure more sponsors. “It has this vibe, this aura. You go through all the sari-sari stores and stalls before you get there, suddenly you’re at this church. It’s really nice and simple, you can just go there and have your thoughts to yourself. It’s always been good luck.”

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Marlon reveals he’s doubted himself many times. He was always guessing when his big win would come, if it was ever going to happen, why it was taking so long. “These people from Europe, America, South America, they’re all too good. But then you realize when you win the race, hey, they’re no more special, they’re just from a different country. At the end of the day they’re normal people too. That’s when it sank in that this is possible,” the 21-year-old says of his F1 dream. “With more success comes greater ambition. You just believe in yourself more. It was just a dream, but now it’s becoming reality.”

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E-mail me at askiamsuperbianca@yahoo.com or message me on Twitter @iamsuperbianca.