Get to Know Felix Rosenqvist
Photography Provided
Felix Rosenqvist was born and raised in Värnamo which is a municipality in Jönköping County in southern Sweden. He lived with his parents and sister, and the first sport he pursued and excelled in was not racing, it was Alpine skiing. He began skiing at the age of two years old and joined a skiing club. He was building a name in the ski world on the national and international level. Racing cars was not on his radar until one of his skiing buddies introduced him to Go-Karts when he was nine years old.
His ski buddy also raced Go-Karts, so his father invited Felix and his father to come with them to a track. Once inside the Go-Kart, he recalls thinking, “I am hooked!” He began participating in weekend races, and by the time he was 12 or 13, he won one of Italy’s biggest races.
He gave up skiing for good.
To move up in racing requires a significant investment, so to keep moving forward they moved out of Go-Karts and into a car through the Formula Renault, which is what today is called Formula 4. The Rosenqvists discovered that this was four times cheaper than doing the highest level Go-Karting. This road would lead him out of Sweden to China, where he moved for the season. And after that season all he did was travel, race, win and repeat.
The move to China turned out well, he won the 2008 Formula Renault 2.0 Asia series. He was then offered a contract to drive in Japan with Nissan. The 2008 economy canceled that opportunity, so he returned to Sweden. He picked up right where he left off and won a few more feature races.
There was the 2009 Formula Renault 2.0 Sweden series, the 2009 Formula Renault 2.0 NEZ championship, the 2011 Masters of Formula 3 event, the 2013 Masters of Formula 3 event, the 2014 Macau Grand Prix, the 2015 FIA Formula 3 European Championship and the 2015 Macau Grand Prix. He competed in the Formula E World Championship from 2016–17 to 2018–19 and finished his very first season (2016-17) in the 3rd position.
He basically drove every type of car there was to stay active until he could move up from Indy Lights to IndyCar. In 2019, he began participating in the IndyCar Series.
Felix was blessed to have the support of his parents in whatever he pursued. His mind raced in school until he could get on a mountain or into a car. Felix was blessed that his parents encouraged him to pursue his dreams.
“I admit that it was quite a sacrifice for them to support me because the sports I pursued were taxing both physically and financially,” he says. “But I was fortunate that my parents and sister supported me. It was like my father and I did this together because he traveled with me to nearly every race. And while it was tough, it also gave them lifelong friendships and allowed them to see the world.
“My father was in the construction business and, as a small business owner, he not only influenced my work ethic, but he taught me how to work.”
His father continues traveling to most of his races around the country and the world. But he is also supported by his girlfriend Caroline Björkqvist.
“She keeps me organized, as I am not a very organized person,” he says.
The race season is intense, and he admits his days are completely filled with daily workouts, meetings with the team, engineers and public relations commitments.
“My number one focus is on my athletic training,” Felix says.
The fitness of the driver is critical since drivers only get 3-4 test drives a year. So working out with renowned race industry trainer, Jim Leo of PitFit, is the key to being able to withstand anything that comes his way. The same goes for the off-season, which is actually longer than the race season, unlike many competitive sports. This is why it is even more important to work out up to two hours a day.
Felix enjoys living in his apartment in the heart of downtown Carmel and dining at his favorite restaurants, Café Patachou and Caffé Buondi. His permanent residence is in Monaco, but he is fully committed to IndyCar and, one day, having his face on the Borg-Warner trophy as the winner of the Indianapolis 500.
“I want to win the Indy 500, and my team is on a mission and ready to take on the biggest names in racing,” he says.
To follow “Fast Felix” on Instagram search: @frosenqvist.
