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Introducing Nicola Havrda: The American Express driver on Chinese food, Michael Jordan and a life-changing trip to the Austrian GP
A competitive spirit has always fuelled Nicole Havrda, but the American Express driver’s passion for racing was initially focused on the pool rather than the racetrack.
Facing our must-know quickfire questions, the Canadian driver reveals what she loves most about home, how she gets fire up before a race and why her biggest achievement so far shouldn’t fly under the radar.
HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN RACING FOR?
“I’ve been racing since I was 10, starting in karting.”
DO YOU REMEMBER THE MOMENT YOU FIRST WANTED TO BE A RACING DRIVER?
“It was at the F1 Grand Prix in Austria. Right there and then, I knew I wanted to do that. My dad’s always watched Formula 1 a little bit. We weren’t fans or anything, I didn’t like cars. We went for a road trip through Europe because my family lives in Prague and my dad was like ‘we may as well just stop at the Grand Prix, I’ve always wanted to watch’.
“It was very random. I was swimming back then so I was focused (on that), I wanted to be a swimmer. Out of nowhere, this happened — I didn’t even want to go to the track, to be honest! Thank goodness I did because I just fell in love with it right there and then.”
WHAT’S YOUR FAVOURITE CHEAT MEAL?
“It’s very American but I love Panda Express, which is Chinese food, but not like Chinese food here in China. Also pizza, I love pizza, it’s my favourite.
“(Asked about her favourite topping) Cheese, no pineapple! It depends, some pepperoni, some meat is nice. Vegetables, but it really depends on how I feel. (At Panda Express I get) The chow mein and of course the orange chicken, because that’s so popular. It’s so good! It’s like sweet but orange-y, it’s interesting.”
WHAT DO YOU LOVE MOST ABOUT RACING?
“I was a swimmer back then and I think the thing that made me fall in love with racing was basically just the adrenaline. I was missing the adrenaline in swimming, so seeing that adrenaline in racing just hit me. That’s what I fell in love with.”
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WHAT’S BETTER — CATS OR DOGS?
“Dogs, I love dogs. I have a little Yorkie. He’s called Bailey, he’s a little boy.”
HAVE YOU GOT ANY HOBBIES OUTSIDE OF RACING?
“Relaxing because I feel like I’m always somewhere. The gym is a big one, even though that’s part of racing. That’s a big one that I just love doing as a hobby because it takes me out of that mindset. It makes me relax in a way too. Also, little things like skiing, I love skiing and then tennis. I love tennis as well. Just outdoor stuff.”
IF YOU WEREN’T A RACING DRIVER, WHAT WOULD YOU BE?
“A lawyer because my dad’s grandpa was a lawyer, I like that kind of thinking.”
WHAT DO YOU LOVE MOST ABOUT CANADA?
“The thing I love most about Canada is the nature, the peace, fresh air and the animals. It’s so picturesque. You can literally walk out of your house and there’s a forest. It calms me when I go back home because of that.
“We’re always in cities (for racing). I live in a little town so it’s a little farm town in a way, by the ocean and we have mountains so I can go skiing. It’s super peaceful.”
DO YOU HAVE A FAVOURITE TV SERIES OR MOVIE?
“I love The Last Dance with Michael Jordan. It shows the determination that he had, the focus and the drive. Instead of going to the bar and that kind of stuff, he would be at the gym working out towards his goals. I think that’s pretty cool, I’ve watched it like a million times!”
CAN YOU DESCRIBE YOUR PRE-RACE ROUTINE, AND DO YOU HAVE ANY SUPERSTITIONS?
“No to the superstitions because that stuff scares me! Sometimes, I think about if I have some and then I’m like ‘no I can’t think about that’ because I’ll just do it all the time. Pre-race is just warming up, that’s the biggest one, stretching properly.
“In the car, you sit for about 30 minutes and it’s a very stiff position, so sometimes you can get back pain from it. Stretching really well, warming up and getting the blood flow, as well as lots of music to get me in the zone. Thinking about things that make me frustrated because I want to be mad and in the zone and not just happy and blossoms.”
WHAT’S YOUR GO-TO PRE-RACE SONG OR ARTIST?
“There’s this one song, it’s called Trophies by Drake. It’s pretty good. There are a few other songs, I have a whole playlist.”
FIVE MINUTES EARLY OR FIVE MINUTES LATE?
“Early, always early. I think I was half an hour early today — I wasn’t even supposed to be here! It’s crazy.”
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WHAT’S THE HIGHLIGHT OF YOUR CAREER SO FAR?
“I know a lot of people don’t look at it because they don’t know much about it — Formula Regional Americas. Getting podiums in that against really good guys that went to IndyNXT, being able to compete against guys like that, especially in such a physical car. The Formula 3 car is very physical. Getting a podium at Indianapolis was really cool, and a podium at COTA. those are pretty surreal.”
WHERE ARE YOU MOST LOOKING FORWARD TO RACING THIS YEAR AND WHY?
“I have to say Canada, my home track. I think that will be really cool, even though I’m from the west coast and that’s the east coast. It’s going to be super cool because I’ve been to the Grand Prix there for two years and it’s just going to be so surreal to be there.
“I’m really looking forward to Miami and Vegas because Vegas being a street circuit in Vegas, that’s pretty cool at night. And Miami just being Miami — I love Florida. I’ve been to Florida so many times I would say it’s like my home away from home.”
IF YOU COULD RACE AGAINST ANY DRIVER FROM HISTORY, WHO WOULD YOU PICK?
“Lewis Hamilton. I’ve always looked up to him. His driving style, I think he’s very clean. Aggressive as well — every good driver is aggressive. Just very clean and it’s just iconic because I’ve looked up to him since day one. Seeing his story and how he won what he’s won, I’d choose to race against him.”
WHAT ADVICE WOULD YOU GIVE A YOUNG GIRL WANTING TO GET STARTED IN RACING?
“You just have to believe in yourself. You have to just push yourself, you have to be determined with whatever you want to do, not just racing. If you don’t want to race, you want to be an engineer or a mechanic or even maybe a lawyer in the future, just be determined, disciplined and motivated.
“For me, I look into a lot of quotes and people telling me inspirational stuff. I think it’s important to have those people. Us racers like to look up to people and I think that’s very important because I looked up to a bunch of people when I started racing.”
WHAT’S YOUR AMBITION FOR THE 2025 SEASON?
“Definitely podiums, that would be amazing. Honestly, a good year — a very consistent, good year with lots of learning.”