Angelica Corinaldesi: Guest Experience at Pata Maxus Yamaha
- alicejukes
- 2 days ago
- 5 min read
There’s something almost magnetic about the way Angelica Corinaldesi talks about motorsport. It’s not rehearsed, it’s not learned, it’s instinctual. “I can’t really answer how it became my passion,” she says. “I was just born with it.” That passion, the kind that doesn’t need explaining, has guided Angelica from the back of her father’s scooter on the Adriatic coast to a guest experience role in the World Superbike paddock, where she now helps bring fans and sponsors into the heart of the action.
Growing up just a short drive from Misano, one of Italy’s most beloved circuits, motorsport was never far from view, even if it wasn’t part of her family’s daily life. “Nobody in my family really had this big passion,” she admits. “I was always fascinated by fast cars and fast bikes. I’d ask my parents to take me to motor expos just to see what was new.”
By the time she was sixteen, she had begged for a motorbike license and never looked back. Riding wasn’t just about speed, it was about belonging to something bigger.
That sense of belonging would come into sharper focus when, at just fifteen, Angelica stepped into a role that most wouldn’t have dared to pursue at that age: helping to build the Marco Simoncelli Foundation. When Marco Simoncelli tragically passed in 2011, the loss reverberated through the racing world. For Angelica, it struck particularly close to home. “His hometown was only forty minutes from mine,” she says. “I just felt this calling, like, what can I do to help?”
She asked her mother to drive her to Coriano, the town where Simoncelli was born, and walked into what would become a near decade-long chapter of her life. There, a grassroots group called the 58 Boys had begun organizing events to raise funds for the foundation. “I went there and just said, ‘Is there anything I can do?’ And they welcomed me with open arms.” From rallies to race-linked charity events, Angelica became a vital part of the team, helping not just on the ground but behind the scenes, translating, organizing, and connecting international fans and donors with the cause.
Her command of both Italian and English became a powerful asset. “I’ve always loved English,” she says. “I’d come home from school, watch hours of YouTube, listen to how people really talked. I picked up the slang, the tone.” That immersion eventually positioned her as the go-to translator for the foundation, both online and in-person. “There were international guests at the events, and I became the link between them and the organizers. I’m so glad I could do that for them.”
Years later, that same linguistic fluency and commitment to connection would serve her well in the World Superbike paddock. After years of applying and waiting for the right opportunity, 2025 marks Angelica’s first full season in a professional guest experience role with Pata Maxus Yamaha. “It was something I’d been working toward for years,” she says. “To finally get the chance was amazing.”
Her role centers on ensuring that guests and sponsors feel fully immersed in the race weekend, from exclusive garage visits to behind-the-scenes tours that bring fans closer to the sport they love. “I still feel like a fan myself sometimes,” she laughs. “I’ll say, ‘Come on, I’ll take you to see this!’ And it’s all stuff I’d be thrilled to do too.”
Before landing her current role, Angelica gained valuable experience with multiple teams, including GRT Yamaha and Kawasaki Puccetti Racing. Each stint was brief, supporting races like Misano and Cremona when teams needed an extra hand, but each left a mark. “Every team is different. The vibe, the workflow, the dynamics. One thing is always the same: the passion. Everyone cares so much about the riders and the results.” When she sensed an opportunity with Pata Maxus Yamaha, she reached out directly. “I knew about them, and I had this feeling it would be a good fit. I said, ‘If you need someone, I’d love to work with you.’ And it worked.”
Working in such an emotionally charged, high-stakes environment is no small task, though Angelica approaches it with the same heart that brought her to the foundation as a teenager. That commitment was tested, and rewarded, when Andrea Locatelli took his first World Superbike win earlier this year. “I shed a tear, honestly,” she says. “Even though I’d just started with the team, to see him win, it was electric. Everyone was just staring at the screen. That silence, that hope. Then pure joy. I felt like I was witnessing the result of years of hard work and intensity. It was overwhelming in the best way.”
For Angelica, that moment crystallized what makes the sport, and her role in it, so meaningful. “To see a group of people who have worked so hard finally get the result they’ve dreamed of, it’s powerful,” she says. “It’s why we do this.”
Her path into the paddock hasn’t been without challenge. Motorsport remains a male-dominated industry, and entering it as a young woman without formal connections could easily have been intimidating. Angelica is quick to credit the women who’ve built community and strength within the paddock. “I’ve been lucky. I haven’t faced overt prejudice, but I know what it took to get to this point. I know I’m here thanks to the work of the women before me.”
One of those women is Pippa Laverty, who has helped organize meetups and foster support among the growing number of women in the WorldSBK paddock. “She’s created this amazing network. It’s like a safety net, knowing there are others who share your experience. It’s empowering.”
The lifestyle, of course, is relentless, with constant travel, early mornings, and weeks spent living out of suitcases. For Angelica, it still feels new and thrilling. “This is my first full season. I haven’t even minded the travel yet,” she says. “I know for people who’ve done this for 20 years, it gets tiring. For me, it’s still exciting. I get to see places I’ve only ever watched on screen. I’m loving it.”
That joy, coupled with her work ethic, language skills, and emotional intelligence, makes Angelica a rising force in motorsport. She navigates the paddock not as someone trying to prove she belongs, but as someone who’s quietly building something of her own, experience by experience, circuit by circuit.
Her advice to others hoping to follow a similar path is simple and sincere. “As cliché as it sounds, never give up,” she says. “You have to believe in your capabilities. Build your experience, even if it’s unpaid charity work, show your passion. People notice when it’s real.”
Angelica Corinaldesi’s story is still being written. Already, it’s one of courage, persistence, and deep care, not just for the sport, but for the people who make it. In a paddock full of noise, her voice is steady, clear, and unmistakably her own.
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