Julia Jantarska: "I want to be the fastest woman on the planet"

A young rider who's growing and making her way through the Italian CIV Championship, and whose family has made big sacrifices for her career and moved to Italy with her to chase a dream. This is the story of Julia Jantarska.

In the 2026 season, Jantarska experienced her first season in the Moto4 Italy Cup, securing several results in the points and also a 5th place in Race 1 at Misano. A foot fracture sustained in Race 1 at Cremona affected the final part of the campaign, but the 14-year-old Pole has still had a positive year, where she made tangible progress alongside the SM Corse-GEA Motorsport team.

Palmen in Motorradsport had the opportunity to interview Julia Jantarska, in order to know more about her story.

Julia, are you happy with how the 2026 season went?

Yes. It was my first season on a Moto4 and on big bikes, having previously raced with the Ohvale. We made some good progress throughout the season. At the first round, I was very stressed, because everything was new and it was a big learning experience for me. Unfortunately, after the great fifth place at the summer round in Misano, I suffered an injury following a crash at Cremona. Still, I am happy with how the season went.

What was it like for you to move from go-kart tracks to circuits such as Misano, Mugello and Imola?

Everything is different, since you have much more space and reach much higher speed. However, I adapted quite well.

What does motorcycle racing mean to you?

It's been my life, since I was six years old.

How did your career begin?

I started at the age of six, as I mentioned earlier, and from then on I spent a lot of time riding. At one point, we went to a school in Kraków, and that was when we started taking things even more seriously. However, in Poland the weather is quite cold and there are few tracks and riders, so at a certain point we moved to Italy to continue my career.

Why did you choose Italy?

Because my mother speaks Italian, whereas if we had moved to Spain, we would all have had to learn a new language. Italy is also closer to Poland, and we already had some friends here at the time. We started with two weeks of training in Aprilia with the Luca Fabrizio Riders Academy, and since we had a great experience there, we moved to Italy in September 2023.

Is it true that you and your family live in a caravan?

Yes. Initially, we lived in a house, but then we left because mould spread in there, and I was ill for several months because of that. Since motorcycle racing is a very expensive sport, we had to choose between having a house and competing in the Moto4 Italy Cup. And we chose the latter...

How difficult is it for you to find sponsors as a Polish rider?

We are starting to attract some sponsors now, because my father and I decided to publish lots of videos on Instagram to gain followers and get more visibility. And it's working. We don't have many sponsors yet, but they are coming and I'm very happy about that.

What's your goal for your career?

I want to race in MotoGP and become the fastest woman in the world. I feel that if I do things properly, I can make it happen.

Are you also considering WorldWCR for your career, or would you rather continue racing against men?

Ideally, I would like to race in WorldWCR, win the title there and then make it to MotoGP.

If you received an offer to compete in the Women's Circuit Racing World Championship, and one to race in the Moto3 Junior World Championship, what would you choose if the conditions were the same?

Definitely the Moto3 Junior World Championship, because the level is higher and it's even more difficult to stand out there Boys are generally very strong, so I feel that racing against them would help me grow faster.

What do you like to do when not racing?

I train at the circuit, go to the gym twice a week and also see a psychologist, who is helping me a lot with managing pressure and stress. Of course, I continue studying as well. I am in secondary school and I'm already thinking about which high school to choose.

Which subjects or study programmes are you interested in?

The Science programme, the Sports Science one and Human Sciences. I really like Maths and English, so I am leaning towards Science. But I haven't made a decision yet.

Going back to racing, who's your favourite rider?

Marc Márquez. We were actually born on the same day, February 17, and I like that little coincidence. Apart from that, I like him because he is a true champion. He used to be very aggressive and always had a huge desire to win. I think it's a great attitude in this sport, even now that he is more focused on strategies. I am a huge fan of Marc!

Is there a female rider who inspires you?

I don't follow them very closely, because I mainly watch MotoGP, but I really like Karolina Danak. She's very good because, even though she has only been racing for a short time, she is already very fast. I would like to be a bit like her.

Speaking of former riders, you train with Luca Fabrizio (who also took part in one 125cc World Championship race in 2011, ed). What have you learned from him?

I have learned a lot of things so far. For example, I have improved a lot in terms of corner speed: I used to brake very hard, which caused me to be very slow through the corners, but now I carry much more speed there. Another area where I have made great progress is the race start. Finally, he has also taught me to really believe in myself.

How does it feel to represent Poland?

I am very proud and happy to represent my country, because it is a beautiful nation and many extremely fast Polish riders are emerging (such as Milan Pawelec, Patrycja Sowa, Danak herself, and brothers Witold and Andrzej Kupczynski, ed). I hope to become one of them!

Finally, would you like to thank anyone in particular?

First of all, I would like to thank Luca Fabrizio and the SM Corse-GEA Motorsport team, since I really enjoy working with them. I would also like to thank my parents, because they always believe in me and have done, and continue to do, everything they can to allow me to continue racing. I would also like to thank all my sponsors, especially my main sponsors, Mega Invest and ZXMOTO Polska. I want to keep improving, and thanks to all these people, I will make it.

Palmen in Motorradsport would like to thank Julia Jantarska for her time and Luca Fabrizio for arranging the interview. Best wishes to Julia and her team for the upcoming races and seasons.