Leonardo Zanni: Joys and sorrows, heading to the Moto3 World Championship

A career that began at a very young age, two championship titles in Italy, great results in the European Talent Cup and Moto3 Junior World Championship with Momoven Racing (formerly known as Finetwork Mir Racing Team). And, now the most important chapter of his career to date: stepping up to the Moto3 World Championship with Leopard Racing.

This is the journey of Leonardo Zanni, who opened up to Palmen in Motorradsport in an open as well as heartfelt interview.

Leonardo, how does it feel to step up to the Moto3 World Championship with Leopard Racing?

I'm very happy, because not every rider can join the Moto3 World Championship with such an important and successful team, which boasts four titles in the series. Reaching the Grand Prix paddock has always been my dream, and I've been working for it since I was two and a half years old. There are moments when you think you might not make it, but in the end, if you believe in yourself and work as hard as possible, you can achieve anything you aim for. That was the case for me.

Have you already set any specific goal for the campaign?

Not yet. I just want to learn, get to know the tracks and be as fast as possible. As for results, we'll see according to how the season unfolds.

Looking back at the 2026 season, what can you say about it?

The first part of the season was very good. We then had some problems, but towards the end we managed to fight for top results again. I still managed to take a victory and a pole position, and on two occasions I crashed while leading, so the speed was definitely there.

As you prepare to move up to the World Championship, is there any aspect in your riding that you particularly need to work on?

Mainly everything. If I approached it like a gym workout, it would be a full-body one (laughs, ed). But it also depends on the circuit. In any case, there's always something to work on, and I'll understand that even better once I'm there.

Now, can you talk about the beginning of your career?

I started when I was two and a half years old, initially on an electric minimoto that was lent to us and we then bought from a friend of my father's. I don't know why, but I absolutely wanted to try it, even though my father wasn't particularly interested in motorcycle racing. Anyway, I entered my first races shortly afterwards and I later became Italian Minimoto Junior B Champion in 2018 (in the same year, he also won the Trofeo Marco Simoncelli and finished third in the European Championship, ed).

How did your career progress from there?

In 2019, I moved to 17-inch wheels and raced in Spain in the Moto5 class of the Cuna de Campeones. I missed a few races, so I didn't finish particularly high in the standings, but I did well despite being a new face there and I also took pole position once or twice. In 2020, I moved to the PreMoto3 class in the Italian CIV Championship. I made my debut at the second round, right after reaching the minimum age limit (12 years old, ed), and I immediately secured a podium at the following round in Imola. In 2021, I had a bit of bad luck and also injured my wrist, but I still managed to win three races.

You then took some more important steps forward.

Yes. In 2022, I became Italian PreMoto3 Champion, and the following year I moved to the European Talent Cup. In 2023 and 2024, I suffered a few injuries that affected both seasons to some extent, but I was still reasonably fast. I also managed to earn a place in the Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup for 2024 and got my first chance to ride a Moto3 bike at the end of that same year. In 2025, I made my full-time debut in the Moto3 Junior World Championship. I finished eighth, also taking a victory (at Motorland Aragon, ed), so it was not a bad rookie season.

Did you expect that podium at Imola in 2020, being 12 and in only your second round on a PreMoto3 machine?

No. However, I can say that I've always given my absolute best to achieve these results. It was unexpected in that moment, but at the same time, it was the result of plenty of hard work.

What memories do you have of the 2022 season, when you won the CIV PreMoto3 title?

It was a very intense season, but everything went as well as it possibly could. What I remember most is starting the season with a victory in Race 1 at the opening round in Misano, and then maintaining the championship lead throughout the entire season. I secured the title with one race to spare. It was a long and intense year, but also a very formative one. It helped me prepare for the seasons that followed.

How have the four seasons you spent in the European Talent Cup and Moto3 Junior World Championship shaped you as a rider?

They have definitely made me more mature, calmer and more aware of external factors that I cannot control, and about which it's not worth it to get upset. I've become more professional.

You also competed in the Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup in 2024. How did it go?

I struggled a little (he finished 14th, with seventh place as his best result, ed). The level in the Rookies Cup is always very high, but in the year I competed, it was even higher than usual. The field included Máximo Quiles in his third year, Álvaro Carpe in his second year and also riders like Brian Uriarte, Valentín Perrone, Marco Morelli, Guido Pini and Rico Salmela...It was tough. Honestly, I was only partly disappointed not to stay there for a second year, because that way I could focus fully on being fast in the Moto3 Junior World Championship. And it worked out!

How do you prepare for races?

I usually spend a lot of time training on the circuit, although lately I have moved back to Italy from Spain and couldn't ride as much as I normally do. Besides that, I often go cycling or running. I don't go to the gym very often. I go there for some bodyweight training, but I prefer running or cycling.

So you also lived in Spain?

I lived there for two years, going back and forth sometimes. As early as 2024, I was travelling to Red Bull Rookies Cup races on my own, because my father had to work and couldn't go with me. But then I took another step forward. For 2027, though, I would like to stay in Italy, especially because many of the people I'll be working with at Leopard Racing are Italian. I'll return to Spain to ride sometimes on a circuit, but the plan is to move back to Italy.

What do you like to do in your spare time?

I like playing padel, I meet my girlfriend two or three times a week and I go out with my friends.

Do you have any particular interests outside motorcycle racing?

I'm a huge fan of aviation. I even spend many hours playing and flying intercontinental routes on a flight simulation videogame. I learned everything by myself in six months, without using any tutorials. I also do a lot of research about aircraft and have my favourite ones. So, yes, it's pretty clear that I love it!

Would you consider getting a pilot's licence?

Yes...but I'm not ready to spend all those hours studying! (laughs, ed)

If you weren't a motorcycle racer, would you become an airline pilot?

Yes. Alternatively, I'd study hard so I could start my own business, either in construction or in the nautical industry.

How do you like studying?

Generally speaking, I don't like it. But if it's a subject I'm genuinely interested in, I'm more than happy to do it. That applies to aviation, as I mentioned earlier, and to other things I enjoy, such as the universe. Apart from that, I attend a private school, because it's difficult to keep up with public school in the life of a professional racer.

Finally, Leonardo, the "Thank You Moment". Would you like to thank anyone in particular?

I'd like to thank the Talenti Azzurri programme, the FMI (Italian Motorcycling Federation, ed), my sponsors, the Momoven Racing Team, Claudio Zamboni and of course my parents and my girlfriend, who puts up with me and my passion for motorcycles from morning until night. More generally, I'd like to thank everyone who has supported me since I was a child.

Palmen in Motorradsport would like to thank Leonardo Zanni for his time, as well as Javier Martínez and Miquel Gallego from Momoven Racing for making this interview possible. Best wishes to both the rider and the team for the next chapters of their journeys.