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Mathilda Paatz – the Speedgirl

Helmet on, gloves on - and full throttle! Mathilda Paatz loves speed. The schoolgirl from Cologne lives up to her reputation as a ‘speed girl’, both on the slopes and on the race track. ‘Karting and skiing are two of my great passions,’ reveals the 16-year-old, who also enjoys dancing. ‘Nothing works for me without sport!’

The ‘speed girl’ inherited her enthusiasm for motorsport from her father. Michael Paatz has been closely involved with the endurance championship at the Nürburgring for many years. First as a driver, later even as team boss. Paatz founded his own racing team over ten years ago. Naturally, a name was quickly found: Mathilda Racing!

Mathilda got into karting for the first time when she was just four years old - alongside her father, of course. And it was there that the now 16-year-old's talent began to shine through. ‘I was amazed that Mathilda immediately reacted instinctively on our double kart,’ says her father Michael Paatz proudly. ‘Both her posture in the bends and her ability to judge the distance worked after just a few laps.’ No wonder the youngster wanted to get behind the wheel herself one day.

The wish quickly became a reality. And after just a few laps, it became clear that Mathilda Paatz had the talent of a racing driver. Since then, the 16-year-old has been battling for race wins and championships. The fact that motorsport is still considered a male domain does not bother the schoolgirl. ‘I don't think girls have it harder, because girls can be just as good as the boys,’ she says ambitiously.

„I don’t think girls have it harder, because girls can be just as good as the boys.“
Mathilda Paatz

And Mathilda Paatz has already proven that. In the 2020 season, the schoolgirl competed with the TB Racing Team in the mini class of the ADAC Kart Masters and in the West German ADAC Kart Cup. In the process, the then twelve-year-old showed that the male competition is by no means at an advantage. At the event in Mülsen, Mathilda Paatz celebrated a commanding double victory. In the end, she only just missed the championship title in third place. In turn, she not only won the Ladies Cup, but also the championship in the West German ADAC Kart Cup.

The next step followed in the 2021 season. Mathilda Paatz remained loyal to the TB Racing Team, but started in the next higher kart class, the OK Junior. This was no easy challenge, but passion and ambition drove the then 13-year-old to top performance. ‘I was pretty sure that the first year wouldn't be easy,’ Paatz is honest. ‘But I wanted to achieve some places in the top ten.’ And she managed to do so, so that the Cologne native's path continued.

After another year in karting with Formula 1 world champion Fernando Alonso's junior team, she will finally make the switch to motor racing in the 2024 season. Paatz competed for the “ADAC Formula Junior Team” in her debut season in the French Formula 4, where she attracted attention with respectable successes: in Magny-Cours, the schoolgirl started from the front row of the grid.

In the 2025 season, Paatz initially competed in the Formula Winter Series, where she secured a race win in the Ladies Trophy at the finale in Barcelona. The 16-year-old is currently driving for her own team in the Central European Formula 4 Championship, taking another important step towards her big dream of one day competing in the premier class of motorsport.