Di is a F1 mega fan. Her obsession was sparked at her first PR job in London working on the OrangeArrows F1 account when Jos Verstappen (yes, Max’s dad) was the driver.  Drive to Survive is the best documentary ever made according to Di because it opened her world to more F1 friends, like Monique.  From London, Di moved back to her native Melbourne, and shortly after to Perth, to work on the World Rally Championship where she was PR Manager for the city’s last six WRC Rally Australia events back when Carlos Sainz (Senior) was a driver.  She worked at Tourism WA and then opened her own PR firm, Pronto PR in 2010 where she works with clients in tourism, major events, hospitality and motorsport.  Di is also an awarded freelance travel and food writer. 

Italian heritage (and an Italian passport holder) means that Di’s blood is Ferrari Red by default. She’s a proud tifosi and can’t promise to always be impartial. That’s Mon’s job.

Like legions of other fans, Monique came into the F1 world post-Drive to Survive. Attracted to the multi-faceted nature of the sport, she loved it all, the racing, the strategy, the rumours and its global appeal. Can you blame a full-time travel journalist and photographer for being sucked into a sport that travels to 24 different destinations every year? Though she might not know what PSI is best for optimum speed but she can talk to her heart’s content about what’s happening on, off, and around the track.

Oddly enough, cooking was a pastime that exponentially increased Monique’s interest in the sport. Each racing weekend, when she’s not travelling for work or the race, she bases Sunday’s dinner around the race destination such as flank steak tacos followed by a cinnamon and chilli chocolate pudding to celebrate the Mexican GP. Born in Bunbury in the south west of Western Australia, Monique moved to Norway in 2023 for love.