Racing Force is the leading group in the Motorsport Safety Product Industry with the most advanced and complete range of protection and performance products used worldwide by top professionals, amateur athletes, racing teams and car manufacturers.
The group is present on three continents, with its main headquarters in Ronco Scrivia (Italy), Sakhir (Kingdom of Bahrain), Miami and Mooresville (United States). The group was formed in 2020 through the merger of four brands, OMP, Bell Racing, Zeronoise, and Racing Spirit, and has since then contributed to several victories and world titles in car racing and karting each year.
Racing Force’s achievements over the relatively short time of its existence are impressive, and its brands are firmly embedded in motorsport. But this is not the end of their plans. We spoke to Alexandros Haristos, COO of Racing Force Group, about what lies behind the group’s rising success and what the next steps might be.
With a master’s degree in industrial and management engineering, Haristos started his career as a management consultant in London but, at the age of 29, left consultancy to become an entrepreneur. In 2018 he founded Zeronoise, a company focussed on unique and innovative audio and video technologies for motorsport, which quickly established its position at the top of the industry.
When Zeronoise merged with the other two iconic brands to give birth to Racing Force Group, Alex became the group COO, retaining his shareholding and the leadership of Zeronoise, and helping the group to go public at the Milan and Paris Stock Exchanges in 2021 and 2022.
Dream team
“The Group consists of two really iconic brands with decades of history behind them, and two very young brands. What is behind our success? Clearly a team of people that met at the right time, people dedicated to sharing the journey and working together,” he affirms.
Racing Force stands for safety and performance through technology, style and comfort, and its employees know that every Racing Force product out on the field is there to save a life, he further says.
R&D is the engine in the group. The portfolio includes the Driver’s Eye created by Zeronoise, a patented technology that is the smallest micro-camera in the world for live TV broadcasting; a video camera inserted into the helmet of Formula One drivers that offers real-time footage from the exact perspective of the driver of the single-seater.”
“It was not enough to give images from the car, the view did not have to be close, but exactly the same as that of the driver, to obtain a more raw content, similar to reality. It is a difference of a few centimetres that completely changes the feeling.”
The unique video and audio products achieved great success in Formula One worldwide, and the Racing Force team could see a clear opportunity for this know-how to be applied in other industries outside of motorsport.
New partnership
To this end, the company formed a partnership with Oakley, the famous brand part of the Luxottica-Essilor Group, the world leader in sport eyewear and, more specifically, in snow goggles, to launch the revolutionary Skier’s Eye technology to provide the unique Point Of View of the alpine ski disciplines.
The company claims that thanks to the Skier’s Eye, TV spectators will be able to enjoy an unprecedented experience, with high resolution images that will show the exact point of view of the skiers during the race.
“I started working with the International Ski Federation to bring a completely new perspective to the sport. Alpine skiing has so many common elements with motorsport – the dynamism, the exposure to an extreme element, the focus on performance,” says Haristos. “The Skier’s Eye adds a human perspective, the emotion, the personal, individual element to the sport.”
He explains that the micro camera and related accessories have been integrated into the athlete’s equipment without impacting safety or performance. “We are officially enrolled for tests at the Ski World Cup. The solution will be applied in all disciplines, with a view to being used in the 2026 Milan Cortina Olympics.”
Dedicated to trailblazing
Interestingly, Haristos himself does not come from motorsport but gradually became passionate about its performance environment. “I like being at the front of innovation and when your product has a place in Formula One or the World Rally Championship, you know you have the best product in the world, at that time. The reward is very high.”
“Also, motorsport dynamics are unique. So many people putting their minds to work at their best. It is a privileged industry in this respect and I try to communicate this to my people to get them to go the extra mile. And they do. You need a special character to work in motorsport. You need a personality. That’s what I’m looking for in my employees.”
Coming from an international background, Haristos was naturally bestowed with the task of making sure that the international team that came out as a result of merging the four brands can work together seamlessly.
He recalls: “The 99% Italian company suddenly became a group with sites and operations all over the world, with 30 nationalities working across three continents. It was necessary to instil the value and processes, with the prime focus on safety and performance, so that we think the same way, we have the same approach across the whole group. This is a never-ending challenge. The team, working as one, is always a priority. That is absolutely key.”
New horizons
Speaking about the future, he reflects that although motorsport still offers new opportunities, massive business expansion cannot be expected. As such, the Group has formulated its growth strategy based on three pillars: organic within motor sport, diversification and M&As.
“Motorsport is an industry that we can consolidate further and that is already happening by products and geographies. We came into existence as a result of an M&A so mergers and acquisitions are in the organisation’s DNA,” says Haristos. “Still, the biggest opportunity for growth is in diversifications. Our helmets are designed to save lives and this attribute is highly desired in many sectors.”
He reveals that in September the company received the first production order of carbon shells for the Next Generation Fixed-Wing Helmet (NGFWH) of LIFT Airborne Technologies, for the United States Air Force. For Racing Force, this is effectively the start of sales of equipment destined for the defence sector. This is a milestone in the diversification projects with which the Group aims to transfer the know-how and technology gained at the top of motor sport.
Following this success with the US Air Force, the Group is now pushing on with two more initiatives – two types of safety helmets for law enforcement units. “One is a helmet for Special Forces, again top of the range, the other is a riot helmet for police forces worldwide,” says Haristos.
“These projects are very important because they bring significant value,” he affirms, noting that 2025 will be a key year for Racing Force, expected to significantly increasing the size of the company. To support the growth, an investment plan to expand the Group’s overall capacity is already under way.
