Mattiacci studied economics at the University La Sapienza in Rome before pursuing further qualifications at Columbia University Business School and the INSEAD international executive programme in Singapore. From 1989 to 1999 he worked in the Jaguar Cars marketing department in the United Kingdom, gaining experience in premium automotive brand management before making the move to Ferrari.
Mattiacci joined Ferrari in 1999 as an area sales manager covering the Americas and the Middle East. Between 2001 and 2002 he was assigned to manage the launch of the Maserati brand in the North American market, a role that demonstrated the breadth of the Fiat group's confidence in him. In 2006 he was named President and CEO of Ferrari Asia Pacific, where he earned recognition from Chinese authorities: in 2009 he was selected as one of 100 leaders of Outstanding Foreign Enterprises in China by Management World Press and the Development Research Center of the State Council.
In 2010 he became President and CEO of Ferrari North America. His performance in the Americas — raising brand sales by 20 percent while maintaining high standards of customer satisfaction and brand integrity — earned him the 2012 Automotive Executive of the Year Award. During his tenure Ferrari nearly doubled its sales volume in North, Central, and South American markets.
In April 2014 Mattiacci was appointed Managing Director and Team Principal of Scuderia Ferrari, replacing Stefano Domenicali during the Formula One season. His appointment came at a difficult moment for the team, which was struggling competitively against the dominant Mercedes operation. Mattiacci served in the role for the remainder of 2014 before being replaced in November 2014 by Maurizio Arrivabene, a decision made by new Ferrari chairman Sergio Marchionne as part of a wider restructuring of the team's leadership. The brief tenure left Mattiacci associated with a period of significant internal change at Maranello rather than any specific sporting achievement.
In 2016 Mattiacci joined the electric vehicle startup Faraday Future as Global Chief Brand Officer and Chief Commercial Officer. In 2022 he was appointed Global Chief Brand and Commercial Officer at Aston Martin, the British luxury sports car manufacturer with an active Formula One team. He left Aston Martin by mutual consent in November 2024.
Mattiacci's career illustrates the close relationship between luxury automotive brand management and Formula One leadership. His rise through Ferrari's commercial hierarchy — from regional sales to overseeing the marquee's most lucrative global markets — made him a natural internal candidate for the team principal role, even if the sporting context of mid-2014 did not favour a rapid consolidation. His executive career across Ferrari, Faraday Future, and Aston Martin reflects the mobility of senior talent within the premium automotive sector.