Ladies, the future is women, and F1 has figured it out. Beginning in the 2023 season, Formula One is piloting a new series specifically for young women called the F1 Academy. The grid will have 15 drivers, each of which we will discuss later, and they are so excited to start racing in April. Let’s get into it!
Purpose and Structure
F1 Academy Purpose
Before investigating this new series, I was concerned for the potential that young women would have to someday join F1, but those worries have been eased through my research. The F1 Academy will function under the same car, cost, and driver rules and regulations as F4. This series is essentially a female-dominated model. The goal is to guarantee women seat time in Formula-style cars while teaching them the necessary skills, physical strength, and personal branding that is needed to pursue the highest level.
This is invaluable for the future of female racing. Current series can not cater specifically to the obstacles that women drivers face when attempting to navigate male-dominated sport. In other racing series, it often appears that women are taught to race as men rather than adopting training and strategy to benefit the areas that make them unique. Additionally, this series will not derail women’s chances of furthering their careers into the higher levels. The F1 Academy will feed directly into Formula 3 and eventually women will be driving in both F2 and F1.
F1 Academy Structure
The 2023 season was announced by F1, and several races will be held at Formula One tracks. The season will include 7 Rounds, each of which will consist of 2 free practices, 2 qualifying rounds, and 3 races. Rather than racing laps, the F1 Academy will be competing for time, so Races 1 and 3 of the weekend will finish after 30 minutes. Also, the grids for both races will lineup in order of qualifying finish.
To contrast, in race 2 we will see the back of the grid lineup in qualifying order, while the top 8 drivers will begin in reverse order. This second race will last for only 20 minutes instead of the full 30. Then, each winning driver will receive 10 points rather than the full 25 that the winners of races 1 and 3 will gain. I am super excited for this race setup because it will demonstrate the capabilities of the drivers and their teams.
Teams and Drivers
Art Grand Prix
This team is a French based company that currently has both a Formula 3 and Formula 2 team. The company was founded in 1991, and it presents an opportunity for the women of the F1 Acadamy to rise into higher series.
Art Grand Prix has announced all 3 of their drivers for the 2023 season. Lena Bühler is a Swiss driver who will be taking a seat in the debut season. She began racing when she was 17. Since then, she has made her way through the lower levels of formula racing to the latest series. Her teammate for the season will be Carrie Schreiner. She has been a German racer for over 10 years, over which she has won championships in multiple levels including karting and sports cars. The final driver will be Chloe Grant. She will be the youngest driver on the team at 17 years old, but she has experience in multiple lower levels.
Campos Racing
This Spanish racing team was founded in 1997, and currently has teams in Formula 4, Formula 3, and Formula 2.
Campos Racing officialized their 2023 F1 Academy lineup earlier this year, and they will be featuring several younger female drivers. Spanish driver, Nerea Marti, will be joining the grid with her the Spanish team. Nerea has driven in the Spanish Formula 4 and W series, and she gained a podium finish in both. Lola Lovinfosse will also be joining the series in 2023. Lola has been in F4 for the past two years, but she is still chasing a win in a formula car. The final drier in the Campos Racing lineup will be Uruguayan, Maite Cáceres. Maite previously raced in Formula 4, but this past season she raced in an USF Juniors season.
MP Motorsports
MP Motorsports is a Dutch team that was founded in 1996. The company has teams in several series including Spanish Formula 4, Formula 3, and Formula 2. The driver lineup for this team was one of the latest updates, but we are thrilled with the announcement.
The 2 drivers that were recently announced are sisters, Amna and Hamda Al Qubaisi. Both women are from Abu Dhabi and will be the only Emirates drivers. Amna is the older sister, and she has competed on several levels including Formula 4 and the F3 Asian Championship. Along with racing, she is in school to earn a degree in physics. The younger sister, Hamda is known for being the first woman to score a podium in Italian F4. The final driver in the lineup will be Emely de Heus. The 20 year old Dutch driver in both Formula 4 and the W series, and will be joining MP Motorsports to complete their lineup.
Prema Racing
Prema is one of the older companies to be joining this series, and they do represent the Italian citizens. They are a well known company with teams in several lower racing divisions along with Formula 3 and Formula 2. Prema has been the source of several current F1 drivers including Charles Leclerc, Nyck De Vries, and Oscar Piastri, so it is an incredible addition to the F1 Academy paddock.
Only 2 of the teams 3 racers have been announced as of now, but the final member’s reveal is expected in the coming weeks. The current members of the team include Filipino driver, Bianca Bustamente and British-Canadian driver, Chloe Chong. At 18 years old, Bianca will be one of the youngest drivers in the series, next to her teammate. She previously raced for Prema in the UAE Formula 4 seres, and hopes to continue her success in this new season. Chloe is the current youngest F1 Academy driver at only 15 years old. This will be Chong’s first time in a single-seater, but she is ecstatic for the new season.
Rodin Carlin
The British motorsports company is another familiar name in the formula racing circuit. They currently race in multiple levels including F4, F3, and F2. They also have their fair share of current Formula One drivers including George Russell, Kevin Magnussen, Carlos Sainz Jr., and Lando Norris.
Their completed driver lineup will include Jessica Edgar, Abbi Pulling, and Megan Gilkes. Last season, the British driver, Jessica Edgar, competed in the GB4 and ended the year with a podium finish and seventh place overall. Abbi Pulling will join her fellow Brit on the Carlin team. She is a current member of the Alpine Academy. One of her notable accomplishments is having a podium finish in every championship she has competed in. To finish the lineup, Megan Gilkes will be the only driver from Canada. In 2022, Gilkes competed in the GB4 championship where she was able to finish 6th place overall.
The Future of the F1 Academy Series
Along with the five teams and fifteen drivers, a managing director for the F1 Academy has been announced. For the coming season, Susie Wolff will be acting in this position. Wolff is the only woman in the 21st century to have participated in an F1 weekend when she was a test driver for Williams racing. Currently, Susie is married to Mercedes principal Toto Wolff and has a son named Jack.
Read: ‘Susie Wolff: The Queen of Formula One‘ for more on our favorite F1 Academy managing director!
The goal of the F1 Academy is to increase female participation in the highest level of motor sports in the world. This series hopes to have multiple female drivers enter the F3 and F2 series within the next five years. I can not wait to see the progress that this division is able to make in motor sports!
