‘They can go racing, too’: F1 Academy opens doors for female drivers

Lando Norris, Max Verstappen and the other 18 drivers on the Formula One grid aren’t the only drivers racing under the bright lights of the iconic Strip.

There’s a second racing series on the Las Vegas Grand Prix course. F1 Academy, an all-female racing series for young drivers, is making the rounds on the 17-turn, 3.853-mile course for the first time.

It’s the third year of the series founded and operated by Formula One. In its short existence, the series has seen tremendous growth, which has stemmed from increased involvement from each of the 10 F1 teams.

After no F1 teams supported any of the drivers in the series in 2023, every F1 team began to support a driver in the F1 Academy this year as part of its driver developmental program.

“It’s making sure that women are getting equal opportunity as the men do,” said Jessica Hawkins, a driver ambassador for Formula One team Aston Martin and head of its F1 Academy program.

“A lot of females lack lots of development through their career, and that’s certainly what I lacked in my early career,” Hawkins added. “It’s just making sure that they have that clear development and making sure not only is it great for the current drivers, it’s giving a platform for the younger generation to look up to.”

The series races with Formula Four cars. There is no national series that races Formula Four cars, so the F1 Academy created an opportunity for female drivers to begin the next step of racing on a larger stage on F1 tracks with support from F1 teams.

‘There’s a place for them’

Hawkins can relate to the drivers in the series. She has raced in various professional series across England and Europe, and she is the last woman to have tested a Formula One car in 2023.

As a driver ambassador for Aston Martin, Hawkins works with the F1 team, driving in the simulator and oversees its F1 Academy program in the team’s driver development program.

Hawkins previously raced in the W Series, an all-female series F1 was not involved with, that started in 2019 and ended after the 2022 season because of financial issues. F1 announced in November 2022 that the F1 Academy would start racing in 2023.

“Women, they couldn’t see it a few years ago, whereas now, they can see it,” Hawkins said. They’re realizing that they deserve to be there as much as the men do.”

With the F1 Academy, Hawkins said young female racers beginning on the karting scene can begin to see a greater path toward a future in racing.

“If a young girl was to turn on Formula One, maybe they wouldn’t even realize that females were allowed to race in Formula One, because they can’t see it,” Hawkins said. “It’s really giving a platform for the younger generation to look up to and realize that there’s a place for them in motor sport as well, and they can go racing, too.”

Only five females have entered an F1 race in the sport’s 75-year history. Giovanna Amati in 1992 was the last woman to attempt to qualify for a race. Maria Teresa de Filippis and Lella Lombardi are the only women who have started a race.

‘Looking really bright’

Las Vegas hosted the final two races of the 2025 F1 Academy season. Doriane Pin, part of Mercedes’ junior team, won Friday’s race and clinched the drivers championship Saturday.

“F1 Academy has been such a helpful path for my career,” Pin said Saturday after winning the title. “It’s an amazing opportunity for all women to have a place in motor sports.”

Chloe Chambers, a Chinese-born American racer who grew up in New York, won Saturday’s race. She is a part of Red Bull’s junior team.

“The future of F1 Academy is looking really bright,” Chambers said Saturday. “There’s a lot of new drivers coming in, a lot of fast drivers. I don’t think F1 Academy will be lacking on drivers or talent.”

The city has rolled out the red carpet for the series, with advertising of the drivers at locations such as the Las Vegas Monorail and Sphere. There have been sponsor initiatives and collaborations with LEGO, the Southern Nevada Girl Scouts, and a crossover with Hello Kitty for special merchandise and grandstands at the track.

Hawkins said initiatives on and off the track can help the F1 Academy’s long-term goal to get more women involved in racing.

“I believe that will increase the participation of females within our sport,” Hawkins said. “It’s going to inspire the younger generation … and we’ll start to see more women lasting in the ladder on their journey, and eventually, we’ll see females racing in Formula One.”

Contact Alex Wright at awright@reviewjournal.com. Follow @AlexWright1028 on X.