Formula One TV presenter Laura Winter explained her point of view on the opportunities that have come from the Formula Academy, recognising the positives in a higher female league.
The Formula One Academy started up this year and despite not being broadcast for the entirety of its debut season, it has sparked great debate around the motorsport fan base as the organisation intends to be a pathway for women into the elite F1.
“The female drivers have got vastly faster. There’s not much improvement that can be made on the men’s level, but if you’re a female driver, the improvement can be vast.
“Investing into an area where the most improvement can be made is the way in which that team will get faster.
“That’s what we’ve seen from some of the teams in Extreme E.”
As women’s recognition in sports has begun to grow and more opportunities have opened up, it’s important for the racing world to follow and progress into a sport accepting of equality between gender.
it’s so good hearing Laura Winter announcing an update about F1 Academy this weekend in the post-race show ❤️🩹 until F1A gets proper live broadcast, it’s moments of acknowledgment like this that remain so important and special for our girls in F1A #F1Academy #BritishGP #ItalianGP pic.twitter.com/vCmlm3O7qh
— Mac⁶³ ♡ misses locklyle (@gxldenmvlti) July 9, 2023
Last year saw the W series enter administration after a three-season run due to their financial difficulties to fund, sacrificing races in order to fund the minimum.
Although the series didn’t succeed to sustain itself, it begun a great strive for women to drive and encourage a change in the gender dominant sport.
“The W series closing was a real shame; I think everyone was gutted to see what happened there but I think it’s really important that F1 Academy continues to allow the drivers to learn first and foremost.
“They are there to learn what it is to be in the team, learn what it is to drive on an F1 weekend, to have the experience.
“We can’t click our fingers and it can’t happen overnight so to give these women the time within a team environment to continue progression int a race weekend is really important.”
One main topic surrounding such conversation of women beginning to be represented in F1 is when will the time come that a Formula One team actually recruit at female driver to take one of their seats.
With the F1 Academy set in place, this now creates a diversion to avoid putting women straight into the intense sport with it being so sensitive at the moment and much to consider for teams and the FIA.
“On the F1 side obviously we have 20 male drivers on the grid. I don’t foresee that changing in the near future or within the next five years.
“There has to be the same development that natural drivers have had over the years.
“What we can do is start to implement those foundations and F1 Academy I really do believe is doing that.”
The F1 Academy next year will see all races attached to Formula One giving it a significantly improved platform to what is received in the first year.
In doing so, this will intentionally attract an increased viewership, this including the male drivers, professionals, fan crowds who will now have the access to the women’s racing series.
“That is how you allow progression; I think each of the F1 Academy drivers are going to be attached to a Formula One team.
“Immediately there is a pathway opened up and now its about implementing stepping stones for those female drivers.”
Previous F1 Academy winner Marta Garcia has been recruited to race in the Formula Regional European Championship by Alpine in 2024 and F1 Academy’s Bianca Bustamante will be the first female member of the Drivers Development programme, so it’s clear such series is paying of the women involved.
BREAKING NEWS 🗞️🧡 Bianca Bustamante to McLaren’s Driver Development programme! @racerbia makes history with the British team as the first-ever female to join their development programme 👏
— Females in Motorsport (@FemalesinMSport) October 18, 2023
Mega job Bianca, we’re all so proud of you!
📸: McLaren#WomenInMotorsport pic.twitter.com/LTUNISgLuD
