Talking about women in motorsport is something we should be doing everyday, but it’s International Women’s Day which means we’re going to talk about women in motorsport even more! There have been so many incredible women being given opportunities in motosport and so let’s highlight some of them today!
Susie Wolff- One of the most recognized women in motorsport, Susie Wolff has accomplished many amazing things throughout her time working in motorsport. She raced in Formula Renault, British F3, and DTM. In 2012 she became the development driver for Williams Racing and became the first woman to participate in a Formula One weekend since 1992. She was the team principal for Venturi Racing in Formula E in 2018, and then in 2021, she was promoted to CEO. This year however, she is starting something absolutely incredible. She will be the managing director for F1 Academy. A new series designed to help women work their way up into F1. She has been an inspiration to so many women and it will be so exciting to see what she does next!
Emma Gilmour- I know I never shut up about Emma Gilmour, but that is because she is just that incredible! The New Zealand driver was runner up in the New Zealand Rally Championship three times! Which, let’s be honest, is a pretty incredible feat. She then became the reserve driver for Veloce Racing in the inaugural season of Extreme E, which is an electric off-road racing series that travels the world and competes in some very beautiful places. In 2022, McLaren signed her to their Extreme E team, making her the first ever woman to drive for McLaren. She and her Extreme E teammate achieved McLaren’s first ever podium during the final race weekend of the 2022 season. She will be racing in Extreme E again this season, so let’s hope for many more podiums!
Sophia Flörsch- The newest member of the Alpine Academy, Sophia Flörsch is a very promising talent. When she started in karting, she was already breaking records by being the youngest driver and the first woman to compete in the three karting series she raced in. She then competed in the 2015 Ginetta Junior Championship and before her campaign ended early due to financial reasons, she was running 3rd in the championship. In 2016, she raced in the ADAC Formula 4 Championship and became the first woman to score points after doing so in her debut race. She scored 3 podiums during her time in F4 and also took home 3 fastest laps. However, during the 2018 Macau Grand Prix she made contact with Jehan Daruvala and a couple seconds later she was in the air and smashed into a photographers’ bunker. After recovering, she spent some time focusing on endurance series, but for this year she will be making a return to F3 and we will hopefully see some incredible results from her!
Jamie Chadwick- Another very recognizable name, Jamie Chadwick has been a big inspiration for all women in motorsport. She started karting with her brother when she was 11. Then in 2015, she competed in the British GT Championship and, with her co-driver they dominated the season with two wins and five podiums. In 2017, she competed in the BRDC British Formula 3 Championship and in 2019 she was announced as one of the drivers for the inaugural season of the W Series. She won the W Series championship all 3 years and it cemented her as one of the top female drivers of all time. She is currently a member of the Williams Driver Academy and is racing in Indy NXT with Andretti Autosport. We can’t wait to see what she accomplishes next!
There are so many other incredible women that work in the realm of motorsport that aren’t drivers or that don’t drive anymore. Here are some noteworthy names:
Naomi Schiff- Former W Series driver and current presenter with Sky Sports F1
Natalie Pinkham- Presenter with Sky Sports F1
Laura Winter- Presenter with F1TV
Rosanna Tennant- Presenter with F1TV and BBC
Jennie Gow- Presenter with BBC Sports
Charlotte Sefton- Head of Communications for W Series
Lissie Mackintosh- Presenter for Track TV, Content Creator, Podcast Host
Katy Fairman- Former member of WTF, Freelance journalist working in Formula E
Jess McFadyen- Senior Producer with Sky Sports F1
Ella Clark- Events Experience Executive for F1
Mikaela/She Loves F1- Content Creator, “Purveyor of Thirst”
Molly Marissa- Content Creator, Co-Host of Tech Heads F1 podcast
Toni Cowan-Brown- Content Creator, Journalist, F1 Expert
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