A few weeks ago, ABB FIA Formula E announced an upcoming all-women testing event which would see several women take to the wheel during the Championships mandatory testing event ahead of Season 11.
Next week, the first-of-its-kind test will take place in Madrid at Circuito del Jarama and for those taking part, they will have the opportunity to drive the Season 11 (2024/25) GEN3 Evo race car.
To support the test, each Championship team was required to provide at least one female for half a day of testing, and some teams have opted to provide two women with this unique opportunity.
This initiative and drive from Formula E is a momentous step forward and highlights their commitment to diversity and their pledge to provide women with opportunities to succeed within the sport.
With the event just days away, we’ve summarised everything you need to know about the women taking part…
The 2024 Constructors Champions recently confirmed their representatives - Jamie Chadwick and Lilou Wadoux.
Jamie is a trailblazer within motorsport and this event will add to her collective achievements. INDY NXT driver, Jamie has one race win and two podiums under her belt this season and when not competing, she is a development driver for Williams Racing.
Alongside Jamie will be Ferrari Factory Driver, Lilou Wadoux. Despite being just 23-years old, Lilou has many incredible achievements including being the first woman to ever win an FIA World Endurance Championship race and the first woman to drive a Le Mans Hypercar. She is currently a driver for Richard Mille AF Corse within the IMSA SportsCar Championship (LMP2 Classification).
The US-based team have announced two current F1 Academy drivers, Chloe Chambers and Nerea Marti, as their participants.
Chambers is having a great season so far in F1 Academy with a race win and three podiums collected so far. It has already been announced that Chloe, currently supported by Haas in F1 Academy, will remain with the Championship in 2025 and will instead join the Red Bull Ford Academy Programme. Outside of F1 Academy, Chloe has many notable achievements including her history-making moment in 2023 where she became the first woman to start on pole and win a race in the Castrol Toyota Formula Regional Oceania Championship.
Lining-up beside Chloe will be another F1 Academy participant, Nerea Marti. Supported this year by Tommy Hilfigher, Nerea is into her second F1 Academy season and with two rounds left to go, currently sits P5 in the Championship with three podiums.
For Envision, their Development Driver Alice Powell will take to the wheel. Powell tested for the team earlier this year in Berlin during a rookie test.
Outside of Formula E, Alice is a Development Mentor for the Alpine Academy working alongside Abbi Pulling. Across her career, Alice has achieved many accolades including P3 in the W Series and becoming the first woman to win a Formula Renault Championship.
Alice will be joined by Alisha Palmowski. At just 17-years old, Alisha is making waves - this year she became Vice Champion of the GB4 Championship, despite it being her first year in single-seaters.
For DS Penske, Jessica Edgar and Beitske Visser will take to the track.
Jess has continued to impress since her single-seater debut in 2022 during GB4. Since then, Jess has taken part in both F1 Academy seasons during which she’s achieved one race win, and four podiums.
Alongside Jess will be former W Series driver, Beitske. Across her career, the Dutch driver has raced in numerous Championships - from single-seaters to endurance. She also has experience with electric racing and is a previous test driver for BMW i Andretti Motorsport from 2018 to 2019.
The two females representing Nismo will be Abbi Pulling and Sophia Florsch.
Abbi is currently dominating her second season of F1 Academy with seven race wins collected. Outside of the all-female Championship, Pulling has competed in other events including British Formula 4 (2020, 2021 and 2024), and W Series.
Sophia is a former FIA Formula 3 (F3) driver and Alpine Academy member. The German driver has competed in F3 for the last two years, alongside appearances at the Macau Grand Prix and the European Le Mans Series, which she has participated in since 2020.
NEOM McLaren are keeping it in the family as two of their Driver Development Programme drivers will represent them.
Bianca Bustamante joined the McLaren family early last year moments before they announced themselves as her F1 Academy sponsor. 2024 marks Bianca’s second year in F1 Academy following her debut in 2023 where she collected an iconic race win in Monza.
McLaren recently announced their signing of Welsh driver, Ella Lloyd. This year, Ella joined F1 Academy during their Singapore weekend as a Wild Card entry during which she collected eight points. Outside of this, Ella has competed in British F4 this year and collected four podiums.
2023 F1 Academy winner Marta Garcia, will represent Tag Heuer Porsche. Last year Marta made history when she became the first winner of the all-female Championship after winning seven races. As a result of her win, Marta received a fully-funded seat in Formula Regional European Championship by Alpine (FRECA).
Marta is also a member of the iconic racing team, Iron Dames. As part of this she has participated in the 2024 Ligier European Series where the team have won two out of four races.
Joining Marta will be Porsche Motorsport Formula E Sim and Development driver, Gabriela Jilkova. Gabi has experience in electric racing and has been working with the team since October 2023. Outside of this, Gabi is participating in the Indian Racing League where she currently sits P6 in the overall standings.
Carrie Schreiner will take to the wheel for Maserati MSG Racing. The German driver is currently in her second season of F1 Academy and is sponsored by Stake F1 Team. Outside of F1 Academy, Carrie has participated in multiple different Championships including Formula Winter, British F4, and Formula 4 UAE.
Joining Carrie will be Tatiana Calderon. The Colombian-born driver is currently competing in the 2024 IMSA SportsCar Championship. She has plenty of experience behind the wheel and has competed in endurance and single-seat Championships since 2015.
Lena Buhler will step in for Mahindra Racing. Buhler was the F1 Academy Vice Champion during the inaugural series in 2023 after securing two race wins and 13 podiums. Following F1 Academy, the Swiss driver returned to FRECA for the third time.
Racing driver and bobsleigh competitor, Simona De Silvestro will represent KIRO Race Co. Simona is no stranger to Formula E and actually competed in 2015 for Amilin Andretti - she has also tested for other teams including TAG Heuer Porsche Formula E Team and Venturi Formula E Team.
Outside of this, Simona has competed in IndyCar, and Supercars and has multiple race wins under her belt.
Former W Series competitor, Miki Koyama completes the grid. The Japanese driver is best known as the first female to win an all-gender, single-seater Championship after she claimed P1 in the Formula Regional Japanese Championship. Currently, she is competing in the Super GT Series.
Keep an eye on the Females in Motorsport channels as we’ll be closely following the testing and sharing news on the drivers, and the incredible women who have made this event happen.
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