Formula 1 has confirmed the calendar for the inaugural season of its new F1 Academy series for female drivers.
The series has been set up by F1 to provide new opportunities for young and developing women drivers competing at junior single-seater levels or progressing out of karting into formula cars.Five established teams will participate in the championship: Carlin, Prema, ART, Campos and MP Motorsport. All five teams will run three cars each for the 15-car grid.
Formula 1 announced this year’s inaugural season will comprise of 21 total races over seven rounds, beginning at the Red Bull Ring in late April until a season finale supporting the United States Grand Prix at Circuit of the Americas in October. In addition, there will be 15 days of testing across the season, with a two-day test before the season-opening race in Austria.
Each round will consist of three races, with qualifying setting the order for races one and three and points for the first and final race following the F1 points structure with 25 points awarded for the winner. The second race will be a partially reversed-grid, with only 10 points awarded for the race winner and the top eight finishers taking points.
F1 Academy general manager Bruno Michel said the calendar will allow the drivers to gain experience on many tracks Formula 1 races on.
“Our goal was to be able to race on as many Formula 1 Grand Prix tracks as possible, with circuits that could be a great challenge for the drivers,” Michel said. “The teams know these layouts very well, so they will be able to help their young talents get to grips quickly.
“We had announced that F1 Academy would be racing alongside Formula 1 at one event, so it’s fantastic to be part of the F1 grand prix package in Austin, where we will also conclude the first season, in front of the F1 paddock and the American crowd. There is quite a gap in between rounds six and seven, but that is mainly due to the fact that we will be sending the cars and equipment by ship, to save on logistical costs.”
Drivers already confirmed to be participating in the first season of the series include former W Series drivers Nerea Marti and Bianca Bustamante, as well as Formula Regional European Championship driver Lena Buhler and GB4 racer Jessica Edgar.
2023 F1 Academy calendar
| Round | Dates | Circuit |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 28th-29th April | Red Bull Ring, Austria |
| 2 | 5th-7th May | Valencia, Spain |
| 3 | 19th-21st May | Circuit de Catalunya, Spain |
| 4 | 23rd-25th June | Zandvoort, Netherlands |
| 5 | 7th-9th July | Monza, Italy |
| 6 | 29th-30th July | Paul Ricard, France |
| 7 | 20th-22nd October | Circuit of the Americas, USA |
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Jere (@jerejj)
23rd February 2023, 10:38
Surprisingly, only the last event shares the same circuit & weekend as F1.
Shimks (@shimks)
23rd February 2023, 11:08
Yes, I was also shocked.
Shimks (@shimks)
23rd February 2023, 11:08
I welcome any inititiative which promotes any positive opportunities for anyone that might not otherwise get them. I am hoping that the female drivers who will compete in F1 Academy’s inaugural season will be on the younger side, giving them the time to improve and develop. But getting a young competitve field together may be wishful thinking given the status quo. Female racing needs to grow at its grass roots – namely in karting – and this will probably take several more years to develop before we have a a good bunch of young talented female racers feeding through to higher competition levels.
I can’t find any more confirmed drivers other than the four mentioned in this article. Their respective ages are:
Jessica Edgar, turns 18 years old in July
Bianca Bustamante, turned 18 this January
Nerea Marti, turned 21 this January
Léna Bühler, turns 26 in July
This is a very nice start. In comparison, Nyck de Vries – 28 years old – seems ancient for starting his first full F1 season. But look at Fernando Alonso. There’s no stopping those with skills, health and passion.
On the very positive side, we’ve got 5 strong teams with a lot of experience in F2 and F3. But it’s no good for the drivers to have a calendar so spread out. The first 6 races are thankfully a good run. But then having to wait 3 months for the finale? What’s that about.
All in all, I’m excited, as I always am for most types of racing, especially this continued promotion of female drivers, mechanics and other personnel in racing series. I hope it’s accessible to watch without an additional subscription, which would put off almost all potential audience members.