EXCLUSIVE: Insider makes BIG claim about F1 Academy
EXCLUSIVE: Insider makes BIG claim about F1 Academy
Formula 1's return to Miami this weekend also sees the return of F1 Academy for its second race of its 2024 season.
The all-female championship is following in the footsteps of W Series, its spiritual predecessor, which also ran in Miami during its ultimately doomed 2022 season.
READ MORE: F1 Results Today: Miami Grand Prix Sprint times
W Series had hoped to continue into 2023, but the two never ran in parallel with F1 Academy starting up as W Series struggled.
For one insider, F1 Academy and W Series could not coexist, but W Series paved the way for F1 Academy's existence.
Supporting segregated racing
F1 paddock veteran Ann Bradshaw worked as a Press Officer for W Series and spoke exclusively to GPFans about female drivers progressing in motorsport thanks to both W Series and F1 Academy.
"I don't think the two could have coexisted," Bradshaw states, continuing to say, "I think without W series, we wouldn't have F1 Academy.
"We shone a light on the fact that ... it would be nice to see more women racing at the top echelon of motorsport.
"Having said that, I appreciate the people who said, 'Oh no, the way to do that isn't to segregate,' and there was a lot of it...
"Males and females saying that the whole structure of having an all-female championship is wrong because they have to go and take the men on."
Frustrating female financing
While F1 Academy has followed W Series in segregated running, its drivers need to bring a budget to race a season in the championship, rather than W Series' fully-funded approach, which contributed to its financial downfall.
Bradshaw laments how finances affected the opportunities for female hopefuls, saying, "Nobody seems to want to sponsor these young girls where there are.
"If you've got a young boy going motor racing and you've got a young girl going motor racing, and a big sponsor comes along, the sponsor's got to look at which one of them is more likely to succeed.
"Well, it's the boy because that's what's happened over the years. There aren't any females in F2 and F1, so you say, 'Well, I'm not going to risk the girl because, you know, the boy is more likely to.'
"But W series, it was sad that we couldn't find a big sponsor who wanted to put themselves behind that. We had Puma, who were amazing, and Heineken, who were amazing. They supported us; they were very supportive and really great.
"But I don't know, there just doesn't seem to be the sponsorship out there for females."
A future of hope
Even with the demise of W Series, Bradshaw is happy that the championship helped the plight of the drivers that did race during the championship's three-year stint.
"I'm just so happy that a lot of the female drivers, who I worked with at W series are still out there racing, still out there enjoying themselves, so that they're showing that drivers can do well.
"If one of them makes it to Formula One, fantastic. If they don't, at least they can go out and represent females the way that some of our girls have done.
"Jamie Chadwick went to Indy Lights. A lot of our drivers... Abbi Pulling, Chloe Chambers, Marta Garcia, Beitske Visser, all those girls, they were out there with F1 Academy.
"Let's hope that with a bit of light shining on these females, one of them can get themselves in a position where an F3 or F2 team says, 'Right, we're going to give you a drive; We're going to put you in there,'
"And there'll be a sponsor who says, 'Yeah, we'll support that person.'
READ MORE: EXCLUSIVE: Meet the Red Bull Academy sensation who's surpassing Verstappen in the juniors
Related
Change your timezone:
Latest News
F1 Results Today: Emilia Romagna Grand Prix practice times as two SUPERSTARS crash out
- 51 minutes ago
F1 Qualifying Today: Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix 2024 - How to watch the F1 action and when
- Today 05:00
F1 starlet issues CONCERNS amid FIA test
- Today 04:00
Brad Pitt F1 movie given RELEASE DATE announcement
- Today 03:00
Mercedes mass exodus continues with ANOTHER departure
- Today 02:00
Newey Ferrari contract 'signed'
- Today 01:00
F1 Race Calendar 2024
-
GP BAHRAIN
29 Feb - 2 Mar
Max Verstappen
-
GP SAUDI ARABIA
7 - 9 Mar
Max Verstappen
-
GP AUSTRALIA
22 - 24 Mar
Carlos Sainz
-
GP JAPAN
5 - 7 Apr
Max Verstappen
-
GP CHINA
19 - 21 Apr
Max Verstappen
-
GP USA
3 - 5 May
Lando Norris
- GP ITALY 17 - 19 May
- GP MONACO 24 - 26 May
- GP CANADA 7 - 9 Jun
- GP SPAIN 21 - 23 Jun
- GP AUSTRIA 28 - 30 Jun
- GP GREAT BRITAIN 5 - 7 Jul
EXCLUSIVE: Why Hamilton's upcoming departure could improve Mercedes performance
EXCLUSIVE: F1 Academy star opens up on ADHD 'struggle'
EXCLUSIVE: Daughter of Ken Block reveals how a Zoom Call landed her 'surreal' F1 role
EXCLUSIVE: F1 legend injured in Imola horror crash praises FIA safety advances
F1 Standings
Drivers
- Oliver Bearman
- Charles Leclerc
- Carlos Sainz
- Lando Norris
- Oscar Piastri
- Pierre Gasly
- Esteban Ocon
- Sergio Pérez
- Max Verstappen
- Alexander Albon
- Logan Sargeant
- Lewis Hamilton
- George Russell
- Nico Hülkenberg
- Kevin Magnussen
- Fernando Alonso
- Lance Stroll
- Valtteri Bottas
- Zhou Guanyu
- Daniel Ricciardo
- Yuki Tsunoda
Races
- Gulf Air Grand Prix of Bahrain 2024
- Saudi Arabian Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Australia 2024
- MSC Cruises Grand Prix of Japan 2024
- Grand Prix of China 2024
- Miami Grand Prix 2024
- Gran Premio dell'Emilia Romagna 2024
- Grand Prix of Monaco 2024
- AWS Grand Prix du Canada 2024
- Gran Premio de España 2024
- Grand Prix of Austria 2024
- Grand Prix of Great Britain 2024
- Grand Prix of Hungary 2024
- Grand Prix of Belgium 2024
- Heineken Dutch Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Italy 2024
- Grand Prix of Azerbaijan 2024
- Grand Prix of Singapore 2024
- Grand Prix of the United States 2024
- Gran Premio de la Ciudad de Mexico 2024
- Grande Prêmio de São Paulo 2024
- Heineken Silver Las Vegas Grand Prix 2024
- Qatar Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Abu Dhabi 2024
About GPFans
GPFans is a multi-platform, multi-language brand dedicated to Formula One coverage. We bring you all the ins and outs of the sport, 24/7, everything from up-to-the-minute news and features to the latest viral stories and clips.We believe that a new generation of exciting, outspoken drivers will make F1 more popular than ever before, and we want to give our users access to as much of their heroes as possible, on and off the track. From Lewis Hamilton to Max Verstappen, Daniel Ricciardo to Sebastian Vettel, we provide in-depth analysis of every every Grand Prix in the season, from Australia to Abu Dhabi.
With Formula One under the new ownership of Liberty Media, how the sport is being covered is evolving, and GPFans will look to be at the heart of this progression into new media, as one of the fastest-growing sites covering the king of motorsports.
Follow us on your favorite social media channel
Corporate & Media
Innovatieweg 20C7007 CD, Doetinchem, Netherlands
+31645516860
Realtimes | Publishing Network
Copyright (©) 2017 - 2024 GPFans.com
Realtimes | Publishing Network