W Series Testing At Lausitzring
APRIL 16: Drivers wait at the press conference during W Series media day at Lausitzring on April 16, 2019 in Hoyerswerda, Germany. W Series aims to give female drivers an opportunity in motorsport that hasn’t been available to them before. The first race of the series, which encompasses six rounds on the DTM support programme, is at the Hockenheimring on May 3rd and 4th. Photo by Maja Hitij/Getty Images

KEY POINTS

  • The W Series aims to give women a platform in the world of motorsports
  • In just three years, it has garnered the support of the public
  • The W Series has partnered up with Formula 1 for the 2021 season

For the most part, when the public thinks of racing, thoughts immediately gravitate towards Formula One and NASCAR.

The F1 series started in 1950 and has since gone on to become the most famous racing promotion in the world.

It featured racing legends such as Ayrton Senna, David Coulthard, Michael Schumacher, Alain Prost and Lewis Hamilton.

2019 marked a change in the global sports landscape as women were becoming an all-powerful force on their own.

The US Women’s National Team won the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup in astounding fashion, Naomi Osaka won the Australian Open, and Sabrina Ionescu recorded eight triple-doubles during the NCAA season to accumulate her grand total to 26--the most in the men’s and women’s divisions.

These women and many others told the public to watch their events and watch them succeed.

In the world of F1, the last woman driver to attempt to qualify for a race was Giovanna Amati in 1992. Meanwhile, the last woman to have appeared in a Grand Prix was Lella Lombardi back in 1975.

Then came the rumblings of a new racing league that was meant to give women a platform to compete in the world of motorsports.

The W Series is an all-female racing promotion that launched in October 2018, with its inaugural season happening in 2019.

The season finished with the then 21-year-old British Jamie Chadwick crowned as champion and later signed with Williams Racing as a development driver.

According to its site, the W Series whole-heartedly believes that women can compete equally with men on the racing circuit.

However, the problem has always been how to get that exposure so that they will be given even more opportunities to sign with a racing team in the highest levels of the motorsports industry.

Alice Powell of Great Britain and Racing X (W Series)
JUNE 26: Race winner Alice Powell of Great Britain and Racing X (27) celebrates on the podium during the W Series Round 1 race at Red Bull Ring on June 26, 2021 in Spielberg, Austria. Photo by Clive Mason - Formula 1/Formula 1 via Getty Images

The 2021 season of the W Series has already started last weekend in Austria and will have seven more F1 support races in the coming days.

“W Series’ mission will always be to further the interests and prospects of female racing drivers, and to inspire girls and women everywhere,” said Catherine Bond Muir, the Chief Executive Officer of the W Series, after announcing the schedule for the 2021 season.

Managing Director of Motorsport for F1 said in December of 2020 that “we believe that it is incredibly important to give everyone the chance to reach the highest levels of our sport, and partnering with W Series shows our determination and commitment to building greater diversity across Formula 1.”

The second race of the W Series is slated to happen on July 2-3, alongside F1’s Austrian Grand Prix.

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