Jamie Chadwick is one of the most well-known female drivers worldwide, recognized for her numerous achievements in a traditionally male-dominated sport. She won all three seasons of the W Series, before moving abroad to start a new chapter in Indy NXT after the series ceased to exist due to lack of funding. She should also be admired for her achievements off the track, having launched The Jamie Chadwick Series for female karters in collaboration with Daytona Motorsport.
Her series debuted in 2024, allowing participants as young as twelve years old to compete in the all-female championship. This year, the initiative expanded to include girls from the age of eight. The original goal was to bridge the gap at the grassroots-level of karting, but its impact has been much greater. Jamie herself admitted she was taken aback in an exclusive interview with Sky Sports:
“I’m kind of overwhelmed by the amount of uptake and interest (…). The next step was trying to tackle that real young age, which is now eight-year-olds, which is what we have introduced for this year, which I’m super excited about. It’s exactly what I feel like we want to be achieving with the series.”
During 2024, 450 female drivers took part in the Jamie Chadwick Series, with Rhianna Purcocks becoming DMAX champion and Lily Jeffs winning the 4-stroke championship. This marks a staggering 1,900% increase in female participation in karting within the series’ first year.
Chadwick knows firsthand how much the situation has changed in recent years. When she began her career, there were only a handful of female drivers, and the lack of interest was evident in the W Series’ failure. The championship wasn’t even broadcasted in most countries, and the general lack of exposure led to insufficient funding.
Today, the situation is improving. F1 Academy is streamed alongside the highly followed F1 World Championship, with F1 team branding on most cars. Other initiatives also aim to encourage young female drivers to enter the sport. Susie Wolff, CEO of F1 Academy, has played a major role in this progress. A former driver herself, she remains the last woman to have taken part in a competitive F1 session. Her series is now heading to its third year, having crowned Marta García as the inaugural champion in 2023, followed by Abbi Pulling, who became the second-ever winner last year, receiving her trophy just a few weeks ago at the Autosport Awards.
Chadwick is currently shifting away from the idea of joining F1, despite being a Williams development driver. Instead, she is set to compete in the European Le Mans Series this year, as well as the 24 Hours of Le Mans. She is coming off a historic Indy NXT championship as the first woman ever as well as an IndyCar test with Andretti in September. Similar to Susie Wolff, she believes the next female F1 driver will emerge from a younger generation. Because she had no female role models growing up, she has taken it upon herself to be one for the next generation of girls rising through the ranks.
Another challenge remains – only twenty seats are available on the 2025 F1 grid. This, however, will soon change as Cadillac has been confirmed as the 11th team for 2026, increasing the grid to 22 seats. Mario Andretti, the driving force behind the move, has hinted that more than one new team could enter, potentially expanding the grid to twelve teams.
It’s only the beginning, but strengthening the position of female karters, supporting them financially though the junior categories, and expanding the number of the seats could all contribute to seeing a female driver on the Formula 1 grid in a few years’ time.