It’s finally here – the long-anticipated All-Women’s Testing takes place at Circuit Ricardo Tormo. With the green light given, the drivers are out and setting timings on the sheet. The sun is out, and the track is in near-perfect condition. Let’s see how the female drivers get on.
Session One, Hour One
Hour one has proven that the Mahindra machinery is one to watch out for. Taking charge of Nyck De Vries’ car, American driver Chloe Chambers tops the timesheet with 1:25:180. These positive results are boosting the team morale; they’ll take on Season 12 with confidence in the drivers and, more importantly, the car. With more laps for Chambers around the track, she is slowly proving to unlock the Gen3 Evo’s potential.
Brief Yellow and Track Limits
Pushing the car to its limits to extract the most out of it, Tatiana Calderon was the first to give us a yellow flag. A mistake in Turn 7 saw the Citroën car taking a spin. However, Calderon managed to get the car back into the pits for the right adjustments to be made. She is back on track and shining in the midfield. We saw fewer drivers with lap times deleted due to track limits this session, though Turn 1 remains a problem.
The Battle of the Veterans
With the most experience on the grid, Jamie Chadwick and Alice Powell battle it out for first place. Chadwick’s fast pace and ease with the car are a testament to the work that she has been putting in with the team. When asked about the significance of Chadwick, Team Principal of Jaguar TCS Racing, Ian James, explained,
”Jamie knows the team well, she knows the car, knows the operation, so she’s able to come in last night from another test in a different car and hit the ground running. It shows how well integrated she is with the team.”
Despite their efforts, American talent Chloe Chambers tops the leaderboard with 1:23:679. Mahindra, again, prove that they are the team to beat.
Where Session One Ended
Our top 10 for Session one is as follows:
- Chloe Chamber – Mahindra Racing
- Abbi Pulling – Nissan Formula E Team
- Jamie Chadwick – Jaguar TCS Racing
- Alice Powell – Envision Racing
- Ella Lloyd – Envision Racing
- Biance Bustamante – Cupra Kiro
- Tatiana Calderón – Citroën Racing
- Nerea Marti – Andretti Formula E
- Marta García – Lola Yamaha ABT
- Juju Noda – Jaguar TCS Racing
Session Two Brings Out a Red Flag
The opening 30 minutes of the second All-Women’s session has come to a stop. The green livery of the Envision car, driven by Alice Powell, has come to a halt due to a battery systems error. The recovery vehicle was sent out, and Powell returned to the pits for Envision to make the appropriate changes to send her back on track.
The session resumes quickly, and the cars are back on the Spanish track. With more and more laps being completed, it is becoming apparent how natural the cars are to the drivers. Abbi Pulling is the first to break into the 1:22s, with Chambers following close behind. This opens up a new performance level for the teams; their car setup is working.
Where Session Two Ended
Under the Valencia sunset, the All-Women’s Testing comes to an end. In their last efforts to put in their best timings, the drivers exit the pits for one final push. Here is how Session two ended:
- Chloe Chambers – Mahindra Racing
- Abbi Pulling – Nissan Formula E Team
- Bianca Bustamante – Cupra Kiro
- Ella Lloyd – Envision Racing
- Jamie Chadwick – Jaguar TCS Racing
- Tatiana Calderón – Citroën Racing
- Nerea Marti – Andretti Formula E Team
- Juju Noda – Jaguar TCS Racing
- Marta García – Lola Yamaha ABT
- Gabriela Jilkova – Porsche Formula E Team
Why an All-Women’s Test Is So Important
Traditionally, motorsports has always been a sport for men, whether they were the ones driving or the ones speculating. With the increase of women’s participation within the sport, it is important that the sport aligns with its viewers and talents. Formula E has always been a series that takes pride in bridging this gap.
During the press conference, Jamie Chadwick states her opinion on the opportunities for women in Formula E, specifically the possible entrance of a feeder series for Formula E in the future. She explains,
”I just think, I think all opportunity is a good opportunity.”
Marta García adds,
”Everyone comes from different walks in motorsports. There’s lots of different ways people come into it. So, a feeder series, I think would make sense, but I don’t think you should necessarily single out the feeder series to just being female as well.”
This representation really does inspire the next generation. As the chapter of pre-season testing ends, the Season 12 one begins. Stay tuned as we head to Brazil next!