A couple of weekends ago, the fourth season of F1 Academy began and I wanted to reflect on the ways that women racers have been breaking boundaries in the world of motorsport.
F1 Academy is an all-women, Formula 4 level racing championship within the FormulaOne franchise, and they compete in 14 races across 6 countries throughout their season. It is directed by Susie Wolff, a former F1 racer that competed in the 2014 British Grand Prix, and she is the first woman in 22 years to take part in an F1 racing weekend.
Although Formula 1 has been an almost entirely male-dominated sport for decades, there have been a few trailblazing women, like Wolff, who have earned the opportunity to compete at one of the highest levels in motorsport. However, never before have we seen an elite space specifically curated for women, directed by women, and designed to support these young women racers as they break barriers on and off the racetrack. It’s refreshing to witness the movement that F1 Academy is a part of, not only in expanding the demographic of motorsport, but in redefining our sports industries and reanalyzing equal opportunity within the structures of our patriarchal society.
Growing up, I remember watching a variety of motorsport races with my dad nearly every weekend. Whether it was MotoGP, Formula 1, NASCAR, or IndyCar, I would race down the stairs to the TV in the living room and he would already have the channel on, preparing for the race to start. As early as I can remember, we would follow the races, achievements, and lives of many professional racers, and unsurprisingly, all of the world-renowned figures were men. I have been a long time fan of Sir Lewis Hamilton, seven-time World Champion in F1, undoubtedly because of his incredible career and outstanding talent in the racing world. But on a more personal level, it has always been inspiring to watch this elite sport that I have loved so much, and see someone who looks like me excelling amongst the competition for years. Despite various challenges, discrimination, and blatant racism, I hold so much admiration for Black professionals in their craft who continue working hard, achieving great accomplishments, and staying true to themselves. I think F1 Academy serves a similar purpose within motorsport for women by creating the opportunity for all women to be inspired by these racers, who are elevating their abilities in an arena where they are in the majority for once.
F1: The Academy
In 2025, Netflix released F1: The Academy, a seven-part series documenting the experiences and lessons of the women racers who competed in F1 Academy throughout the 2024 season. They interviewed and highlighted many racers such as Abbi Pulling, Bianca Bustamante, Lia Block, Chloe Chambers, and many more as they worked their way to the top, navigating competition, challenges and camaraderie along the way.
When I watched, it was so inspiring to see these women actively dismantling stereotypes that have been pushed on so many women throughout our lives and creating more spaces for young girls to see representation across multiple sports. Throughout this program, we can see women achieving great positions of power that have been largely exclusive to men, not only in who are racing the cars, but also in engineering, leadership, and various management roles. I think it’s crucial to see more women represented across various sports, and that, in addition, more attention needs to be placed on the importance of media representation.
Representation in Media & Society — F1: The Movie
In June of last year, F1: The Movie was released in theatres, and yes, my family went to see it the day it came out. I really enjoyed the movie, for its racing content, getting to see popular actors I have followed, and of course, I absolutely loved seeing current F1 racers present throughout various parts of the film.
Afterwards, I followed up on some interviews of the producers, actors, and staff in the F1 movie, and I was amazed to learn that these actors trained for months before filming started, in order to actually race Formula 2 cars for the movie. I originally assumed that this movie would incorporate CGI in a lot of scenes because of the difficult action shots, so it was incredible to discover that many of the scenes were real and extremely well executed. I have much more appreciation for the cinematography, professional acting skills, attention to detail, and the overall effort that was put into making this movie. I also learned that Sir Lewis Hamilton was a producer on this film. He’s the only Black racer in F1 and has been a long-time advocate for greater diversity and inclusion in this sport that has been dominated by white men. His work, from my perspective, definitely contributed to a greater diversity in the film and a more accurate representation of what it means to be part of the F1 world.
However, one of the main critiques that I had from the movie was its representation of women, both in the larger context of media as well as their roles in sports and specifically in F1. In the film, there was one female lead who was portrayed as a brilliant engineer who was working to prove herself in the industry, however she also became a love interest for one of the male leads. In my opinion, there’s a lingering bias or inferiority complex placed upon women in society that, in the case of character building within this film, there’s a perception that the main female lead could not only be an engineer, she also had to be a love interest. It came across that the romantic involvement with the main male character is what made her an important character in the movie, and that her proximity to him gave her importance in her role when interacting with other characters, who were other engineers and F1 staff on the team.
Additionally, another supporting female character in this movie was portrayed as extremely nervous, insecure, uncertain, and shy in her role on the F1 team. In one scene, she was reassured by a male character of her abilities, which enabled her to see her own worth and importance. I felt that it reflected how women are often socialized to be more timid and are defined by their mistakes, whereas men are treated as strong and resilient for learning or pushing past their mistakes. It also feeds a longstanding narrative that the worth of a woman is dependent on the opinions of men, and that women must obtain approval from men in order to be worthy and even respected. This is not to say that these women were portrayed as mistreated in the film by men, however I find it interesting that of the limited female characters shown, the messaging surrounding their presence was tied to a man, whether romantically or from a state of insecurity in which a man had to step in to affirm a woman of her own worth.
The Importance of Representation
For so long, women have been restricted from many sectors of society—legally, economically, and socially—so as women continue to gain more opportunities and positions of power across various fields, it’s absolutely vital that we acknowledge the preconceived notions and structural inequalities that built these restrictions in the first place. That’s why I love F1 Academy so much, not only as a dedicated motorsport enthusiast, but also because of what it represents for women in sports and in society. It challenges existing narratives about women’s abilities in motorsport, and larger expectations about what society thinks women’s roles should be. It’s a message to women around the world that we are strong, resilient, and capable of accomplishing anything we put our mind to. Most importantly, these racers are an inspiration to young girls who get to see themselves represented by women competing in motorsport and learn that, no matter the sport, job, or position, there is opportunity to make their dreams into a reality.