Jamie Chadwick - First competitive female driver in F1?
Discussion
Fair play to Alpine, taking a science-led approach to investigating the potential issues for a female in F1 and actually doing something productive (and long-term) about it.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/formula1/61963842
It's not as 'sexy' as W Series in terms of getting an immediate return of some sort on the investment, but if money is being put into this I feel this is the correct way to go about it.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/formula1/61963842
It's not as 'sexy' as W Series in terms of getting an immediate return of some sort on the investment, but if money is being put into this I feel this is the correct way to go about it.
It has to be fairly simple to put to bed the physical / mental ability thing.
If Chadwick is already an F1 test driver, she presumably has experience in the car, or sim as a base.
Could a team not just hire Silverstone for a day and plonk her or A.N.Other decent female driver in a 2016-2020 F1 car and get them do a full race distance within the 107% say of the equivalent years race pace or even send a bloke out with her as a pacer / rival to show overtaking / defending skills.
Cost would be nowt in the grand scheme of a F1 team. Chadwick could possibly even cover it herself with her winnings, would show her potential to F1 teams to sponsor her through F2 if she could do well.
If Chadwick is already an F1 test driver, she presumably has experience in the car, or sim as a base.
Could a team not just hire Silverstone for a day and plonk her or A.N.Other decent female driver in a 2016-2020 F1 car and get them do a full race distance within the 107% say of the equivalent years race pace or even send a bloke out with her as a pacer / rival to show overtaking / defending skills.
Cost would be nowt in the grand scheme of a F1 team. Chadwick could possibly even cover it herself with her winnings, would show her potential to F1 teams to sponsor her through F2 if she could do well.
Look at all the youngsters in F3, all the drivers at the sharp end of the championship are already signed as F1 junior drivers. Why would they want to sponsor Jamie when they already have a selection of much better and much younger drivers on their books?
She actually has enough super licence points to drive in free practice, if Williams thought she was any good they would let her have a go. Sauber let Robert Kubica have a go in Barcelona and he has zero hope of ever racing in F1 again.
I think everyone is so obsessed about a having a female driver in F1 they are overlooking the fact that she just isn't good enough and that there are 100 other male drivers out there who are better than her who are not going to make the cut either, yet you never hear about those.
She actually has enough super licence points to drive in free practice, if Williams thought she was any good they would let her have a go. Sauber let Robert Kubica have a go in Barcelona and he has zero hope of ever racing in F1 again.
I think everyone is so obsessed about a having a female driver in F1 they are overlooking the fact that she just isn't good enough and that there are 100 other male drivers out there who are better than her who are not going to make the cut either, yet you never hear about those.
Very true, as there are a couple in the British F4 Championship who are on the F1 books...as well as all those in the other Championships.
Not being disrespectful, but JC isn’t getting any younger. .. eighteen these days & you are looking at competing in a top level Championship.
Not being disrespectful, but JC isn’t getting any younger. .. eighteen these days & you are looking at competing in a top level Championship.
Edited by Milkyway on Thursday 30th June 13:39
Good interview with Sophia Floersch, still wants to do single seaters but sounds a bit more realistic about it. I can see her bagging a factory Hypercar/LMDH drive in the near future. Winning Le Mans outright would be much bigger than winning W Series over and over.
https://www.dailysportscar.com/2022/06/30/sophia-f...
https://www.dailysportscar.com/2022/06/30/sophia-f...
RobGT81 said:
Good interview with Sophia Floersch, still wants to do single seaters but sounds a bit more realistic about it. I can see her bagging a factory Hypercar/LMDH drive in the near future. Winning Le Mans outright would be much bigger than winning W Series over and over.
https://www.dailysportscar.com/2022/06/30/sophia-f...
She seems to have put herself in a decent position to have a crack at LM in the future, loads of time on her side to do that too. I was At Le Mans and following her progress, as she said herself she was at the very sharp end of silver drivers and had it not been for the issue at the start they were in for a hell of a shout in a ultra competitive category.https://www.dailysportscar.com/2022/06/30/sophia-f...
Milkyway said:
Very true, as there are a couple in the British F4 Championship who are on the F1 books...as well as all those in the other Championships.
Not being disrespectful, but JC isn’t getting any younger. .. eighteen these days & you are looking at competing in a top level Championship.
Megan Gilkes looks good in GB4 too - saw her win a tight race at Donington & she's at least won a race this season, which the championship leader can't lay claim to. Only 3 drivers have won races in this season, and she's one of them.Not being disrespectful, but JC isn’t getting any younger. .. eighteen these days & you are looking at competing in a top level Championship.
Edited by Milkyway on Thursday 30th June 13:39
(edit: you may have meant GB4 with British F4 reference, sorry!)
satfinal said:
In non-cost cap news, W series has been cancelled for the rest of the season (2 races), Chadwick wins again.
I suppose running out of money is a form of cost cap.Bit tragic though and doesn't help me take the series very seriously. I have tried to watch but it just doesn't grab me - I think because there's no natural progression for the winners towards F2 then maybe one day F1.
Catherine Bond Muir the CEO was on TV explaining that the funding they had in place to end the season was pulled out from them at the last minute meaning they couldn't finish the season. She also said that they made the decision to safeguard the beginning of next season and hopefully get all the funding more in place.
The driver's don't need and sponsorship to join the championship as it's all paid for by the WSeries so probably quite a bill.
The driver's don't need and sponsorship to join the championship as it's all paid for by the WSeries so probably quite a bill.
I think the very least the FIA could do is to underwrite this season and keep it going. It’s a bloody disgrace given the money washing around. What “unimaginably” short termism is going on here after everything we have all been through over the past 5 years(me too) (and before the suffragettes)? Women can and absolutely should compete at the highest echelons of motorsport, and as they did in previous generations, in F1. It’s a meritocracy not what your gender is. Give Jamie and her peers a bloody chance. If they can’t compete then that’s a different matter. Give this amazing generation of women drivers a chance.
On another note, surely all the F1 teams should step in as a gesture, as they all profess to ‘race as one’. Let them all allow women drivers to do F1 FP1s and put the money where their mouths is. Of course they won’t.
What kind of signal does this lamentable state of affairs send out the next generation? - oh yes, if you’re a woman there’s no money in it, no sponsorship and and no *real* interest from the FIA.
Sorry state of affairs IMO.
On another note, surely all the F1 teams should step in as a gesture, as they all profess to ‘race as one’. Let them all allow women drivers to do F1 FP1s and put the money where their mouths is. Of course they won’t.
What kind of signal does this lamentable state of affairs send out the next generation? - oh yes, if you’re a woman there’s no money in it, no sponsorship and and no *real* interest from the FIA.
Sorry state of affairs IMO.
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