Claire Williams left her role as Williams’ Team Principal in 2020 but has not stopped working hard behind the scenes to help F1 grow. Via a recent social media post, she explained how over the past few months, she had been working hard to help the sport get its first female driver.
“I talked to more than 100 young ladies about my journey in F1 and the foundations we laid at Williams to welcome the next generation of women into motorsport,” a post on Williams’ Instagram read. “It was so inspiring to meet so many young women about to embark on their motorsport journeys.”
“I have to admit I was jealous. I’d love to be able to do it all over again,” she added.
View this post on Instagram.
Over the last few years, F1 and the FIA have been working hard to promote female racers in motorsports. It was for the same reason that Formula One Management (FOM) started F1 Academy in 2023, to replace the defunct W-Series, which ran out of funds.
The F1 Academy is a female-only single-seater championship organized by F1. FOM has requested that all 10 F1 teams support at least one of the 15 women competing, ensuring they have the financial backing needed to succeed.
F1 Academy has also named former Williams F1 test driver Susie Wolff as the Managing Director of the series. Wolff, who drove for Williams at FP1 of the 2014 German GP weekend, knows what it takes to compete at the highest level of motorsport.
10 years ago today, Susie Wolff drove in FP1 as a test driver for @WilliamsRacing at the German Grand Prix, but her journey started at just 8 years old in karting.
Interested in starting your own journey into karting? Here’s how ➡️ #F1Academy pic.twitter.com/WVyvWZjFEi
— F1 Academy (@f1academy) July 18, 2024
After becoming Managing Director, she also expressed her goal of helping women advance in motorsports. With experienced figures like Williams and Wolff actively working to promote female racers, it may not be long before one of them reaches F1.
