Female star raises 'five-year' support model idea

2023 F1 Academy runner-up Lena Bühler has raised an idea for female talent to be financially supported for "three to five years", to move women up the motorsport ladder. 

Bühler was one of 18 drivers who participated in last Friday's first all-female Formula E test, with the Swiss driver having completed the three hours of running with Mahindra. 

The test marked the first time an FIA championship had run a session just for female drivers, an initiative which was well received. 

"For sure, at this time we are in a good period for women [in motorsport]," Bühler told RacingNews365. 

"It was a good initiative from Formula E to do this test. I hope maybe in one-year, two years or three years, there will be girls in the championship."

Bühler was joined in the test by the likes of Jamie Chadwick, Tatiana Calderon, Bianca Bustamante and Abbi Pulling, with the latter having set the fastest time. 

Several drivers understood the brand-new Gen3 EVO FE machinery very quickly, although Bühler is unsure exactly when we will see a female driver in the category.

"Difficult to say, because sometimes we can see a lot of people are behind girls," Bühler assessed. "And also we need to take into consideration that it's a lot of money, so it depends on this also."

Multi-year support initiative

Finances are a pressing problem for female drivers, something F1 Academy is trying to solve through the creation of a new initiative. 

Ahead of last Friday's test at the Circuit de Jarama, it was announced that the winner of the F1 Academy title – likely to be Pulling who has a 95-point lead – will receive a fully-funded GB3 campaign with Rodin Motorsport, as well as 20 test days.

The campaign is being funded by F1 Academy, whilst Pirelli are also contributing. This year, F1 Academy has funded a full Formula Regional (FRECA) season for Marta Garcia, who won the inaugural F1 Academy title in 2023.

Bühler is supportive of what F1 Academy announced earlier this week, but has raised a concern that it still leaves the funded driver with problems to solve for the following year to continue racing.

"Yeah, it's not cheap," added Bühler. "It's a good initiative for F1 Academy to do this for the winner of this year, like last year, what they did with Marta [Garcia].

"So they follow, they pay all the season. It's nice to have a season fully paid but after, we don't know what happens. 

"For sure, to have a full season paid for, it's very good."

To ensure that female drivers have a solid route for progression and development, Bühler would like to see, if financially possible, a handful of young female stars receive funding and support for three to five years.

"I think it would be better to follow three, four, five girls, but fully for three to five years," Bühler explained. "But I don't know if it's possible, because it's a lot of money. 

"[Money] is also the problem. Today, there are not a lot of girls [in motorsport], with a small budget or a budget to drive. So this is also the problem."