Sophia Flörsch could drive an F1 car during a test
Otmar Szafnauer, the director of the Alpine team, stated that the women from the Rac(H)er program could drive F1 cars during tests.
Alpine now has several female drivers among its ranks. During the presentation of the A523, the team announced the creation of its Rac(H)er program. Thus, Abbi Pulling, Sophia Flörsch, and six young karting drivers are benefiting from a specialized training and support program.
For the two who are racing in single-seaters (Abbi Pulling – W Series – and Sophia Flörsch), their program could include sessions in Formula 1. Not during official sessions, but on the occasion of private tests with old cars.
A commitment to support all the way to Formula 1
(ENG) “The hope is that, yes, the women, the young girls we support get to one day step into a Formula 1 car and become F1 drivers,” affirms Otmar Szafnauer, the director of the Alpine team.
« Are we going to have them take a test? We have a demonstration team that uses a two-year-old car, and we have made good use of it. We have had some current Formula 1 drivers test drive the demonstration car alongside our drivers, so it’s a good way to be able to compare their abilities. »
« I will therefore not be surprised in the future – although we don’t have a plan yet – that we do this [have women racing in F1]. »
If these tests were to be conducted, it would be a first in many years. The last woman to have officially driven an F1 car is Tatiana Calderón (with whom Sophia Flörsch participated in the 24 Hours of Le Mans) in 2018, during a 100 km shakedown. Susie Wolff still remains the only woman from the modern era to have been able to participate in an official testing session with Williams, in 2015, at Silverstone.
