The brand new series F1 Academy gets underway with Lena Buhler has been announced as the first driver for the championship.
25-year-old Swiss driver Lena Buhler has been announced as the first driver for the inaugural 2023 F1 Academy season. Buhler will be driving for ART Grand Prix which announced its participation in the series in December.
Who is Lena Buhler?
Buhler began karting at the relatively late age of 17 and made her debut in the 2017 Swiss Karting Championship where she finished 14th.
She made her single-seater debut in 2020 when she participated in the Spanish Formula 4 Championship after finishing third in the Schweizer Kart Meisterschaft — X30 Challenge in 2019. Buhler finished 15th in the 2020 season with 23 points and a career-best finish of fifth in the championship. She then made the move up to the Formula Regional European Championship (FREC) with R-ace GP for 2021. Racing in all but the opening round of the championship, she finished 38th with zero points.
In 2022, Buhler had a slow year only participating in nine races altogether, six in the Formula Regional Asian Championship (FRAC), and three races in FREC. Buhler finished 28th in the FRAC and 39th in the FREC. Despite scoring no points, her performance improved drastically as she finished all her races in the top 20.
Buhler is currently competing in the Formula 4 UAE Championship where she currently sits 30th with zero points after nine races.
BREAKING: Lena Buhler takes the first of fifteen spots on the F1 Academy grid! 🙌
The Swiss driver will compete for @ARTGP ✨#F1Academy pic.twitter.com/Rrtht3UIxM
— F1 Academy (@f1academy) February 2, 2023
Following the announcement, Buhler stated:
“This will only be my fourth year in motorsport and I still have a lot to learn, but I am ready to give 100% both mentally and physically to honour the trust ART Grand Prix has in me, together with that of my partners, without whom this adventure would not be possible”.
Sebastien Philippe (Team Principal of ART Grand Prix) added:
“We are happy to welcome Lena to our team. She will be one of the first 15 drivers to write her name in the history books of the F1 Academy. This corresponds perfectly to the philosophy of ART Grand Prix, which is to help young drivers climb the ladder of the junior formulas which lead to the highest level of motorsport.”
2023 Driver Lineup
Five teams that race in Formula 2 and 3 will be joining F1 Academy. There will be three drivers for each team to form a 15-driver grid. The series will run a 21-race championship over seven rounds.
- ART Grand Prix: Lena Buhler & TBD & TBD
- Campos Racing: TBD & TBD & TBD
- MP Motorsport: TBD & TBD & TBD
- PREMA Racing: TBD & TBD & TBD
- Rodin Carlin: TBD & TBD & TBD
As drivers continue to be announced, the table will be adjusted.
