F3 announced that four young female drivers, including a trio from the W Series, will participate in a test at Magny-Cours.
For the second year in a row, F3 will run a woman-specific test in the hopes of introducing a female driver to the series. Not since Sophia Florsch in 2020 has Formula 3 had a full-time female driver. The test will run on the 16th and 17th of September. Let’s take a look at the four females that will participate.
🚨 Four female drivers are set to get their first taste of #F3 machinery! 🙌
Abbi Pulling, Hamda Al Qubaisi, Chloe Chambers and Tereza Babickova will get an opportunity to familiarise themselves with our car across two days of testing at Magny Cours later this month!#RoadToF1 pic.twitter.com/4HinqvuYvR
— Formula 3 (@Formula3) September 6, 2022
1) Abbie Pulling – W Series
The nineteen-year-old driver from Gosberton, UK began her karting career at the age of nine – winning the Super 1 National Junior TKM championship in 2017 and 2018. In 2020, Pulling made her single-seater debut at the British F4 championship. She finished sixth in the standings, retaining her seat for 2021. Unfortunately due to a lack of budget, Pulling was forced to pull out mid-way through the season.
In 2021, she joined the W Series as a reserve driver. Pulling made her debut at Silverstone she went on to finish seventh in the championship, securing a seat for 2022.
Currently, she is fourth in the championship with four rounds to go, just three points behind Beltske Visser and Alice Powell.
When asked about getting to test an F3 car, Pulling said:
“I’m very excited to test the F3 car around Magny-Cours and I am very grateful for this opportunity given to me. I hope to make the most out of the day and understand further what it will take to get to the next step and where I aim to hopefully compete one day.
“To get the chance to drive this kind of machinery means a lot to me and I’m expecting it to be very different to what I am used to driving. However, I’m looking forward to the challenge and trust that I will get the support I need from the team to adapt and learn as much as possible.”
2) Hamda Al-Qubasi – Formula Regional European Championship (FRAC)
Alongside Pulling on Day 1 of testing will be twenty-year-old FREC driver Hamda Al-Qubasi. Al-Qubasi is a woman with a talent for making history. She is currently the first Emirati driver to be invited to FIA Karting Academy as well as being the first woman in history to score a podium in Italian Formula 4.
In 2021, Al-Qubasi joined the prestigious Italian team PREMA Racing where she raced in the Italian F4 championship. Currently racing in FRAC and thirty-seventh in the standings, it appears Al-Qubasi is already looking ahead to next year.
When asked about participating in the F3 testing, Al-Quabasi said:
“I’m thrilled to be invited by the FIA F3 promoters to take part in this high-profile test, it’s a very strong message in acknowledging Female drivers and I would personally like to thank Bruno Michel for the opportunity. I’m definitely grateful for this opportunity and it means a lot to be acknowledged for my efforts and achievements in Motorsports and offered the chance to test this amazing machine. It’s the natural progression in my career and I aspire to drive in this championship next season if all goes well.
“I look forward to getting the feeling of driving this car, which has more power and downforce than the car I’m currently competing in. I have been working very hard on my physical and fitness side to cope with the extra G forces and feel confident I will be able to handle it well and try and learn as much as possible and improve my driving and feeling with the car throughout the test.”
3) Chloe Chambers – W Series
Born in China but raised in the USA, at eighteen years old Chloe Chambers is the youngest driver out of the four. Making her debut in 2021, she raced in the F4 USA Championship where she finished twenty-sixth in the standings.
In January 2022, Chambers took part in a W Series test event. After both testing sessions, she was signed to Jenner Racing for the current season. She scored a points finish in the opening weekend of the year. When asked about the test, Chambers stated:
“I’m excited about this opportunity. It’s something that I’ve looked forward to for a long time and I’m so grateful to have it. I see this test as a great learning opportunity to gain experience in the F3 car at a new track with new people that I can learn from. I expect to gain invaluable experience and a greater understanding of where I need to further develop my skills.
“I just want to say a huge thank you to everyone at W Series, Monoflo International, and Bruno Michel and his team for helping me get this great opportunity to gain experience and show my potential.”
4) Tereza Babickova – W Series
Nineteen-year-old Tereza Babickova made her W series and single-seater debut this year, after spending thirteen years in karts. When asked about participating in the F3 testing, Babickova said:
“I am very grateful for this opportunity. For all drivers in motorsport, the goal is to continue to higher categories and thus, of course, more powerful cars, which is a big challenge. I know it takes quite a lot of physical strength to drive the F3 car.
“I’m still a rookie formula driver, so for me, this invitation to the FIA F3 test is a recognition of my training and racing commitment so far, and it’s a great motivation for the future. Of course, my goal is to step up to F3 in the future, so I expect this test to show me what my real abilities are today and what I need to work on in order to be ready.”
The test takes place one week after the Formula 3 2022 season finishes. It’ll be intriguing to see how these four perform and if garner interest for the 2023 season.
