What was the initial thing that got you into motorsport?
My dad loved it as a kid when I was young, and he would put Formula One on the telly and I would normally fall asleep to it, and then eventually the commentary would get exciting and wake me up and I’d sort of go, "Oh, this is quite fun". Then over the years my dad would call me in to watch the starts and so on and so forth.
I always liked motorsport as a kid, but I just never saw myself working in it. I started pursuing working in film on the media side of things, but getting as much experience as I could. I learned to edit through making fan edits of comic books and superhero films I watched. Later down the line, I ended up showing those videos in job interviews.
My actual ‘big break’ was probably when I got my apprenticeship when I was 18. I applied for apprenticeships in journalism, media production and got close but didn’t get any, apart from my last one where I worked for a company called IMG (sports media) who trained me in how to make telly, and I suddenly was working in sport, which I hadn’t seen for myself.
You were part of FE’s Talent Call all those years ago. How crucial was that program in getting you to where you are today?
Unbelievably crucial. When Formula E’s Talent Call came around, I was doing my apprenticeship, so I was very tuned into the media space and I’d done a little bit of presenting and reporting before through other youth schemes designed to get young people involved in media, but I wasn’t really sure if I could make it work as a career.
I remember going online one day and I saw a tweet about the open call for presenters and I thought to myself, well, why don’t I make a TikTok for them? Because if they want a new young presenter, they’re probably going to want someone who understands TikTok and that was something I really enjoyed.
It was the craziest, coolest experience finding out I was in the final four and we got to go to Valencia testing, which was my first time actually on the ground at a motorsport event. So not only did it provide me the opportunity to get on the ground, but also during that weekend we were tasked with presenting one minute pieces to camera and I got to interview Lucas di Grassi and that blew my mind. I was like, "Oh my gosh, Lucas!" Like, now I speak to the guy on a regular basis, but at the time it just felt like a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
I was so heartbroken when I didn’t win the talent call, I thought I’d kind of lost my one opportunity, and that I was never going to have another go. Now stand back and I realise it’s not rejection, it’s redirection.
What do you think it was about that TikTok that you sent to Formula E that made them go, "That’s someone we want to look at"?
I think it was the fact it was a TikTok. Most people sent showreel-esque newsreader videos and I think the fact I did something a bit different that they took a bit of notice.
There are now fans who will recognise you around the paddock and they’ll stop you and ask for selfies, is there anyone that you looked up to as an inspiration?
It’s funny that when I started there weren't that many people doing it (digital presenting), I mean, Saunders for a long time was the person I admired the most. I saw what he was doing in Formula E and how he’d come through the ranks of initially just being a content producer to doing all the digital presenting. So actually one day to be presenting alongside him was really cool.
I also remember meeting Nikki (Shields) for the first time when she did some mentoring with us on the talent call. So again, it was really full circle to be suddenly presenting alongside her and having her throw to me on the live broadcast, and being like, "Hey Alexa, what are you up to?" I was like, "Oh my god, wow! Like, she knows me!"
In this industry, as you’ve said, you hear the word "no" quite a lot. What advice do you have for dealing with that and not letting that demoralise you?
I think it can get you down and I think it’s actually an important moment of reflection when you get a "no." Why did you get the “no"? Is it because you were asking for something that you weren’t ready for yet? Was it because something else is meant for you? What can you learn from that "no"?
It’s taken me a really long time to not take it personally because a lot of the time it’s not personal. If it's "no" that time, you’re going to have another go later on. Even if it’s as simple as a driver saying "no" to you for an interview, you go, "Yeah, all right, I probably did catch him at a bad moment", but you then realise, well, okay, what can I learn from that? That either I approached him in the wrong way or do I need to give him time to cool off next time? You just try to use it as a learning experience every time, I think it's super important.
On the other side of things, what is your favourite thing about what you do?
Getting to be a part of the championship and that without the media side, people wouldn’t know what goes on here. You see lap times, but to be able to be trusted to pick out those stories and to tell them is a real honour and a real privilege.
It takes a lot of trust from a championship, from drivers, from teams. It takes a really good working relationship, and sometimes you do get it wrong, sometimes you pick out the wrong stories, you don’t go down the right narrative arc, but you have to make sure you’re doing every single person justice in this championship who’s putting in the time and effort.
When you think of the hundreds, if not thousands, of people that work behind these teams and support our drivers you have to do each of them right as much as you can.
Do you have a favourite Formula E moment?
The time I sort of realised I wanted to work in Formula E was Berlin 2021, the year that Nyck de Vries won the championship.
I remember I was watching that race with some friends in a park and all three of us loved motorsport but weren’t currently working in it. And that race, the start was carnage, Edo Mortara, Nyck de Vries, Jake Dennis, and Mitch Evans were all still in the championship fight and Mitch and Edo crashed into each other on the start. I just remember shrieking and I remember thinking ‘I want to work in Formula E.’ I want to be part of telling that story and it made me realise just how invested I was still being in the championship.
Then the other memory that will always stick with me is the first time I ever got to be a live presenter for Formula E - I got to present the autograph session on Instagram in Monaco.
The fact that I was finally being trusted to be given a mic and I loved every second of it. I do distinctly remember Jake Dennis looking up at me with a microphone, he’d never seen me as a presenter before, and he went, "Oh dear god, who gave you a mic?" And I like to think that attitude has followed me for the rest of my career of, "Oh goodness, who gave Alexa a mic to start asking all these questions?"
One of the things that viewers seem to love most about you is the fact that you are able to develop such a close relationship with the drivers. How important do you think it is that you have built that trust with them?
You can’t do the job without building that relationship, you need them to feel comfortable with you, because sometimes you’re going to have to interview them in what could end up being some of their lowest moments. You also have to remember at the end of the day they're human beings.
How important are projects like Girls on Track in increasing female participation in the sport in all areas?
I know the phrase is probably borderline cliché and overused, but I’m such a big believer in ‘if you can’t see it, you can’t be it’. For me, I think that’s one of the reasons I never considered working in sport because there weren’t that many female role models in sport.
I remember the first time I ever considered it, I was 12 watching the London Olympics looking for a woman’s name in the credits and working out what they were doing. Now, getting to work with Girls on Track at our races and meeting young women who are going, "Oh my gosh, I just met a female engineer and she told me what she does and that sounds something like something I would want to do".
So just continually putting women in the spotlight in a healthy way, I think is so important and I love that even if these young women come to Girls on Track and decide that motorsport isn't for them, just the fact that they know that they can succeed in male-dominated fields really matters to me.
Do you feel a sense of responsibility to that next generation who will look at you and think, "I want to be just like her"?
It's only really hit me recently where people have been very kind and said they admire what I do and they want to do what I do. I want to be someone that younger me could have emulated, I think it's the right way to put it.
What advice would you have to people who want to get a job in this industry?
Just start doing what you want to do, if you want to work in social media, make your own TikToks like I did. I remember when I did my application for my first job in motorsport, I had the second or third most viewed video on the Formula E hashtag on TikTok and that was the first line in my cover letter.
If you want to work in communications or journalism, start writing even if it's only for your own blog, at least you’ll be able to show your enthusiasm, your passion. Go volunteer in grassroots motorsport, do whatever you can just to prove that enthusiasm, and also it’s really important to find out if you definitely do want to do this. That you don’t want to put all your time and effort into doing it and then realising it’s actually not for you.
By going out and getting that baseline experience in whatever way you can, you’ll work out what is for you, what isn't for you, and there’s absolutely no shame in something not being for you.
Find out more
WATCH: How to watch every Formula E race in your country
UNMISSABLE: Watch the brand-new season of 'Driver' on Amazon Prime
CALENDAR: Here's every race set for the 2025/26 Formula E season
FOLLOW: Download the Formula E App on iOS or Android
TICKETS: Secure your grandstand seats and buy Formula E race tickets
HIGHLIGHTS: Catch up with every race from Formula E IN FULL
HOSPITALITY: Experience Formula E and world-class motorsport as a VIP