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Meet the drivers participating in the Women's Test

CARATTERISTICA 07 nov 2024 7 Min

The first-ever all-women test session for an FIA Championship will take place on Friday 8 November at Circuito del Jarama in Madrid, as part of the 2024/25 ABB FIA Formula E World Championship’s pre-season testing schedule.

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Article by Katy Fairman

The first-of-its-kind test in the all-electric championship provides elite women racing drivers the opportunity to drive the new-for-Season 11 GEN3 Evo race car, which is capable of 0-60 mph in just 1.82 seconds – 30% faster than a current F1 car. The cars will also be tested this week by the 11 world-class race teams and 22 drivers currently competing in the series.

Each of the race teams in the championship will be required to field at least one woman driver for the half-day test, but encouraged to field two, who will all drive in current-season cars.

Despite motorsport being one of the few sports industries where men and women can compete together, the sport remains predominantly male, with only 3% of current top-tier racing licences worldwide held by women (FIA).

Formula E is proactively launching this initiative as part of a broader long-term strategy to remove barriers and expand opportunities for women within the all-electric championship. This isn’t just about creating a one-off opportunity, it’s about analysing and actively dismantling the structural inequalities that have limited women’s participation and progress.

Who are the women completing the test?

Jaguar TCS Racing

Jaguar TCS Racing have announced that Jamie Chadwick and Lilou Wadoux will take part in the 2024/25 Formula E Women’s Test.

Three-time W Series champion Jamie Chadwick will jump back into Formula E machinery having sampled the GEN3, and following Rookie Test outings with NIO, and with Jaguar in Marrakesh, 2020. Jaguar have also confirmed that Chadwick will take part in the Formula E Rookie Test at the 2025 Berlin E-Prix.

Sports Car racer Lilou Wadoux began her racing career in karting at age 14. In November 2021, Wadoux entered into endurance racing with the all-female LMP2 Richard Mille Racing Team and, in 2023, was signed as Ferrari’s first female factory driver. There, she became the first woman winner in the FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC) in any class, after winning the 2023 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps.

TAG Heuer Porsche

Porsche confirmed Gabriela Jilkova and Marta Garcia as its drivers for Formula E's Women's Test in Madrid.

Jílková completed 152 kilometres with the Porsche 99X Electric in Valencia last year – as a simulator and development driver in the TAG Heuer Porsche Formula E Team. She also has experience in GT and prototype racing and 2024 sees her competing in the GT4 European Series.

Garcia got behind the wheel of a Formula E car for the first time in May – at the Rookie Test in Berlin. She is the first champion of Formula 1's junior series for women, F1 Academy, and has competed in Iron Dames colours since April; a team with which Porsche has collaborated previously. Garcia’s current focus is the Formula Regional European Championship by Alpine.

DS PENSKE

F1 Academy driver Jess Edgar and sportscar racer Beitske Visser will be representing DS PENSKE for Formula E's Women's Test this week.

Born out of a motorsport family and having raced in karts since 2010, British driver Jessica Edgar stepped up to newly launched GB4 Championship in 2022 for her first full season of single-seater racing, claiming a podium at Oulton Park. In 2023, she joined the grid for the inaugural season of the F1 Academy, and a year later she took pole position and a victory at the Circuit of the Americas in the USA.

Driving alongside Edgar is Beitske Visser, who is currently racing in sportscars and endurance. The Dutch driver began karting as early as five years old and has since gone on to compete in FIA Formula 4, Formula Renault 3.5 and W Series, where she finished in second place in both 2019 and 2022.

Nissan

British driver Pulling has enjoyed an excellent 2024, becoming the first woman to win in British F4, while also leading F1 Academy, having taken seven wins in 10 races so far this season.

She was scheduled to be joined by German racer Sophia Floersch, however she has had to withdraw from the test due to scheduling conflicts as a result of the test being moved.

Andretti

The American team announced that Chloe Chambers and Nerea Martí will represent them during the Women Test in Madrid.

Making her Formula E debut in the first-ever Women's Test, Indiana native Chambers brings an extensive racing resume to the Indianapolis-based Andretti lineup that includes a win and three podiums with two rounds remaining in her first season competing in the F1 Academy.

Rounding out Andretti’s testing lineup, Martí will take her first Formula E laps at a home circuit. The Spanish racing driver moved up through the competitive karting ranks on her family’s track before moving into the Spanish F4 Championship in 2019, where she secured a podium in her first start.

Envision Racing

Alisha Palmowski and Alice Powell will join the Envision team for the official women’s test session.

Palmowski, 18, has excelled in junior categories during her fledgling career to date, winning the Ginetta Junior Scholarship in 2022 and clinching the Vice-Champion spot in the GB4 Championship this year - taking home 11 podiums, three race wins and two pole positions along the way.

Powell has been part of the Envision Racing setup since 2021. She completed a successful test for the Green Machine in Berlin during Season 10, completing a huge number of laps to provide crucial data to the team. Stepping into the new GEN3 Evo machinery for the first time, Powell’s experience and expertise will provide important baseline information as the Season 9 world champions gear up for the new campaign.

NEOM McLaren

NEOM McLaren will be hosting Bianca Bustamante and Ella Lloyd during the Women's Test.

Bustamante has won multiple karting championships across Asia and competed in W Series, Formula 4 UAE Championship, Italian Formula 4, USF Juniors and most recently F1 Academy. In October 2023, it was announced Bianca would join the McLaren Driver Development programme, representing the team in the 2024 F1 Academy season with ART Grand Prix.

Lloyd began racing competitively in 2022 before competing in the Ginetta GT Championship the following year, finishing vice-champion. At the beginning of 2024, the Brit competed in the Formula Winter Series, securing the Female Driver Trophy multiple times. She competed in British F4, completing the 2024 season with three P2 results, and also joined the McLaren Driver Development programme to race for McLaren in the 2025 F1 Academy season.

Maserati MSG Racing

Tatiana Calderon and Carrie Schreiner will drive for Maserati MSG Racing for this week’s test.

Colombian racing driver Tatiana Calderon brings a wealth of experience in single-seater racing, including Indycar, Formula 2, GP3, and Super Formula. Currently competing in the 2024 IMSA SportsCar Championship for Gradient Racing, Calderon has also made her mark in the FIA World Endurance Championship with Richard Mille Racing.

Carrie Schreiner is currently competing in F1 Academy for Campos Racing. Schreiner's racing journey also began in karting, before transitioning to single-seater racing in ADAC Formula 4 and British Formula 4.

LOLA Yamaha ABT

Japanese Super GT Championship competitor and Toyota Gazoo Racing development driver, Miki Koyama, will drive for Lola in the session. Miki has achieved impressive results in her career, becoming the first female racer to win a mixed-gender, single-seater FIA Championship, securing the 2022 Formula Regional Japanese Championship.

Miki, who is part of the Toyota Gazoo Racing driver development programme, is currently competing in the Super GT Championship. She also competed in the W Series from 2019 to 2021 and recently won the Suzuka round of the Super Taikyu Japanese Endurance Race in the ST-X Class.

Kiro Race Co

Finally, Simona De Silvestro will make her Formula E return when she gets behind the wheel of the Kiro Race Co machine. De Silvestro’s career has spanned Formula E, IndyCar, and Australian Supercars, earning her the distinction of being the only woman to score points in Formula E and a longstanding prior role as a Porsche works driver further underlines how highly she's rated in motorsport.

The Swiss-Italian is also set for a new challenge, in the 2026 Winter Olympics. She has recently joined the Italian National Team in bobsleigh, with aspirations of competing in the women’s Olympic bob events in Milan/Cortina. De Silvestro will head straight to the Formula E test in Valencia from Sigulda, Latvia, where she is training with the Italian National Team for the upcoming bobsleigh season.

Mahindra Racing

Mahindra Racing have signed Lena Buehler for the Women's Test set in Madrid. The Swiss racer impressed during F1 Academy’s inaugural season last year, claiming race victories in Barcelona and Monza, plus a further 11 podiums, en route to finishing as series runner up.

As well as the chance to drive the Mahindra M11Electro, Buehler will also benefit from the support of Nyck de Vries and Edoardo Mortara, as well as the team’s engineering and performance departments to assist in her development.

Testing schedule

Friday 8 November:

Official Test Session 6: 9:00 local (8:00 UTC)
Women’s Test Session: 14:00 local (13:00 UTC)

How to follow pre-season testing

Fans can stay informed with live timing features that include a real-time interactive track map and the ability to follow their favourite drivers throughout each session.

LIVE: Follow every lap of testing live with timing, reaction and coverage at fiaformulae.com/live

Additionally, Formula E’s social media channels, website, and app will provide session reports, exclusive interviews, and behind-the-scenes insights from trackside during the four-day event.