Formula One is a sport dominated by men. With advances such as the Formula One Academy, we can hope to see further development for women in motorsport. As it currently stands, only five women have competed in a Formula 1 Grand Prix.
The History
Maria Teresa de Filippis
The pioneer for women in Formula One is Italian driver Maria Teresa de Filippis. She made her debut on May 18th 1958, and was an active Formula One driver until 1959.
Before starting her career in Formula One, the Italian racing driver tried her hand at racing in a Fiat 500 and won. Her result in this race skyrocketed her confidence, especially since her siblings had bet she’d lose. She then competed in the Italian Sportscar Championship and finished second in the 1954 season. Her potential was only getting stronger, and her career moved toward Formula One.
She competed in a total of five Formula One races. She, unfortunately, did not score any championship points, but she made her mark on history.
Following the death of Porsche team leader Jean Behra, Maria retired from all forms of motorsport due to her devastation. She later joined the International Club of Former F1 Grand Prix Drivers in 1979, and in 1997 she was appointed Vice-President of the club. She was also a founding member and chairperson of the Maserati Club.
Lella Lombardi
She is the first woman to score points in a Formula One race. Fifteen years after Maria completed, Lella Lombardi had her own opportunity to etch her name into history.
Before her career in Formula One, Lombardi competed in various championships. She started out in the Formula Monza Series in 1965 before moving on to Formula Three in 1968. She continued her trajectory toward Formula One by competing and winning the 1970 Formula 850 series. By 1974, the Italian driver was signed to drive Shellsport-Luxembourg in Formula 5000 and finished fourth.
After signing on as a Formula One driver, Lombardi participated in seventeen races and started twelve of them throughout her career. Her best result came in 1975 during the Spanish Grand Prix, where she became the first woman in Formula One to score a point.
After her Formula One career, she could not stop making history. She became the first female racing driver to qualify at the Race Of Champions. She finished fourteenth in the race. She later raced in sports cars and has even driven the iconic Lancia Stratos Turbo. She retired from racing in 1988 and, by 1989, founded her own racing team, Lombardi Autosport.
Divina Galica
Her career in motorsport started through an invitation to a celebrity auto race. She took to the sport like a duck in water. Divina competed in three Formula One races throughout her career.
She achieved immense success throughout her time racing in the British Shellsport International Group 8 series in 1976, and was soon entered for the British Grand Prix that same year. The 1976 British Grand Prix was also the only time two women were registered to race in a Formula One event. She entered the race with the unlucky number 13, and this proved to live up to the name. She failed to qualify for the race.
Although she didn’t find much success in Formula One, the British racing driver found her niche in sports cars and trucks. In addition to her success in motorsport, she was an Olympic skier.
After her racing career, she could not stop her obsession with motorsport. She became a racing instructor and rose to the position of senior vice president at Skip Barber Racing. And, in 2005, Galica became director of IRacing.com. She continued to work as a driving instructor at Bertil Ross Racing School.
Desiré Wilson
She is the only woman to be licensed to drive in both CART Indy Cars and Formula One Championships. She only ever entered one Formula One Championship. However, she has an impressive career in motorsport.
In 1972, Wilson made her full debut in the Formula Vee Championship. She competed in this for three seasons. In 1975, Wilson won the South African Formula Ford Championship and was a title defender the following season. Following her defending title, the racing driver won the “Driver to Europe” award.
Although she has many successes to her name, Wilson has only ever attempted to qualify for one Formula One Race. Although she tried her absolute best, the car she was given for the race had been replaced with the inferior model she had previously been beaten in.
After her short-lived career in Formula One, Desiré did not stop racing. She competed in multiple other championships, like Le Mans and the Indy 500. She now occasionally races at the Goodwood Revival.
Giovanna Amati
She is the last woman to ever attempt to qualify for Formula One. She began racing professionally in 1981 when she scorched her name into history.
She shortly moved into Formula Three between 1985 and 1986. By 1992, and with a decent track record behind her, Amati found herself in a Formula One seat. Her inexperience was evident throughout the South African Grand Prix. She did not qualify for the race. Unfortunately, this continued at the Mexican Grand Prix and Brazil.
In addition to her Formula One career, Amati attended the Porsche Supercup in 1993 and found herself competing in any and all championships. She had an extreme love for racing.
After retiring from motorsport, Amati became a sports commentator and even wrote articles.
Bigger and Better
Although there have been five previous women to race in Formula One, we are growing closer to having more women on the Formula One grid. Formula One Academy, created by Susie Wolff, is a growing phenomenon in motorsport. We can only hope for future success for women in motorsport.