Nadia Cutro

Nadia Cutro is and Argentine driver who usually competed alongside her navigating sister, Florencia (Flor), in the early part of her career. 

They have been rallying since at least 2005, when Nadia was 19 and Flor was old enough to participate. Previously, Nadia had co-driven for other drivers, including her father Oscar. To begin with, the sisters had a road-spec Volkswagen Gol which they used for local events.

The Gol served them for another few seasons, the highlight of which was the yearly Rally de Entre Rios. Their best finish in that car was a 26th place in 2008.

Their first attack on the Argentine championship came in 2010. The Gol had been replaced by a more powerful Group N Mitsubishi Lancer Evo VIII, run by Marcos Ligato's Tango team. Nadia was a top-twenty contender right from the start on the rough gravel stages. She was 17th in the Rally de Los Alerces de Esquel y Trevelin. then tenth in the Rally de Tucuman a couple of months later. Later in the season, she was eleventh in the San Luis Rally. 

Nadia's first international rally was in 2010. She entered Rally Argentina, then a round of the Intercontinental Rally Challenge. It was a rally with a very long list of retirements, but the sisters finished in 31st place.

They were selected for the Pirelli Stars driver development programme in 2011, and initially continued with the satellite Tango team, in a Lancer Evo IX. They retired from their first rally, but were eighth overall in the Rally del Surubi-Goya. Later, they switched to a Fiat Punto, and were 17th in the Rally Pagos del Tuyu. 

In 2012, their car was a Fiat Palio. It was not a brilliant year, with only three finishes out of nine. The best of these was 16th in the Rally Ciudad de Goya. 

They carried on rallying the Palio in 2013, in the Junior class, supported by Fiat. They did better, finishing four out of eight rallies, with a fourteenth (third Junior team) in the Rally des Misiones, and fifteenth in the Rally de Cordoba. They were fourth overall in the Junior standings. 

The Fiat team withdrew their support for the rally programme after 2013, and Nadia acquired a Ford Fiesta for the 2014 season. Her season was much shorter this year, with one finish, in the Rally de Entre Rios. She was 17th, fourth in class. 

Nadia rallied the Fiesta again in 2015, but spent most of the season without Flor on the maps. Her best finish was ninth, in the Gran Premio de Villa Carlos Paz Rally, and she also won her class in the Entre Rios Rally, finishing fourteenth overall. 

In 2016, she took her first rally win, driving the Fiesta on the Rally de la Naranja. Her co-driver was Luciano Bombaci, who had first sat alongside her 2015. The event was their final one of the year and a fantastic end to a season that was plagued with non-finishes.

The pair continued to work together in 2017. Nadia's new car was a Toyota Etios. It was not as quick as the Fiesta; her best finish was eleventh, achieved in the Tucuman and Cruz del Eje rallies. 

The Etios won her three RC3 classes in Argentine rallies in 2018, including a seventh place overall in the Homenaje a Jorge Recalde Rally. 

The same car and crew competed in the 2019 Argentine championship. Nadia's best finish was eleventh, on the National section of Rally Argentina. Eleventh was her best result in 2020 too, achieved on the Rally de Balarce, driving a new Toyota Yaris. This was her only finish of the year. 

2021 was much better, with eight finishes from ten rallies, five of which resulted in a top-ten finish. The best of these was a fifth place in the Tucuman Rally. 

In 2022, she carried on with the Yaris, recording a best finish of ninth in the Rally de la Rioja. She had entered the FIA Codasur rally championship, but only competed in Argentina and was 63rd overall. She was also tenth in her class in the Argentine championship.

There were three more ninth places for her and the Yaris in 2023, one including a class win in the Rally de Villa Dolores. The Rioja event was another one where she got into the top ten, repeating her 2022 performance.

Another year in the Yaris followed in 2024: her best finish was seventh, in the Rally de Misiones. She was fourth in her class in the Argentine championship. In 2025, she tackled the Argentine series again and at the time of writing, has secured two more top-ten finishes. This year, she got a new co-driver in Miguel Recalt, as Luciano Bombaci had decided to retire from active competition.

As well as rallying, Nadia has made various guest appearances on the circuits in Argentina, starting with the Volkswagen Bora Cup in 2015 and 2016. The same year, 2016, she scored some points in the Top Race series, driving a Chevrolet. Moving up in power, she tried the Pro Am class of the Porsche GT3 Cup in Argentina.

(Image copyright Luca Martinez)

Rafaela Ferreira

Rafaela Ferreira races single-seaters in Brazil. She began her senior career in 2023, after several years in karting and some tests in F3 and F4 cars. She had been active in karting since the age of eight, inspired by her father who raced and built karts.

After a couple of races in Formula Inter in the States, which uses the same car as US F4, she took away two fourth places, and was ready to tackle Brazilian F4.

Her first race at Interlagos in Brazilian F4 led to an 11th place, then a sixth and a ninth. At the time, she was the first female driver to race in the championship.

In 2023, she gradually improved over the season, taking her first podium in December with third at Interlagos. She was thirteenth in the championship.

She entered the 2024 F4 Brazil series a stronger driver. The first race of the season ended in a third place for her at Velo Citta, followed by a seventh and then a second. A couple of indifferent races at Interlagos followed, but when the championship returned to Velo Citta, she scored her first win. She won again at the away round in Buenos Aires, as well as picking up a second place, one of nine podiums during the year. Inerlagos had always been something of a bogey track for her, but by the end of the season, she even managed a second there. She was fourth in the championship.

At the end of 2024, she was signed by Racing Bulls for their 2025 F1 Academy entry, driving for the Campos team. She may also do some additional racing.

(Image from Brazilian F4)

Delia Borges

 

Delia Borges is believed to be Argentina’s first female racing driver. 

Delia was from Buenos Aires and did not start racing until she was 50, although she may have competed as a speedway rider prior to that.

She took part in the Argentine touring car championship in 1951, entering seven races. This included the Argentine Touring Car Grand Prix, a multi-day road race with 199 starters. She was not classified at the end, possibly due to some irregularities with her car, a Ford-engined Chevrolet. 

Her best recorded finish was 21st, driving a Chevrolet in the Mil Milhas Argentina, held on the Buenos Aires street circuit. Her co-driver was Manuel Arrouge, who had raced since the late 1920s. He was a policeman and this may have connected him to Delia, who was believed to have worked for the Peronist secret police in Argentina.

Later, in 1954, she registered as an entry for the Carrera Panamericana, but did not race. Newspaper reports in the USA suggest that she put her name down for the event but did not even have a car. She eventually chose one and was due to start in the “small stock” class, but her Argentine racing license had expired. The El Paso Times on November 19th that year describes her selling her house to afford the entry fees and travelling to Mexico City to bargain with officials. She then apparently “went into hysterics and lost consciousness” before being moved to hospital to recover. The same article claims that she gave up a job with the Argentine Secret Service. 

Other sources have her sending her mechanic to the USA to buy a car with the proceeds of her house sale, although she did not know which car he had bought.

Sometimes, she is claimed to be a driver who raced under the pseudonym “Julia Lagos” later in the 1950s and up to 1961, but this apparently stems from an error; Julia Lagos may well have been another woman called Julia Sivori de Montenegro. 

She died in 1961.

Josefina Vigo

Josefina Vigo races touring cars, mainly competing in Argentina’s Top Race series where she is one of its most prolific female drivers. 

Although she is known for racing saloons, her first senior events and the first few years of her career were spent in sportscars. Between 2012 and 2015, she raced in GT2000 in Argentina straight out of karting, driving an ADA prototype for Jonas Lodeiro’s team. She was on the pace, or very near to it, straight away, finishing fourth in her first race at La Plata.

From eighth overall in 2012 to fifth in 2013, Josefina made rapid progress in the ADA, powered by either a Ford or Honda production engine. She scored her first podium, a second place at La Plata, and only finished outside the top ten once. The following year, she drove a Honda-engined car for Jotam Racing and doubled her podium tally with thirds at La Plata and her home track of Olavarria. 

Her first Top Race car in 2015 was a Chevrolet Cruze, and she was 21st in the championship after completing the second half of the season. Her best finish was seventh at Rio Hondo. Switching from a prototype to a touring car was a steep learning curve. 

Josefina described 2015 as a learning year, and hoped to be more competitive in 2016. 2016 turned out to be an up and down season in the Cruze; she was disqualified from the first round, then managed a sixth place a few weeks later at her lucky circuit of Rio Hondo. She was 20th in the championship. 

In 2017, she drove a Mercedes for ABH Sport, having moved from the SDE Competitcion team that had run her for two seasons. She had a similar midfield year and her best finish came at San Juan, where she was ninth. She was also tenth twice, but this was countered by four non-finishes, including one that put her out of the next race. Budget was also a problem.

She switched back to a Chevrolet for the 2018 Top Race season, with another new team in the shape of Olivieri Racing.  She did not manage a top-ten finish. This was another inconsistent season not helped by missing some races. The last event of the season ended in an ankle injury that had still not healed by the time the 2019 season came around, forcing her out of the first round.

For 2019, she continued to race a Chevrolet in Top Race, returning for the second round where she was eleventh. It was not one of her best seasons, with too many DNFs and disqualifications for her to make an impact on the leaderboard, although she did earn a fourth place late in the season at Concordia. She was also seventh at Buenos Aires.

Prior to her senior debut in 2012, she raced karts, and was Sudam Atlantic champion in 2011.

(Image copyright Prensa Pro)

Marisa Panagopulo

Marisa in 2012

Marisa Panagopulo is an Argentine driver, active since the 1990s.

Marisa’s early forays into motorsport were in karting and midget racing. She did race karts extensively from the age of about fourteen, sometimes with her brother, Carlos. It took a while for her to be able to move up to cars; she was still karting as a senior in 1986, when she was 18.

She seems to have started her senior career in 1994, in a Nissan Sentra, which she raced in the Copa Damas. This was a one-make series for female drivers, which was shown on television. She won the 1994 championship.

In 1995, she was part of Formula Hyundai Femenina, another touring car championship for female drivers. Her second year in cars gave her another winner’s trophy.

Her first appearance in the leading TC series was the 2 Hours of Buenos Aires in 1996. She shared a Ford Falcon with José Larroudé and finished 16th. This was the first of three races that she did in the Falcon, and her best finish. In a different car, a TTE prototype supported by Citroen, she made her debut in the Mil Milhas at Interlagos. Her team-mates were Delfina Frers and Suzane Carvalho. They do not seem to have finished.

That year, she also raced a Citroen AX and a Volkswagen Gol in one-make series. She appears to have won at least one race in the AX.

After that, she took a break from motor racing, partly due to finances. During her time away, she became a mother.

She returned to karting for many years, in order to satisfy her competitive urges.

Marisa made a circuit comeback in 2012. With Delfina Frers, Lorena Blanco and Carolina Eiras, she was part of an all-female team for the Fiat Linea Cup. She was ninth in the Rosario race.

Since then, she has returned to competitive karting, and made a guest appearance in the ASM Championship in 2014. She was driving a Fiat Uno. She also dabbles in historic racing.

(Image from http://lapaginadecharly.blogspot.co.uk)

Dora Bavio

Dora Bavio raced touring cars in Argentina in the 1960s and 1970s. She began racing in a Renault Gordini, and favoured French cars throughout her short career. The Gordini, her first racing car, was a gift from her father, although intended for road rather than competition use.

She was born in 1942. Unusually for her time, she actually began her motorsport career in karting. Her first car race was in 1966, at Vuelta de Lobos. She was sixth in class in the Gordini. Her next race was two weeks later, at the Autodromo Buenos Aires, and she was third.

Things went rather quiet for “Dorita”, as she became known, after her promising first year. She disappeared from the circuits for a while.

In 1970, she entered the Argentine national touring car championship, driving a Peugeot 404 in the Improved Touring class. She drove in seven events, and had a best finish of eighth, in her first race at Salto. At least some of these races were two-driver enduros; Susana Renzulli was among her co-drivers. Her last event of the year was the Argentine Touring Car Grand Prix, which she did not finish, stopping after the third stage.

In 1972, she raced a Peugeot 504 in the championship, but only did one race, which she did not finish. In between races, she worked as a racing instructor.

Much later, in 1985, Dora reappeared on the rally stage. She took part in the Rally of Argentina, driving a Peugeot 504, and was 39th overall. The car was considerably older than most of the field, but not the only 504 in the rally.

She may also have driven in the 1995 Rally Argentina, in a Suzuki, but the result is proving hard to track down.

After her retirement, Dora ran an auto accessories firm for many years.

(Image from http://recuerdodeautos.blogspot.co.uk)

Delfina Frers

Delfina and Marily Schwander

Delfina Frers is an Argentine former actress and model, who has raced saloons extensively in South America.

She has been racing since the mid-1990s, starting out, as many Argentine female drivers did, in the Copa de Damas women-only series. She won her first Copa de Damas race in 1994, during her first season in the competition. Her car was a Nissan Sentra. She took part in the Copa for the next couple of seasons.

Her first major experience of mixed-sex motorsport was the 1997 TC2000 championship, in an Audi-engined Ford Escort XR3. She was not normally among the frontrunners, although she claimed at least one second place in the Light category, at San Juan. After her second TC2000 season, in 1998, she was 21st, in a different Ford Escort, with a more standard Zetec engine.

Later on, in 2000, she made some guest appearances in TC2000 in a Honda Civic, but this was the end of her involvement. She entered 42 TC2000 races over four years, picking up a few points in 1998. Over four years, she picked up twelve class podium finishes. Unfortunately, she is more remembered for some spectacular crashes, including a multiple roll at San Juan in 1997. She was never seriously injured.

After that, she went back to Ford power for the 2001 Fiesta Ladies’ Championship, in Brazil, finishing sixth overall. This championship was organised by Maria Helena Fittipaldi for AMPACOM, the Brazilian women’s motorsport association. Delfina does not appear to have been quite at the level of Suzane Carvalho and Maria Cristina Rosito, but she was on the pace, and scored at least a couple of fourth places. Interestingly, she shared a background in showbusiness with Suzane, and they both got into motor racing quite late. They had shared an Aldee for the 1997 Mil Milhas in Brazil, finishing eighth overall. This was their second attempt at the event, having gone out in 1996, in a team with Marisa Panagopoulo.

A break followed, but she came back in 2004, driving in one round of the Top Race series, in Argentina. She took part in the Mar del Plata race, in a Chrysler Neon, as the first woman to enter the series. At this time, she was already a grandmother.

In 2008, she also guested in the TC NOA series, although details of this are hazy - she only did a part-season, and it is not clear which car she used.

In 2010, she got back behind the wheel again, in the Fiat Linea Cup. She was 22nd in the Alta Gracia race.

After that, she seems to have switched to rallying for a few years, navigated by Marily Schwander. The pair drove an Alfa Romeo Giulietta TI in the 2010 Argentine Historic Grand Prix, a historic long-distance rally. The following year, Delfina did some modern rallies in a Subaru, including the San Antonio Areco Rally.

After her retirement from motor racing, she remained involved in sport, and was the director of the cycling Tour Femenino de San Luis, after taking a competitive interest in cycling and triathlon. In 2016, she managed the Xirayas women’s international cycling team.

(Image from http://www.rectaprincipal.com.ar)

Natalie Goodwin

Natalie in the Lotus 7/20

Natalie Goodwin is most famous for racing in Formula 3 in the 1960s. The British Women Racing Drivers’ Club’s annual racing trophy is named after her.

Natalie was from a background that was both privileged and sporty. Her mother, Marjorie, was a member of the Cussons family, and the Marketing Director of the Cussons toiletry firm in the 1970s. She played hockey for England. Natalie’s cousin, Nick Cussons, started racing GT cars in 1959. However, her initial first love was music; she played piano to concert standard, and performed in a jazz band with her brother. After losing a fingertip in an accident involving a door, she had to stop playing professionally and seek other things to do.

She bought her first racing car in 1961, when she was twenty-one years old. It was a boyfriend, rather than any of her relatives, that stirred her interest in motorsport. Her racing career started very badly, reversing into a pit wall at Silverstone, but she carried on and finished the race, not even in last place. Among her first cars were a Mini Cooper, Mini Marcos and an Austin-Healey 3000. Soon, she was winning club races.

For the first few years of her racing career, she often drove Lotus cars. The 7, initially painted black, carried her through her many of her early days in British club racing. Between 1962 and 1964, she raced the car both as a self-entry, and as part of the Ashley Smithy Garage team, which necessitated a change of paintwork to a McLaren-esque orange. The three drivers used custom number plates for racing, reading “NAT1” (Natalie), NIT1 and NUT1. As well as racing for Ashley Smithy, she worked for them, handling paperwork.

In 1964, she bought a Lotus 7/20, one of only two built, although at least four replicas were produced. It was a Lotus 7 with independent rear suspension and the brakes from a Lotus 20 Formula Junior.  Hers had previously been owned and raced by Colin Chapman, David Porter and Wendy Hamblin. She sold her original 7 to the team, and kept the 7/20 for three seasons, before selling it to an American collector.

1965 was the year that she switched her attention to single-seater racing, acquiring the first of her Brabham Formula 3 cars. Not stopping there, she purchased two more, and set up her own three-driver team to take on the European Formula 3 circuit, along with her brother. John Cardwell and Dave Rees were her other drivers. Managing the paperwork at Ashley Smithy had proved to be useful training.

Her first outing on the European stage appears to have been the Pau Grand Prix, which she entered in a Brabham BT15, but did not qualify for. Her first Formula 3 finish was at Magny-Cours, where she was twelfth. The best of the Goodwin Racing Brabhams was driven by John Cardwell, who was third. Goodwin Racing then took three cars to Zolder, and Dave Rees was third, in a BT9. Natalie had planned to race, but did not. The team had its best race of the year at Chimay, the Grand Prix des Frontières: John Cardwell won, Natalie was seventh and Dave Rees, ninth. At Caserta, John Cardwell was second. Natalie did not finish, despite coming third in her heat. It was a similar story at Monza, although Natalie did not qualify this time. None of the Goodwin cars finished at Rouen, and the team then pulled out of the Ville Nevers Grand Prix, at Magny Cours. A few more entries for John Cardwell followed, but Natalie did not race herself.

As well as its European forays, the team competed on and off in F3 in Britain. Natalie’s best finishes were a pair of second places, at Oulton Park and Aintree, which she earned in 750MC and BARC races. She was also seventh in a BARC event at Aintree.

Goodwin Racing went even more international in 1966, starting the year with a race in Buenos Aires for John Cardwell. He contested the Argentine F3 series in a BT15, with some top-five finishes. After this, he parted ways with Natalie and her team.

At Pau, a Brabham BT18, driven by Charles Crichton-Stuart, was added to the team. He had moved over from Stirling Moss’s SMART team. Natalie, driving a similar car, made her first appearance at the Barcelona GP, but did not finish. Monza in May was a similar scenario. Natalie’s first finish of the year was at Chimay again, where she was thirteenth. She did not qualify at La Châtre, after not finishing her heat, and lost out at Vallelunga, too. At Caserta, Charles Crichton-Stuart broke into the top ten, but Natalie struggled again. Neither BT18 qualified at Monza in June. Driving solo, Natalie entered the 1900 F3 championship in France, and finished fifteenth at Rouen. After another couple of DNQs, she was tenth at Hockenheim, in the Touring Car Grand Prix support race. After another couple of disappointments, Natalie earned another finish at Zolder, a fifteenth place. This was during a spell of competition in Belgium with Charles Crichton-Stuart, and it was her last finish of the year.

As well as the European calendar, Goodwin Racing was a semi-regular presence in British Formula 3, with either Natalie or Charles Crichton-Stuart as driver. Natalie’s British season did not really get going until late on, and she managed a best result of fifth, in the Louth Trophy at Cadwell Park. She was also eighth at Silverstone and Mallory Park.

The following year, she proved she could cut it as a driver as well as a team owner, and apparently won her first major F3 race. Unfortunately, the details of where this win happened are proving hard to find.

In the UK, Goodwin Racing was mostly represented by Natalie, as a single-car entry. She was particularly effective at the more northerly circuits, such as Oulton Park and Rufforth, close to her Cheshire home, and particularly after she swapped the BT18 for a newer BT21. Her best result was third, at Oulton Park.

In Europe, she dismissed the BT18 and made her debut in May, at her favoured circuit of Chimay, in her new car. She was fourteenth overall. At the Prix de Paris at Montlhéry, she was third in the “B” race, which left her classified 21^st in the main standings. A fifth followed at La Châtre, at the beginning of June. A run in the Coupe de Paris gave her an eleventh place in September.

After running a car in the Argentine championship the previous year, Natalie got to drive there herself in 1967. Her best result was seventh, at Mar del Plata.

The same year, she tried her hand at endurance racing, and entered the Spa 24 Hours. She drove a Goodwin Racing Ford Lotus Cortina with Cyril Williams. They finished, but were unclassified. A second Goodwin Racing Lotus Cortina did not get to the end.

In 1968, she had another go at endurance racing, sharing Jean Denton’s MGB at the Nürburgring 1000km. They did not finish. Jean and Natalie had previously raced against each other in Formula 3, in 1965.

For much of the year, she was still campaigning the BT21 for Goodwin Racing. In the UK, they entered the MCD Lombank Championship, with principal driver, Cyd Williams. Williams served the team well, winning some races, but Natalie was no slouch behind the wheel either, earning herself a second and third at Oulton Park, her favourite British circuit, and a fourth at Rufforth.

During the early part of the season, she raced in Spain, but struggled to qualify or finish her races there. In April, accepting a drive from the Paul Watson Racing Organisation, she was fourth in the Sprite Cup, at Jyllandsring. She was also eleventh at Roskilde, driving a BT21 for Tony Birchenough’s team. As a Goodwin Racing entry, she was eighth and seventh in the Prix de Paris races at Montlhéry. A couple of weeks later, she was fourth again at Jyllandsring. At the start of June, she was sixth at Chimay, another circuit at which she usually ran well. During the year, she also raced in Portugal and Finland, although she did not do as well there.

Natalie and Cyd Williams continued as a two-car Goodwin team for the 1969 season. Driving the BT21, Natalie was ninth at Barcelona in May. Later in the month, Chimay gave her a seventh place, and she was ninth at Reims in June. She did enter more races, in France and Sweden, but either did not finish, or did not qualify. That year, she competed at Monaco, and was almost prevented from starting by police, who refused to believe she was a genuine driver. Graham Hill ended up vouching for her.

British F3 was not her major priority in 1969, although her team remained a regular presence. A Chevron had been added to the Goodwin stable, which was driven by Alan Rollinson, among others. Natalie declined to race herself for most of the season, although she put in an appearance at the Oulton Park BARC race, and was sixth overall.

1969 was her last season of active competition. During her time in F3, she had raced against the likes of Piers Courage, François Cevert, Patrick Depailler and Jean-Pierre Jaussaud, sometimes getting the better of them.

Between 1964 and 1967, she was Britain’s highest-performing female driver, and won many awards from the British Women Racing Drivers’ Club, of which she was a founder member, alongside Mary Wheeler. In recognition of her success, the BWRDC awarded their original racing trophy to her in perpetuity. Natalie responded by donating three silver trophies to the club, which are still named the Goodwin Trophies, and are awarded to this day. She was also a Vice-Chairman of the club for many years.

Natalie died suddenly in August 2019.

(Image copyright Ferret Fotografics)

Julia Ballario

Julia in Star Mazda

Julia Ballario is an Argentine driver who competes in both single-seaters and touring cars, at home and in the USA.

She was born in 1992, in Marcos Juárez near Cordoba. Her father was a racing driver who had competed in Formula Renault. Taking advantage of rules allowing very young drivers to race as seniors, he got her start in senior motorsport in Formula Renault in Argentina, in 2007, competing in the Plus series. This followed six years of karting.

2007 was a learning year, and although she was not among the frontrunners, she was nominated for a driver award. Detailed results for Julia in 2007 are not widely available. The Formula Renault season itself was shortened that year, due to the death of a competitor.

It was another learning year on the tracks in 2008, but she got on the leaderboard, finishing thirteenth. She was driving for the Baypal Scuderia team. They kept her on for 2009, and she was thirteenth again.

In 2010, she entered both the Plus and secondary Interprovencial series, finishing fourteenth in both.  Judging by her points tally in both, her performances were roughly equivalent. Detailed results are no longer readily available, as before.

2011 started with Formula Renault, driving for the Baypal Scuderia again. She took part in the first four rounds of the Argentine championship, with a best finish of fifth, at Alta Gracia. After that, she took her first steps in saloon racing, driving a Renault Clio in Class 2 of the Argentine National Touring Car Championship. This was somewhat of a baptism of fire for Julia, who finished two of her four races, and had a best finish of 19^th at Posadas. Undeterred, she signed up for the last three Buenos Aires rounds of the Turismo Carretera Pista Mouras series, in a Chevrolet. Her finishes were slightly better, with a fifteenth her highlight. At about the same time, she rejoined Formula Renault for the last two races of the season, adding another top-ten to her tally, a sixth at Marcos Juárez, her home track.

Julia’s career was now at something of a turning point. She chose to pursue tin-tops further in 2012, and was signed by the HRC Pro-Team for the TC2000 championship in Argentina. This was only the second time a female driver had raced in the series, after Delfina Frers in 2000. In an interview, she admitted that she might not be able to progress beyond Formula 3 if she persevered with single-seaters. This was a move which paid off, as she was on the pace very quickly in her Peugeot 307, describing it as easy to drive. Her second race, at Rosario, led to a fourth place, and although the season was marred somewhat by DNFs and one disqualification, she was a regular top-ten finisher, and managed her first podium at Salta, in third place. She was fifth in the championship.

Although she had proved a success in touring cars, she still harboured hopes of a single-seater career, perhaps outside Argentina. Her season began in the popular Top Race tin-top series, driving a Ford Mondeo for Schick Racing. Again, it was a steep learning curve, and she managed a thirteenth place at Junin as her best result, from five races. Mid-season, she travelled to the USA to compete in Formula Star Mazda, the entry-level series for the “Road to Indy”. She was driving for the Juncos Racing team, who were running three cars that year. This followed a series of tests in late 2012, in which she performed well. Julia’s four races showed promise, with three top-tens: a seventh at Trois Rivières, and ninths at Trois Rivières and Mid-Ohio.

Her second series of Star Mazda, in 2014, led to better results, the best of these being a fourth place, at Houston, on a wet track. Still with the Juncos team, she had eight top-ten finishes, and was eleventh in the championship. There were three female drivers in the series that year, and Julia was the best of them.

She returned to Argentina for the Top Race series in 2015, and was second in the Copa Damas, just behind Violeta Pernice. Her car was a Chevrolet Cruze, and she was thirteenth in the overall championship. If it had not been for a few DNFs mid-season, she would have been higher up the rankings; she scored three podium positions, including a second place at Río Cuarto.

She also did some TC2000 races in a VW Vento, making guest appearances at Buenos Aires in May. She was fourteenth and seventeenth.

In 2016, she raced a Mercedes for the 3M Racing team, in Top Race. It was something of a topsy-turvy year for her. She won two races, at Chaco and Rio Cuarto, the first of these from pole. At Rio Cuarto, she recorded the fastest lap. However, for the rest of the season, a fourth place at Concordia notwithstanding, she struggled for pace, and did not reach the top ten. Still, she was eighth overall in a competitive series.   

Her 2017 Top Race season was a disappointment. She ran in the V6 class with the GT Racing team, driving a Chevrolet Cruze. Her best finish was a tenth place at San Juan, her seventh race of the season, but this was her last event of the year. She pulled out due to a lack of sponsorship.

She attempted to get her career back on track in 2018, entering the first five Top Race rounds in a Volkswagen. Sadly, she only finished two, both in 15th place. In a different car, a Chevrolet, she made a guest appearance in Argentine Turismo Carretera, at Buenos Aires. In another car again, a Ford, she did the Olavarria round of the TC Pista Mouras series, finishing in sixth place.

She managed two Top Race events in 2019, driving a Mercedes. Her results were a twelfth at Rio Negro and fourteenth at San Nicolas. 

(Image from http://www.losandes.com.ar/)

Female Single-Seater Drivers Around the World: Argentina

Maria Jose Lorenzati in 2013

In the past ten years, a number of female drivers have come through the junior single-seater ranks in Argentina. Some remain in open-wheel racing, whilst others moved into saloon-based competition. This post consists mainly of material split from the Single-Seater Drivers of the Americas post. Julia Ballario now has her own post.

Maria Abbate - Argentine driver who started in motorsport in 2007, at the age of 27. She contested two races of the Argentine Formula 4 (Formula Renault) championship. In 2008, she entered more races with the Casalins team, and was 17th in the final standings. The following year, she continued with Formula 4, driving for Scuderia Ramini, but could only manage 28th after a disastrous season with one finish. She also guested in the GT2000 Championship, driving a Scorpion, and scored her first career podium, a second at Olavarria. For 2010, she switched to saloon competition in the Top Race Junior series, and scored a best finish of twelfth at Salta, in her Ford Mondeo. She returned to GT2000 in 2011, in a Honda, but only appears to have driven a part-season, scoring no points. Her activities since 2010 have been curtailed by an injury she picked up during the Top Race season, and she has apparently retired.

Lucila Diaz – races in Formula Renault in Argentina. She made her debut in the Formula Renault Plus series in 2015, making two guest appearances at Río Cuarto. Her best finish was a thirteenth place. This seems to have been her first season of racing as a senior; from at least 2012, when she was sixteen, she was active in karting in Argentina. In 2016, she was 31st in the Formula Renault championship, after contesting six races. The best of these was at Cordoba, where she was eighth. She earned praise in 2016 for her improvement. She returned to karting in 2017.

Dahiana Jaciura - Argentine driver who appears to have started her major career racing in the 2017 Formula 4 Nueva Generacion championship. She entered the La Plata rounds and had a best finish of 23rd. She did not do any more races for personal reasons until 2018, when she returned to the APAC 1.4 Series, a Renault-powered prototype series she had raced in since at least 2014. More recently, she has been working as an engineer for the Vitarti Girls all-female team in Top Race.

Maria Jose Lorenzati - Argentine driver who has competed in Formula Renault since 2008. She began in the Interprovencial series, and was thirteenth overall, after some visits to the top ten. In 2009, she improved her finishing position to sixth. She maintained this position for the 2010 season, as well as stepping up to the more competitive Formula Renault Plus. In this championship, she was eighth. In 2011, she only managed to enter five races, and her final position suffered badly. She switched to touring cars in 2012, driving in the Argentine Turismo Nacional series in a Renault Clio. After six races, she was 32nd in the championship, with a best finish of fourteenth. As well as this, she had one guest run in Formula Renault Plus, although she did not finish. In 2013, she ran a limited schedule, with two races in TC2000 in a Peugeot 308. She also took part in one Mini Cooper Challenge race. The following year, she returned to TC2000, in a Fiat Linea. Her best finish was ninth, at Parana, and she was 24th overall. In 2015, she raced a Renault Fluence in TC2000, for a part-season, and was 28th overall. She was recently described as Argentina's most successful female driver. Language barriers have prevented more detailed investigation of her career. 

Ana Paula Morales – raced in Formula 4 in Argentina in 2011, when she was eighteen. She took part in eight rounds of the series, and had a best finish of thirteenth, at La Plata, towards the end of the season. She was 41^st in the championship, the first woman to race in Formula 4. Since then, she does not appear to have competed in circuit racing, although she may have done some karting.

Maria Jimena Oviedo – raced in Formula Renault in Argentina, in 2013 and 2014. Both times, she did part-seasons, driving for the Barovero Racing Team. Out of both seasons, her best finish was eleventh, in 2013, at Cordoba. In 2014, she managed a best of fourteenth, at La Rioja, and was 29^th in the championship. She started karting in 2006, and did some saloon racing in a Fiat 128 before moving into single-seaters, in 2013.

(Image from http://www.diaadia.com.ar/)

Violeta Pernice

Violeta Pernice races touring cars in her homeland, Argentina. Most of her career has been spent in the Top Race tin-top series.

Her first steps in senior motorsport were, initially, down the path of single-seaters. Her first races were in 2007, in a Formula Renault car. She entered Formula Renault Metropolitana in 2008, also known as Formula 4. It was a promising debut, driving for the Crespi Junior Team. Towards the end of the year, she was second and third at Buenos Aires, and she was sixth overall in the championship.

Despite having a year of Formula Renault experience under her belt already, Violeta Pernice was still one of her country's youngest drivers when she first took part in the Top Race Junior saloon series in 2009, only sixteen years old. Her best finish in her first season was seventh, at Comodoro Rivadavia, driving a Chevrolet Vectra. This was by far her best result, in a season containing too many DNFs. She had begun the year in Formula Renault, and was not doing too badly when she decided to change track. At La Plata, she had been ninth.

A seventh, this time at Interlagos, was the highlight of her 2010 season also, which was marred by a string of DNFs and non-starts. Her car was an Alfa Romeo 156. Most of the time, she was just out of the top ten. Her Junior campaign was a part-season, leading to 30^th place in the championship, but the combined 2010-2011 Top Race championship gave her 25^th. She did not manage another top ten, but did finish thirteenth on four occasions.

In 2012, she switched to a Fiat Linea for the Top Race Junior series. This gave her her first Top Race podium, a second at Alta Gracia. After nine rounds from eleven, she was fifteenth overall. In addition to her second place, she was eighth twice, at Rosario and Oberá.

In 2013, her main car in Top Race was a Mercedes. Her best result was eighth, at Chaco, and she was 19th overall. Her season was disrupted by her contract with her regular team, Motorola, ending about half-way through. However, in the Top Race NOA event at Rio Hondo, she was second, after starting on pole. Her car was a Chevrolet Vectra.

The following year, she changed her car for a Chevrolet Cruze, and entered Top Race again. The championship had gone through one of its semi-regular restructurings, and she was now in the top V6 class. She posted three top-ten finishes: seventh at Rosario and Mar de Ajó, and ninth at San Luis. Again, she suffered some DNFs, and this seems to have put her out of one race completely, but this season was a little more assured than before. Her final position was fifteenth. She also travelled to Uruguay, to make a guest appearance in the Sonic Racing Cup Damas, a women-only series for the Chevrolet Sonic.

In 2015, she drove the Cruze again in Top Race, and was the winner of the Ladies' Cup, ahead of five other female drivers. Her season began with a Ladies’ Cup win on International Women’s Day. She was twelfth overall, with a best finish of fourth, at Parana, and nine other top-ten finishes, including a fifth at Concepción. This was a great season for more reasons than one: this year, Violeta was driving for her own team, VP Racing.

At the beginning of 2016, it was all-change again. Violeta started her first season in the Argentine Touring Car (TN) Championship, driving a new car, a Peugeot 207, in Class Two. She was racing for the Percaz team. This proved to be a very difficult year for her, with too many non-finishes and a lack of pace. Her best finish was ninth, at Posadas, but she was only 38th in the championship. 

Violeta is known in Argentine racing circles for her distinctive pink-liveried cars, and has earned several nicknames, including “Penelope Glamour”.

(Image from https://twitter.com/violetapernice)

Women in One-Make Series: South America

Manuela Vasquez in 2010

One-make racing series are popular in South America. Due in part to initiatives such as Formula Hyundai Femenina (Argentina) and the Brazilian Fiesta Championship, quite a lot of women have competed in them in the last 20 years. Marisa Panagopulo now has her own post. 

Lorena Blanco – best known for racing in Fiat one-make championships in Argentina. She started off in the Fiat Linea Cup in 2010, entering the last few rounds, following some previous historic racing. She had another part-season in 2011, and made it into the top twenty on four occasions. The Linea series crossed over to using the Punto Abarth in 2012, and she improved her best finish to fifteenth. That year, she was the team-mate of a returning Marisa Panagopulo. A full season in the Punto in 2013 gave her two fifteenth places, and 24^th overall. A final part-season in the Punto, in 2014, had her finish fourteenth, three times, and end up in 32^nd place overall. In 2015, she did another part-season in the Punto series, and was 31st in the championship. Her best finish was 17th, at La Pampa. This arrangement continued in 2016, and her best finish improved to fourteenth, at Trelew. She was 36th overall. 

Renata Camargo - races in the one-make Hyundai Copa HB20 in Brazil. Her best result in 2020 has been an eighth place in class at Goiania. This was her first season in the championship. In 2021, she raced a Volkswagen Voyage as part of the 3 Girls team with Luciana Klai and Fernanda Aniceto. They took part in the Mil Milhas Brasileira, finishing 21st overall and second in class. In 2022, she did a part-season in the HB20 series, finishing fourth at Goiania and Velo Citta. She won one race in the Paulista Marcas e Pilotos championship in 2023, at Sao Paulo. In 2024, she does not appear to have raced much, although she tested a TCR car in December. She also competes in drag racing, using a VW Golf, karting and drifting. She is best-known as a motoring TV presenter in Brazil and is not to be confused with the millionaire businesswoman Renata Camargo Nascimento.

Carolina Canepa - Uruguayan driver who races in saloons and trucks. She started out in 2013 in the Chevrolet Sonic Cup in Uruguay, a one-make series. She was eleventh in her first season, with a best finish of sixth. A women-only version of the championship ran in 2014, and Carolina was third, behind Carolina Larratea who finished one place above her in the 2013 series. She went back to the main Sonic Cup draw in 2015, and won her first race, at Rivera, towards the end of the season. She was sixth overall. Her 2016 Sonic Cup season was similar, with one win and a sixth spot on the leaderboard. This was her last season in the championship before transferring to Formula Truck in 2017. She was part of the “Woman’s Racing Team” with Maria Cristina Rosito. Her truck was a Volvo, and she steadily improved over the season, with two sixth places at Londrina her best results. She was sixth in the championship. After a year off, she raced a Chevrolet Sonic again in 2019, in Class 2 of the Uruguayan touring car championship.

Juliana Carreira - began racing in 1998, in a Vauxhall Corsa, participating in regional one-make races. She was involved in the women’s Corsa championship in 1999, and the later Fiesta version in 2001. In 1999, she also took part in four Corsa Metrocar (a mixed Corsa one-make series) races, finishing in the top five in three of them. She also raced in a Clio Cup in Brazil at some point. She is from a racing family, and drove in the 2003 Mil Milhas Brasileira with her brother, Luiz, and Denis de Freitas and Jose Venezian. They were 15th, in an Audi RS2G. Later, she also did some Stock Car racing, in 2006. She works in fashion and the media in Brazil. 

Maria José Castro - raced in the 2017 Toyota Yaris Cup in Costa Rica, where she is from. Unusually, she races alongside her father, Marco, who shares her car. At the time of writing, she has not yet got into the points, although she only has half of the chances of most other drivers, due to her car-sharing. The Yaris Cup was her first experience of racing in cars, although she has done some karting in the past.

Thaline Chicoski - competes in the Shell HB20 Cup in her native Brazil. She shares the car (a Hyundai one-make) with Pedro Perdoncini and the pair joined the 2020 championship for the second round. In 2021, she was eleventh in the championship, with a best finish of third at Interlagos. She also made some appearances in the Mercedes-Benz Challenge AMG Cup. In 2022, she was tenth in the Elite class of the HB20 Cup, with three top-five finishes. She continued to race in both categories in 2023, scoring three podium finishes in the HB20 Cup. She was eighth in the championship. For 2024, she moved back to the AMG Cup, picking up a second and third place at Gioiania. She was eleventh in the championship. In December, she made one guest appearance in the Brazilian National Touring Car championship, but did not finish. Thaline has been active in motorsport since 2010, when she was 19, although this has mainly been in karting and she has not been able to run full championships. Despite this, she has won at least two regional championships.

Francisca Cortés – raced in the Chilean Trofeo Nissan Sunny in 1990. She was the first female driver to take part in the series, and one of Chile’s first female racing drivers. Although she never managed a podium position, she did achieve some top-ten finishes, and one pole position, at Antofagasta. This was overshadowed by the death of another driver during the race itself. The final championship standings for this series are not forthcoming. Francisca does not appear to have raced since then.

Carolina Eiras – did two seasons in the Fiat Linea Cup in Argentina, in 2010 and 2011. Her 2010 season is chiefly remembered for a spectacular crash into a lake at the Resistencia circuit, after which she was helped to safety by spectators. Her best finish was thirteenth, at Alta Gracia. In 2011, she did not complete as many races, managing three 19^th places out of four starts. She is a former Olympic skier.

Julieta (Juli) Fernández - one of the front-runners in the Argentine Mini Challenge in 2013. She was third overall, just missing out on an actual win, but with two podium finishes and two podium positions. She did manage to win some at least one training race. This was her first experience of saloon car racing, although she did do some GT racing in 2009, aged 18. She drove a new Crespi prototype in the GT 2000 series for Oyikil Motorsport, although she did not finish her race. In 2010, she was linked to a drive in Formula 4, but she did not have the budget to compete. Previously, she was active in karting in Argentina for many years, and may have also competed in Formula 1100 briefly. In 2015, she took part in the Top Race championship, driving a Chevrolet Cruze. She almost reached the top ten a couple of times, finishing eleventh at Rosario and Olivarria. She was 25th overall. In 2017, she made a guest appearance in the Argentine Turismo Pista series, driving a Fiat Uno. She entered the Buenos Aires round but did not finish. 

Sabrina Formal - Costa Rican driver who races in the Toyota Yaris Cup in her home country. In May, her best finish was ninth overall. At 20, 2017 was her first experience of senior motorsport, although she did do some national-level karting when she was much younger. Her brother is also a racing driver.

Michelle de Jesus - Brazilian driver who has been competing since 2006. She started out in her regional championship in São Paulo. By 2010, she was second overall in the championship, a best-ever finish for a female driver. The following year, she moved into national-level competition, driving in a few rounds of the Brazilian Petrobras de Marcas Cup (in a Toyota Corolla) and the Mercedes Benz Grand Challenge (in a C250 CGI). As she only did a couple of races, she did not do enough to make her mark on the final standings. She returned to the Grand Challenge in 2012, this time mounting a full campaign. Her car was the same, run by the Pink Energy team. She was ninth overall, with a best finish of fifth , at Rio de Janeiro. For 2013, she changed marques, moving to the Mitsubishi Lancer Cup. She achieved her first podium, at third at Velo Città, on her way to another ninth overall finish. Early in the season, she also made her first trip to Europe, to participate in one round of the Euro Racecar series, at Dijon. She was thirteenth, in a Chevrolet Camaro. In 2014, she stayed in South America, competing in truck racing, and the Marcas e Pilotos Cup. Her car in the Cup was a Corsa, and she does not appear to have completed a full season. She was 25th in Formula Truck, after a part-season, and had a best result of eighth, at Brasilia. In 2015, she was registered for Formula Truck, but does not appear to have actually raced. 

Carolina Larratea – Uruguayan driver from a motorsport family, who has been racing in the Chevrolet Sonic Cup since 2013. She was tenth in 2013, with a best finish of second, at El Pinar. In 2014, she scored her first outright win in the Cup, in the last round. This race was doubly notable in that two female drivers started on pole and second place. Carolina won the Sonic Ladies’ Cup. She continued to race a Chevrolet Sonic in 2015. Her season began very well, with a pair of wins at El Pinar, and she was second in the championship. She made the podium again in 2016, in third place. In 2019, she made a triumphant return to the circuits and won the Auvo-class Super Sonic championship, another one-make Sonic series. She won five races. 

Bia Martins - Brazilian driver who races in the HRacing Cup, a one-make series for the Hyundai HB20. She was one of the leading rookie drivers in 2023 and scored some overall top-ten finishes. She had previous experience of the car from a 2021 guest appearance in a previous HB20 one-make championship. In 2025, she will tackle the Brazilian touring car championship. Most of her career has been spent in karting as both a child and a senior, although in 2020, she also raced in Formula 1600 at Interlagos. She began racing karts seriously in 2017.

Graziela (Zizi) Paioli - Brazilian driver who has raced in two different one-make championships. In 2007 and 2008, she had part-seasons in the Brazilian Clio Cup. In 2008, she finished tenth at Santa Cruz, her first Clio Cup top ten, and was 21st in the championship. After some time out, she returned to competition in 2011, in the Mercedes Benz Grand Challenge. Her car was a C250 run by her family team, Paioli Racing, as always. Her best finish was fourth, at Santa Cruz, and she also finished in the top ten on five more occasions. She was eleventh overall. Her father, Marco Paioli, is also a racer, who runs the team with Graziela’s mother. Graziela herself became a mother in early 2013, explaining her absence from the track. 

Paola Traverso - seems to have begun racing in 1996, in Formula Hyundai Femenina. She was one of the leading drivers, and won races. In 1997, she was a race-winner again in the Copa Damas, an all-female one-make series which used the Vauxhall Corsa. She may also have raced in a mixed Corsa one-make series, and won races there. She competed in all three seasons of the Copa Damas, and was a front-runner in all three.

(Image from http://masguau.com/)