Betty Chen

 

Betty Chen (Chen Yinyu) is a Taiwanese driver who races GT cars in Asia and Europe.

In 2019, she competed in the China GT Championship. She drove a BMW M6 in the GT3 class and earned a best finish of fourth at Qingdao, V1 International Circuit and Sepang. Her final championship position was ninth. The V1 track was probably her best circuit; she was fifth in her second race there. Her team-mate for most of the season was Jody Fannin, who acted as her driver coach. She was only 18 years old at the start of the season. 

2019 was only her first year of competition and her first time in a GT3 car. She had only taken part in two previous races before China GT with Fist-Team AAI, driving a GT4-spec car. 

The global coronavirus crisis meant that most motor racing in Asia was suspended in 2020 and part of 2021, so Betty was unable to take up a drive she had planned in the Japanese Super Taikyu championship.

She raced in the 2022 Dubai 24 Hours, driving a Lamborghini Huracan for Leipert Motorsport, finishing 16th. The team was a five-driver multinational effort led by Joel Eriksson of Sweden, who had previously raced with her at AAI. 

At about the same time, she was announced as a driver for Century Motorsport in the British GT championship. The car, shared with Angus Fender, was a BMW M4 GT3. The pair finished thirteenth in the second race of the season at Oulton Park after missing the first. The team did not complete the season due to the departure of one of its other drivers and Betty only did five of the nine rounds.

She is the first Taiwanese driver to race in British GTs. Her father Jun San Chen has also raced in Asia for many years. Betty’s adventures in motorsport started young; she first tested a Formula Master single-seater in 2016, when she was 15.

Image copyright Paul Foster)

Mia Flewitt

Mia Flewitt is the 2018 and 2019 Pure McLaren GT4 champion.

She completely dominated the first season of the one-make series, winning five races outright and only finishing off the podium once out of twelve races. 

In 2019, she retook her place at the head of the Pure McLaren leaderboard. She won the first two races at Spa, then made up for a DNF in the first Hungaroring race by winning the other two.

In June that year, Mia joined up with Balfe Motorsport for the Silverstone 600 rounds of the British GT championship. Her car was a McLaren 570S, shared with Stewart Proctor. The pair were 29th overall after experiencing car problems. She returned to the team for the Donington and Spa rounds, finishing 15th and 18th.

Mia is from Sweden and got a late start to her competition career, which only really began when she married McLaren Automotive CEO Mike Flewitt. Her background is in engineering; she worked for Volvo initially and ended up at Tom Walkinshaw Racing in the 1990s. The last major project she worked on for them was the V6 Renault Clio.

She and Mike raced a Lotus Elan together in historic events for several years before Mia tried her hand at modern motorsport in the 2018 Mini Challenge, making a guest appearance at Donington. She still races the Elan, one of three owned by Mike.

Wanting more international experience, Mia entered the Gulf 12 Hours at the end of 2019, with the Balfe team. She and her team-mates were second in the GT4 class, 19th overall.

She shared the McLaren with her erstwhile driver coach Euan Hankey for the 2020 British GT championship, with Balfe again. They won the GT4 class in the second round at Oulton Park and were second in the fourth round, also at Oulton, helping them to seventh in the GT4 championship. They also won the GT4 Pro-Am title, which was only contested by one other team.

Mia raced again in British GTs for the Rocket RJN team, driving a GT3-spec McLaren 720S this time. It was a part-season, with a best result of seventh at Donington. She shared the car with Euan Hankey again. A corresponding part-season in the Pure McLaren championship gave her two wins and a fourth place at Portimao. Her level of performance could have led to another win, had she chosen to contest the whole season.

Mia and Euan Hankey were twelfth in the 2022 British GT championship, driving for the 7TSIX team. Their best finish was a fourth place in the GT3 class at Donington and they were also fifth at Brands Hatch.

(Image copyright racecar.com)

Flick Haigh

Flick in 2016

Flick Haigh races GT cars in endurance events, in the UK and abroad.

She got into motorsport through a track day in 2005, when she was 21, and through her father’s historic rallying. For a long time at the beginning of her career, she was a Caterham racer. She started in the Caterham Classic Graduates series in 2007, and was seventh in her first year. In her second, she was fifth, and she won the series in 2009.

Between 2010 and 2013, she raced in the Caterham R300 Superlight Championship, finishing seventh overall in 2010 and 2012.

During this time, she also raced a Ginetta in some Britcar endurance races, as well as in the Dubai 24 Hours in 2013. She was 27th in a Ginetta G50, run by Optimum Motorsport and shared with Lee Mowle, Joe Osborne and Ryan Ratcliffe. Ratcliffe was her partner for Britcar; they won their class in a night race at Donington in 2012, despite Flick never having raced in the dark before, and almost running out of fuel at the end.

In 2014, she partnered Sarah Reader in the VdeV Endurance Challenge in France. The car was a Juno prototype. Their best overall result was ninth, at Paul Ricard, although they scored well in class. They were 39th overall, as their other results were not as good as their Paul Ricard efforts.

In 2015, Flick took part in her second Dubai 24 Hours, driving an Aston Martin Vantage for Speedworks Motorsport. She was third in the SP3 class, 29th overall, driving with Paul O’Neill, Devon Modell and Paul Gilbert. Driving a Ginetta G55 for Optimum Motorsport, she won her class in the Mugello 12 Hours, and was 16th overall, as part of a three-driver team. A similar team was 34th in the Barcelona 24 Hours.

Back at home, she made guest appearances in the GTA Cup and the Ginetta GT4 Supercup, driving the G55. In April, she entered the Donington rounds of the GTA Cup, and won the GTA class in her first race. She started the second from pole, but was seventh overall, and then did not finish. Later, in August, she tackled the Snetterton Ginetta Supercup meeting, and left with a tenth and two sixth places.

She did several international endurance races in 2016, starting with the Dubai 24 Hours, driving an Audi R8 LMS for Optimum Motorsport. She and her four team-mates were fourth overall. They were tenth in the Mugello round of the 24-Hour Series, but did not finish at Paul Ricard. A return to the track for the Michelin GT3 Le Mans Cup in August gave them a fourth place. In December, they were an impressive second in the Gulf 12 Hours, held at Yas Marina. This was a positive end to a strong year.

She stuck with the same car and team for 2017. Her first race was the Dubai 24 Hours, in which she was fourth in class. The other drivers were her regular team-mates Joe Osborne and Ryan Ratcliffe, plus Christopher Haase of Germany.

She was also fifth in the GT3 class of the Michelin Le Mans Cup, with three podium finishes from five races. She and Joe Osborne were third at Paul Ricard and the Red Bull Ring, and second in the season opener at Monza. They also entered the the two Le Mans races, and were ninth and fourteenth.

Her plans are more home-based in 2018. She is contesting the British GT Championship in an Aston Martin Vantage. The seat is a continuation of her long-running association with Optimum Motorsport and her team-mate is Jonny Adam.

Her first race in British GTs made history: at Oulton Park, Flick became the first female driver to win a British GT race, having started from pole. This was not only a first for a woman, but a first win for Flick the first time out in the car. She and Jonny Adam won again at Donington at the end of the year and were crowned British GT3 champions. This was the first time a female driver had won the top-level GT3 class and a remarkable achievement for a series debutant.

Flick had hoped to compete in Europe in 2019, but she was unable to raise sufficient sponsorship funds for the whole season, despite her 2018 triumph. She made guest appearances at the Le Mans rounds of the Michelin Le Mans Cup in an Aston Martin Vantage GT3, finishing eleventh and sixth with Tom Gamble.

At the end of the year she took part in the GT Cup section of the inaugural FIA Motorsport Games at Vallelunga, which pitted national teams against one another. She drove a Ferrari 488 with Chris Froggatt. They finished fourth in their first race but car problems intervened after that, dropping them to tenth and fifteenth places.

She was meant to join the Iron Dames team for the 2021 Italian GT championship, but was unable to take up her seat. After a year on the sidelines, she made a three-race return to British GTs in 2022, driving a Mercedes-AMG for 2Seas. Her best finish was a third place in the GT3 class at Snetterton.

(Image copyright AdrenalMedia.com)

Abbie Eaton

Abbie Eaton is a British sportscar racer, who was a leading driver in the 2016 British GT championship.

Abbie started competing in the SaxMax junior championship in 2007, after four years of competitive karting. She was fourteenth overall in her first year, with a best finish of fourth overall.

She improved dramatically in 2008, to take fourth in the championship this time. Apart from two DNFs, she was never out of the top ten all season, although a win eluded her. Her best finish was second at Pembrey, and her lowest was sixth at Donington. She earned three podiums and two fastest laps.

In 2009, upon turning 17, she moved up to the Dunlop Sportmaxx Championship for production cars, driving a Vauxhall Corsa. She won her class fifteen times, and was crowned Class B champion at the end of the year.

Despite winning a championship in her first full season as a senior driver, she could not find enough sponsorship to race in 2010, other than a guest appearance in the Max5 championship for Mazda MX-5s. She was third.

In what would become a pattern for the next few seasons, she entered the Max5 championship in 2011, running for a part-season. Her best finish was fourth.

She returned to the series in 2012, but again, only managed a part-season, due to a major sponsor pulling out and an engine failure. Her best finish was fifth.

She did another part-season of four races in 2013, scoring a win at Oulton Park, and three other podiums.

In 2014, she made a full return to motorsport, in the MX-5 Supercup. Driving for the AE Racing  team, she fought off Tom Roche and won the title by one point, after five outright wins.

Most of 2015 was spent racing a BMW M3 for Geoff Steel Racing in the GT Cup, a step up in power for her. She won one race, at Silverstone, and achieved five more top-three finishes: three seconds and two thirds. This left her fifth in the championship. She and her team-mate, Michael Symons, were never out of the top five, apart from two DNFs.

She raced a Maserati GranTurismo MC in the 2016 British GT Championship, driving for Ebor GT Motorsport. Her team-mate was Marcus Hoggarth. She was a creditable fourth overall, and second in the Pro-Am class, with one second place at Oulton Park, and two more fourth places, at Spa and Donington. Ebor was a new team for 2016, and they had their difficulties, although Abbie was able to perform well and finish eight out of nine races.

Despite her solid results in 2016, Abbie was not retained by the team for 2017. She impressed in a one-off drive in the Blancpain Endurance Series, winning the Am class in an AF Corse Ferrari 488, but this did not lead to any more outings. Later in the year, she had a guest drive in the British GT Championship in a Ginetta G55, coming ninth in the GT4 class.

Late in 2017, Abbie was named as one of the resident test drivers for Amazon TV's The Grand Tour. She has appeared on screen several times and remained part of the team for 2018 and 2019.

2018 did not feature a regular drive, but she did make some impressive appearances in the JET Super Touring Trophy, driving a Holden Commodore which was one of the oldest and heaviest cars on the grid.

Australia was the new focus of her racing aspirations in 2019. She signed up for the Super2 Series, the junior championship for V8 Supercars, driving a Holden Commodore for Matt Stone Racing. It was not the easiest of debuts at Adelaide; she finished two of her three races with a best result of fourteenth. No more funding for extra races was forthcoming and she had to return to the UK.

In November, she was offered the VIP car for the Saudi rounds of the Jaguar I-Pace eTrophy, supporting the first Formula E race of the season. She was fourth both times. In August 2020, she made another guest appearance at the Berlin circuit, finishing seventh, sixth and fifth.

Shortly after her first Jaguar race, she was announced as a driver for the 2020 W Series, despite having been sceptical of the concept previously. Her debut single-seater season was not spectacular, with sixth places at Zandvoort and Red Bull Ring the highlights. The low point was a serious multi-car crash at Circuit of the Americas, which left her with broken vertebrae in her neck. She missed the last round.

Before her accident, she had also been racing in the Praga class of Britcar, sharing a Praga R1T with Gordie Mutch and Ashley Dibden. They won one race at Silverstone and were second at Oulton later in the year.

She recovered in time for the start of the 2022 W Series season, having been invited back as the last regular driver. She was thirteenth in the championship after an uneven year, with a seventh place in her home race at Silverstone being her best result.

There was no W Series in 2023, as the championship had folded due to financial issues, so Abbie went back to sportscars. She raced in the European Lamborghini Super Trofeo, sharing with Daan Pijl in a car run by Rebelleo by Bonaldi Motorsport. They were seventh overall, finishing third once at the Nurburgring. Driving a different Lamborghini Huracan with John Seale, she entered the Donington round of the British GT championship, but did not finish.

Still in one-make motorsport, she raced in the Porsche Carrera Cup in the UK in 2024. This proved a good move, as she won two races, including one from pole at Silverstone. This was a first for a female driver in this championship. She was fifth in the final standings. In addition to this, she drove a Plymouth Barracuda in the St Marys Trophy at the Goodwood Revival.

In future, she has expressed interest in both Le Mans, and the Australian V8 Supercar series.

(Image from http://www.racing.gt/2016/02/my-racing-bucketlist-abbie-eaton/)

Jade Edwards

Jade with the Mini in 2016

Jade Edwards is a British sportscar racer. She is the younger sister of Chloe Edwards, and the pair sometimes race together.

She began racing in 2006, in the Ginetta Junior championship, as a fifteen-year-old. Chloe, who is three years older, had raced in the series the year before, so Jade used her old car. Her best result appears to have been fourth, at the Ginetta Junior Festival in 2006, and she was ninth in the championship.

Later, in 2008, after she had graduated from junior competition, she shared Chloe’s MG ZR for the SportMaxx Cup. The pair occasionally drove together.

They competed against each other in the 2010 Max5 Championship, driving different Mazda MX-5s this time.  

In 2011, Jade returned to Max5 with the family team. She had to sit out the mid-part of the season due to crashing her car at Rockingham, and the engine then blowing up at Donington. However, she managed some top-ten finishes in class.

In 2012, she was 37th in the championship, with a best finish of two third places, plus nine more top tens. She did not run a whole season.

In 2014, she made a comeback after a quiet period, driving a Ginetta G55 in the British GT4 championship. She took part in three races, finishing two of them, with a best finish of ninth, at Spa. She was also tenth at Snetterton, with co-driver Matthew Draper. Later in the season, she made a guest appearance in the Aston Martin GT4 Challenge at Donington, this time with Chloe. They won their race, which was a female first for the championship, and probably for the marque. Driving for the Craft-Bamboo team, Jade also took part in three other races.

In October, she did her first international endurance race, the 12 Hours of Hungary. She was driving a Volkswagen Golf with Tom Onslow-Cole and Paul White. They were seventh overall, and won their class.

Most of 2015 was spent in the British GT4 Championship, driving the Aston Martin for the Stratton/UltraTek team. Her best finishes were a pair of tenth places, at Rockingham and Snetterton, and she was 25th overall. Chloe was among her team-mates, alongside George White and David Tinn. Late in the season, she drove a MARC Focus in the Catalunya 24 Hours, as part of an international driving squad, but did not finish. This was a guest spot with an Australian team. They had been leading their class until the 22nd hour.

In 2016, she took a step back from racing, and spent some time as a driving instructor to Johnny Vegas on ITV's motorsport game show, Drive. She made a guest appearance in the Knockhill round of the Celticspeed Mini Cooper Cup, in support of a hospice charity, and at the end of the season, contested the 25 Hours of Spa Fun Cup race. She and her team-mates were second.

Her last event of the year was the Race of Remembrance at Anglesey, in which she drove a VW Golf with Tom Onslow-Cole, Chris Hoy and Jon-Allan Butterworth. This was her third run in the charity race, in aid of injured service personnel. She won the inaugural one in 2014, and finished on the podium in 2015.

In 2017, she raced in the Clio Cup for Ciceley Motorsport. It was a challenging year with a tight budget, which limited her opportunities for testing. She did prove herself capable of getting on the pace with two top-ten finishes: a ninth at Croft mid-season, then an eighth at Silverstone in September. Her final championship position was 16th.

She raced for the MRM team in the 2018 Clio Cup. It was an eventful year, with a few dramatic accidents as well as four top-ten finishes. She rolled heavily at Oulton Park and a crowdfunding campaign was needed to get her back in the championship. She also had her share of being collected by other peoples' accidents. In addition to this, she was stung by a sponsorship deal that turned out to be a scam mid-season. Again, her supporters rallied round to help her. She was 14th in the championship.

Her third season as a Clio driver was with Team Hard. She was seventh in the championship after a more consistent season with slightly fewer funding constraints relating to accident damage. Her best finish was a fourth place at Brands Hatch, the second race of the season.

Although she did not get to race much in 2020 due to the coronavirus crisis, Jade's career got a boost when she became the first female BTCC driver since 2007. Team Power Maxed Racing offered her their Vauxhall Astra for the Silverstone races in September and she was set for a top-20 finish until she was pushed off-track by Andy Neate. As a late entry, her car had to carry considerable ballast and she made up several grid positions before having to settle for 23rd. She was 21st in the second race and then had to retire from the third due to damage received earlier.

Her 2020 guest spots led to a full-time seat in the 2021 BTCC, driving a Honda Civic Type R for the BTC team, supported by PHSC. It was another tough year in a legendarily combative championship, but there were some high points. From 30 races, she scored seven top-twenty finishes, the best of these being a 15th spot at Snetterton, earning her first BTCC points. She had her share of scrapes and had to retire five times, but she continued to push and develop and was 26th overall in the championship.

Her second season with BTC featured more top-twenty finishes and fewer DNFs. She managed another 15th place, this time at Brands Hatch, and was 27th in the championship.

For her third BTCC campaign, she started the year with Team Hard, driving a SEAT Cupra. The car was unreliable and Jade couldn't start twice, incurring penalties. For the mid-season Silverstone races, she moved to the One Motorsport/Startline Racing team, in a Honda Civic. This was a much more reliable and she finished in the top twenty seven times, including two 16th places. She was 31st in the championship.

When not actively racing, Jade works within the motorsport industry, as a driving instructor, PR person and even as a tyre technician. In 2014, she was one of the safety car drivers for the BTCC. She is a third-generation racer, the daughter of Jim Edwards Jr.

(Image copyright Chloe Edwards)

Jamie Chadwick

Jamie (right), Ross Gunn and the Beechdean Aston Martin

Jamie Chadwick graduated to senior motorsport in 2015. She is a product of the Ginetta sportscar racing development ladder, one of a few female racers to utilise this route into the sport.

Jamie began karting at the age of twelve. Taking advantage of the opportunities in the UK for juniors to race on full circuits, she switched to cars after only two years.

She was the winner of the Ginetta Junior Scholarship in 2012, at fourteen, beating around sixty other young drivers to the prize of a fully-funded season in the Ginetta Junior Championship in 2013.

She took up her prize-drive in Ginetta Juniors in 2013. Between her scholarship win and the start of the season proper, she took part in the three-round Winter Series at Rockingham, finishing seventh. She was the highest-scoring first-timer.

During her 2013 season, her best result was fifth, at Knockhill.  She was usually inside the top ten, averaging seventh place, but she also had some disappointments; she racked up three DNFs that year. She was tenth overall. Her brother, Ollie, also raced in the series against her.

She had a second full season of Ginetta Juniors in 2014. Her year started well, with a podium: a third place at Brands Hatch. She racked up four more podium finishes, all thirds, and was eighth in the championship. 

Following her seventeenth birthday in 2015, it was time to move on. Jamie jumped straight into the British GT Championship, in the GT4 class. Her car was no less than an Aston Martin Vantage, run by the Beechdean-AMR team. With her partner, Ross Gunn, she got off to another good start, with two second places at Oulton Park, followed by two wins, at Rockingham and Silverstone, a second place at Spa and a third at Brands Hatch. The only real disappointment of the season was a disqualification at Oulton, following their second place on the track. The exclusion was for causing an accident, although it was not deliberate. At the end of the season, this did not count for much; Jamie and Ross were British GT4 champions. Jamie is the youngest ever winner of the title.

2015 had one more adventure for Jamie. The Beechdean team entered the Vantage in the Britcar 24 Hours at Silverstone, driven by Jamie, plus Jonny Adam, Harry Whale and Andrew Howard. They won the race from pole. This was the first win for a female driver in this event.

In recognition of her achievements, the BRDC nominated Jamie as one of their Rising Stars in 2015, along with the support that the award entails. The BWRDC has put her forward for their Gold Star award, for outstanding female drivers. She is also part of the Evolution Academy for young drivers, run by Aston Martin and Prodrive.

She remained a Team AMR driver for 2016, and raced the Aston Martin again in the British GT Championship. Her best finish was fourth, at Brands Hatch. As she missed a couple of races mid-season, she was thirteenth in the championship. Among her team-mates was Great British Bake Off's Paul Hollywood.

Her career changed direction in 2017 when she entered the BRDC Formula 3 Championship. This was her first time in a single-seater. Her first meeting in the Double R-run car was at Oulton, and did not quite go to plan. She was eleventh in her first race, then got disqualified from the second and did not finish the third. The second round at Rockingham went better; she was eighth in the first race, which translated to pole position in the reverse-grid second race. She was third, her best finish of the year. At the end of the season, she was ninth, after being a regular top-ten finisher, but not quite on the winning pace yet.

After the season ended, she took part in her first Formula Ford races at the Walter Hayes Trophy. She was third in her heat at the Silverstone event, following a battle with Michael Mallock, but car trouble intervened and she had to fight for a twelfth place in the final.

Her second season in BRDC F3 was somewhat of a mixed bag of results, but in August she became the first woman to win a British F3 race, following her victory at Brands Hatch.

Earlier in the year, she returned to her Aston Martin roots with a run in the Nurburgring 24 Hours. She was fifth in the SP8 class, driving a Vantage with Jonny Adam, Alex Lynn and Peter Cate. They were classified 63rd overall after a difficult race.

The winter season was an opportunity to rack up more single-seater wins; she dominated the Bahrain round of the MRF Challenge in the Formula 2000 category, winning twice.

At the start of 2019, she was awarded the Wakefield Trophy for the most meritorious performance by a woman in motorsport. At around the same time, she was announced as one of the first 20 drivers for the all-female W Series. Jamie won the first W Series title in the summer, with two race wins.

Mixed-sex Formula 3 was on the cards too. She did a couple of rounds of the Asian F3 series for Seven GP at Sepang, picking up a best finish of fifth. She signed up for the 2019-20 winter series with Absolute Racing and earned a two second and two third places at Sepang and Chang. Her results improved towards the end of her campaign when team-mate Devlin DeFrancesco went home due to health concerns, leaving Jamie as number one driver. She was fourth in the championship.

Away from single-seaters, she remained part of the Aston Martin Academy. Her activities with the team centred on the VLN: one championship race and the Nurburgring 24 Hours, where she won her class with Alex Brundle and Peter Cate.

She also did some historic racing, finishing fourth in class in a Jaguar E-Type at the Spa Six Hours. At the end of the year, she raced a Formula Ford in the Walter Hayes Trophy at Silverstone. She qualified for the grand final but was taken out by another driver.

W Series was cancelled in 2020 due to the coronavirus crisis, so she could not defend her title. A move up to FIA F3 was rumoured, but she chose the Formula Regional European Championship, signing with the elite Prema Powerteam. Her season started well with a third place at Misano, but she was not quite able to reach those heights again and struggled with the car. She was ninth in the championship. 

In 2021, she signed up to contest the first Extreme E championship, racing an electric SUV on tracks in remote locations for the Veloce team. Her team-mate was Stephane Sarrazin, although he was replaced by Lance Woolridge for the final round in Dorset, England. Her own season startly inauspiciously as her car died in qualifying, but she did fight back with a second place in the Ocean ePrix, held in Senegal.

She missed two of the Extreme E events due to W Series commitments. Her second W title was only assured late in the season, as she was challenged strongly by her fellow Brit, Alice Powell. Her win tally was four to Alice's three, giving her the edge.

Her plans at the start of 2022 were unclear. She was replaced in the Veloce Extreme E team by Christine Giampaoli Zonca and was considered unlikely to be racing in W Series again. Apparently, an FIA F3 seat was discussed, but she declined to take it was it was not with a really competitive team.

It was back to W Series instead, although her return started raising questions about W's mission and its inability to move drivers on to higher levels of racing. Jamie won the championship again fairly easily, driving for Jenner Racing, winning five of the seven races in the series' shortened season. 

In order to save her professional career, it was obvious that she had to move on. At the end of 2022, she was announced as a driver for the Andretti Autosport team in the IndyNXT championship (formerly Indy Lights) for 2023. The option of another W title defence was also off the table because the championship folded at the beginning of 2023. 

Her IndyNXT season began the hard way with spins, contact and thirteenth place at the St Petersburg street circuit. By the time the Mid-Ohio round came around in July, she broke into the top ten for the first time. Her best finish of the season was a sixth place at Portland and she was twelfth in the championship. Her relatively high profile meant that she came in for considerable criticism, but she was retained by Andretti for 2024.

Her second-year perofrmance in IndyNXT was a real improvement. It began slowly with 20th places at St Petersburg and Barber Motorsports Park, but then she leapt up to the podium at Indianapolis, finishing third. A couple more disappointing finishes followed, but then she scored her first win at Road America, leading the most laps in the process.

Although she did not manage any more wins or podiums, a run of top-tens and a late fifth place at Milwaukee took her to championship seventh.

This was her last season in IndyNXT: she signed up with IDEC Sport to contest the European Le Mans Series in 2025. She will be racing in the LMP2 class. Her team-mates are F1 driver Logan Sargeant and Mathys Jaubert. 

(Image from http://www.prodrive.com/)

Women in National Sportscar Racing: the UK

Chloe and Jade Edwards

This post has been split off from Women in National Sportscar Racing, with some additions. Rebecca Jackson, Fiona James, Jade Paveley and Flick Haigh now have their own posts.

Judy Andreason (Day; also Vickery) - raced a variety of cars between 1967 and 1983. She was best known for her exploits in a Marcos 1500 with the numberplate “HOT1E”, which she raced in sportscar events at Castle Combe and Brands Hatch. She was an early exponent of historic racing, and owned two 1930s MGs, a Magnette and an NA. As well as circuit racing, she competed in trials and rallies. She was an enthusiastic early member of the British Women Racing Drivers’ Club, and unfortunately, injured her neck during an all-female BWRDC Demolition Derby. This forced her retirement in 1983. She died in 2017, aged 75.

Nicola Bernans – raced in the VdeV series in 2008 and 2009. She was driving a Juno in the Modern Endurance category, and made guest appearances both years. In 2008, this was at Magny-Cours, and she had a best finish of tenth in a sprint race. The year before, she had raced a Radical in Britsports, with her brother, Richard Bernans. The brother-sister duo also raced as Counter Solutions Racing in the Fun Cup in 2008. Nicola does not appear to have raced in recent years. 

Amanda Black – began racing through the Caterham Academy. She did her first couple of events in 2005 and 2006, but only really got her career started with the Academy, in 2011. That year, she scored her first race win, in the Graduates series. After more wins in 2012, she won the Graduate Sigma Championship, winning twelve of her sixteen races. In 2014 and 2015, she moved over to a Ginetta GT4 car. She raced in the MSA Endurance Series and Britcar, but did not have the funding for full championships. Despite this setback, she was a quick driver, with at least one second place in 2015. In 2016, she raced the Ginetta in the GT Cup championship, with Ian Anderson. They were sixth overall in the GTA standings. She switched to a Caterham for the 2017 season, and was eighth in the Sigma Graduates championship, following a part-season. She finished on the podium in all three of her races.

Jean Bloxam - mainly raced Aston Martins in Britain, in the 1950s. Beginning in 1952, she drove DB2 and DB3 models, mainly in National-level races at Silverstone and Goodwood. She was very successful at this level, with her first wins coming in 1956: a Ladies’ Handicap at Goodwood and a Closed Car Handicap at Silverstone. In the latter, she managed to beat Jeff Uren. The Ladies’ win was achieved in a Lotus Mark VIII. Other cars raced by Jean included a Ford Anglia and MG Magnette. Despite her string of strong finishes in National events, she only got to race in one big event, the 1967 Nürburgring 1000km. She and Patsy Burt drove an MGA, but had to retire with mechanical problems. Jean retired in 1961, after the death of her husband, Roy, at Goodwood. She died in 2016.

Angela Brown – raced in the early to mid-1950s. She almost always drove Aston Martin cars, which is unsurprising, given that her father was David Brown. Her best year was 1954; at a Silverstone meeting in July, she won a relay handicap with Reg Parnell, and was second in two other handicap races. Her car was a DB2. In 1955, she drove a DB3 and a DB2/4 around the UK, winning one Production Touring Car race at Castle Combe. This year, she drove a HWM-Jaguar belonging to George Abecassis in the Brighton Speed Trials, finishing well in the Ladies' class. She is also described as racing a Morris Minor at some point. Following her marriage to George Abecassis, she wound down her racing. Later, she owned racehorses. She died in 2000.

Vicki Butler-Henderson - better-known as a UK TV presenter and journalist, but raced in a number of saloon and sportscar series when she was younger. She did a full season in the Pentel Ginetta series in 2004. In 2004 she and Matthew Marsh also won a round of the Grand Prix-supporting Maserati Corse championship. Their car was a Coupe Cambiocorse. As well as this, she has driven and navigated in rallies, usually as part of her TV work. She has navigated for Louise Goodman and driven a Peugeot 206 in a British Championship round. Tiff Needell was her co-driver. In 2017, she came out of retirement to race in the Mini Challenge at Snetterton.

Brenda Dickinson – raced sportscars in the UK. She began early, at the age of seventeen. In 1961, she drove a Lola MkI, in which she won at least one race. That year, she was part of the Fury Team for the Silverstone 6 Hour Relay, although the result has been lost. She was 27 that year, and had been racing for some time. Her other cars, owned with her husband, Peter, included an Aston Martin, which she described as her favourite. She also took part in rallies, autocross and trials.

Valerie Diederichs - raced a Caterham in the UK between 2002 and 2004, as part of the Caterham Graduates programme. She moved up to Mega-Graduates in 2004 and won two "Best Improver" awards for advancing on her grid position, although she did not manage to get on to the podium. As well as Caterham Academy events, she also did some club racing. Until 2013, she was an aerodynamicist for the Mercedes Grand Prix team.

Chloe Edwards (Traves) - began her career in the Playstation 2 Ginetta Junior series in 2005, continuing into 2006. Her finishing record was good. In 2007 and 2008, she did some club saloon racing in an MG ZR, finishing midfield in Class B of the BARC/Dunlop SportMaxx Cup. She was racing with her father, Jim Edwards, a former BTCC driver. In 2010, she raced in the Max5 championship for Mazda MX-5s. She did not race for three years before taking part in the Aston Martin GT4 Challenge in 2014. She won the last round, at Donington, along with her sister. In 2015, she did a part-season in the British GT Championship, racing an Aston Martin Vantage in the GT4 series. She scored two thirteenth places at Oulton Park. 

Sally Erdmann - races a Radical SR1 in the UK, although she is from Germany and lives and works there. 2022 was her first season of senior competition, after some years of karting. She discovered the Radical by accident and took some time to test before embarking on her first race. She was eighth in the 2022 championship and second in the rookie standings. Her best finish was seventh, achieved at Snetterton and Brands Hatch. In 2023, she moved back to Germany and raced an Audi R8 LMS in the GTC championship. She scored at least one third place. After losing a major sponsor, she moved away from Radicals and the UK, racing a Nissan 370Z in the German national endurance series, the NES 500.

Emily Fletcher – raced between 2008 and 2012, usually in a Ginetta. She drove a G20 in the 2008 Havoline Ginetta Championship, and had a best finish of thirteenth, at Mallory Park. She had several DNFs, and was 26^th overall. In 2009, she did some races in the G50 Cup at Brands Hatch, as well as having a better season in the G20 series. She broke into the top ten on three occasions, at Knockhill and Donington, had a perfect finishing record and was thirteenth in the championship. After that, she competed less, and got some unwelcome attention when she temporarily lost her driving license, for speeding. She participated in the Britcar 24 Hours three times, from 2010 to 2012, twice in a Ginetta G50. Her best result came in a Marcos Mantis, in 2011, driving for the Topcats team. She and her three team-mates were eighth.

Tamsin Germain (Chittenden) – did her first car races in 2016, after a long and successful senior career in karting. In 2012, she won the Rotax DD2 Masters race at Genk in Belgium. She was second in both the Euro Open and the Euro Challenge championships that year. In 2014 and 2015, she was second in the BNL Karting Series. In 2016, she is racing a Ginetta G40 in the GRDC championship. Her best result was a seventh place, at Donington, and she was normally in the lower half of the top ten. Her sister is Tiffany Chittenden, and her mother is Micki Vandervell.

Tracy Hathaway - raced in Global GT Lights in the 1990s and early 2000s. She did at least two seasons in 1999 and 2000, picking up at least some top-five finishes. Her results are not readily available. Previously, she was involved in rallycross, in the Minicross class. She is the daughter of Graham Hathaway, the creator of the Global series. Her sister Jo also raced in the championship.

Michelle Hayward - a leading driver in the British Clubmans scene. She won the Clubmans Sports Prototype championship in 2018 and was named Britain’s no. 1 amateur driver as a result. She has been racing her Mallock in Clubmans since 2014, when she was second in the Sports 1600 class, with two wins. She did some races in 2020 after some time off, then some more guest appearances in 2021, including a three class wins. She returned to the BARC series in 2022 and was once again near the front. In 2023, she moved up to the CSP1 class and did most of the season, winning one race at Donington. In 2024, she raced a Phantom in Clubmans, winning races at Donington and Brands Hatch. Before that, she raced Caterhams and a Fun Cup VW Beetle, as well as karts. She first raced cars during the run-up to the cancelled 2006 Formula Woman championship.

Kathleen Howard - raced in club and national events in the UK in 1959 and 1960. Her car was a Climax-engined Lotus Eleven. Her most frequent track visited was Goodwood and she was third and second in handicaps there in 1959. She also ran well at Mallory, picking up a second place there in 1960. Occasionally, she raced with her husband, David Howard.

Trish Hunter - races a Clubmans sports prototype in the UK. Her car is a Mallock Mk16 which she races in Classic events, either with the BARC or the HSCC. Her career began in about 2010 and she initially shared her car with husband Brian, although they now race their own cars in separate classes. She returned to the track in 2021 with the HSCC after missing most of 2020, having damaged her car at Croft. Her adventures continued in 2022 and 2023. She has done particularly well in the BARC Clubmans Classic class, finishing third in 2014 and second in 2016.

Jodie Kidd - raced in the Maserati Trofeo in 2004 and won a round at Bologna with Fabio Babini. Since then, she has taken part in several “Gumball”-style road rally events, but no more actual races. She is better known as a fashion model.

Katrin Kristensen - Danish driver who races a Radical, mostly in the UK where she began her career in 2021, in the SR1 Cup. She competed with the Raw Motorsports team in 2022, with a best finish of eighth at Brands Donington. Later in the season, she entered a round of the Gulf Radical Cup at Dubai Autodrome and finished seventh in a sprint race. This was her first entry in the championship. In 2023, she did two races in the British championship.

Caroline Lucas - raced GTs in the UK in the mid to late 1990s. She was second in the 1995 Porsche Cup and entered the British GT championship in 1998 and 1999. In 1998, she and Diane Osborne finished some races in a Porsche 911 RSR run by PK Sport. In the two races they managed to finish, Spa and Silverstone, they were eleventh and thirteenth. In 1999, she and Paul Phillips entered a few races in a similar car. Their best finish was one ninth place, at Donington. Caroline does not appear to have raced since then.

Dorothy (Dot) Masarati - raced sportscars at club level in the UK, normally in a Porsche Carrera. She did at least one season in 1992, including a run in the 750MC Bill Taylor Memorial Race with David Bowden. Later, she admitted that she found racing quite nerve-wracking. Her sons are former British GT racers, Piers and Miles Masarati, and she remained involved with the sport for some time helping them. Her husband Jamie also raced.

Courtney Milnes - races a Mazda in UK club events. She competed in both the BRSCC and 750MC Mazda MX-5 championships since 2015, as well as karting internationally in Spain as a junior. During her time in karting she raced against Carlos Sainz. She is currently a front-runner in the 750MC’s 5 Club MX5 Cup and has a best finish of fourth in 2021. She works as a test engineer in the automotive industry.

Nathalie McGloin – started racing in the Porsche Club championship in 2015. Her car is a Porsche Cayman. She did a second full season of the PCC in 2016, with a best finish of fifth, at Brands Hatch. She was twelfth in the 2017 Class 1 championship, as she only did a part-season. In 2018, she won her first race: the BWRDC Ladies' Handicap at Silverstone. This followed another season in the Porsche Club championship. In 2019, she took her Cayman rallying too, taking oart in two rounds of the Motorsport News Circuit Rally Championship and winning her class once. She was unable to race in 2020, but returned in 2021, competing in the 750MC's Tegiwa Roadsports series. Usually, she shared her car with husband Andrew Bayliss. She did more Roadsports races in 2022 but injured her neck and had to sit out a lot of the season. She attempted to come back for a race at Daytona in 2023 but was unable, so Andrew Bayliss took over. She is planning a comeback in 2024.  Nathalie is the only female racing driver in the UK who uses a wheelchair, as a result of spinal injuries. Her Porsche has hand controls.

Jemma Moore - took her first steps in circuit racing in 2017 when she entered the Brands Hatch rounds of the Junior Saloon Car Championship. In 2018, she started the season proper and took pole for her first race. She finished third. This was her best result of the season and she repeated it at Rockingham, on the way to seventh in the championship. In 2019, she won her first JSCC race at Knockhill. Later in the season, she traded in her junior licence and began competing as a senior, driving a Ginetta G50 in some rounds of the GT4 South European Series with Moh Ritson.They were first and second in class at the Algarve circuit. She entered the Jerez round in 2020 and was second overall, first in class. In 2021, she won the GTC class outright. Jemma is the younger sister of W Series and Britcar racer and former Ginetta Junior racewinner Sarah Moore. She had to step back from racing in 2022 due to illness.

Charlotte Osborn (Gilbert) – raced in British GTs in 2001 in a Promotasport Marcos Mantis, after some races in Marcos one-make series. Her co-driver was Andrew Davies. Their finishing record was patchy to begin with, but they managed a twelfth place at Croft as their best finish. Their reliability improved towards the end of the year. Since then, she has occasionally taken part in Britcar, in a Marcos Mantis Cup or GT4, as part of Topcats Racing, a team she runs with Warren Gilbert. The team has run in the GT Cup since 2019, with Charlotte sharing a Lamborghini Super Trofeo with Charlotte Birch in 2022. They were seventh in the championship. She carried on in the Lamborghini in the 2023 GT Cup, sharing with Gilbert Yates. They won the GTC class. She won the overall GT Cup in 2024, sharing the Lamborghini with Tom Rawlings. 

Diane Osborne - drove a Porsche 911 RSR in the British GT championship with Caroline Lucas in 1998. Their best finish was eleventh, at Spa. Previously, she had been third in class in the 1995 Pirelli Porsche Cup, driving a 944S2, and raced a Porsche 968CS at Castle Combe. She came twelfth in the Porsche Open Trophy. Presumably, she took part in other races in this championship as well. In more recent years, she has raced a MkI Jaguar in historic events, including Masters touring cars and the 2018 Le Mans Classic.  

Sarah Reader – British driver who began her career in Caterhams, coming up through the Caterham Academy ranks. In 2005, she was fifth in the Caterham Eurocup. Since then, she has raced other sportscars, mainly in Europe. Between 2009 and 2014, she raced a Juno prototype in the Speed Euroseries and the VdeV Modern Challenge. She was more successful in the Speed Euroseries, finishing fifth in 2011, after two second and two third places. She earned an additional podium at Paul Ricard, in 2012. In 2014, she raced the Juno in the VdeV Challenge Endurance Proto, with Flick Haigh. She raced in the VW Fun Cup in 2015. 

Louise Richardson - former karter, who began "senior" motorsport by competing in the Ginetta Junior series. She began racing the Ginetta in 2009, and was ninth in the championship that year after a string of late-season top five finshes. In 2010, she returned as a much more competitive driver. She finished third in the 2010 championship, thanks to two wins at Snetterton and Brands Hatch and a series of eleven podium places. 2010 was her last season of junior competiton, as she turned 17. In 2011, she moved into the senior Ginetta Supercup, and was sixth in the championship after three top-three finishes. She was also recommended for a series of awards for young and female drivers. In 2012, she was seventh in the Ginetta G50 Supercup, after four top-ten finishes. Although she only did a part-season in the G50 Supercup in 2013, she certainly made her presence felt, winning four of her five races, and finishing on the podium in all of them. She was fourth overall. In 2014, she changed direction, entering the British Formula Ford championship. She scored many top-ten positions, the best of them being a fourth place, at Rockingham. She was ninth overall. Her second season in the MSA Formula gave her her first podium, a third place at Croft. She was still somewhat inconsistent, but managed six top tens this year. She was sixteenth overall. 

Sian Stafford-Atkinson – races a Locost (Lotus 7 derivative) in the UK. She began racing in earnest as part of the original Formula Woman initiative, although she had done some track days before. She missed out on final selection for the 2005 series, but was one of the competitors for the 2006 championship, racing a Caterham Seven. Since 2009, she has been racing the Locost in the 750MC’s Locost Championship, and she is now one of the leading competitors in her class. In 2014, she was one of 29 female drivers who took part in the BWRDC’s “Race For A Record” ladies’ handicap at Silverstone, the largest ever all-female grid. 

Pippa Tanner-Wood - races Clubmans sports prototypes in the UK, both in the historic and modern championships. She won the CSP3 class of the BARC Clubmans series in 2018, earning several class wins in a Mallock Mk16. It was in this car that she set class lap records at Anglesey and Brands Hatch in 2018 and 2019. She has also raced a Mallock 20B in Classic and contemporary competition, winning her class twice in 2023. In 2021, she switched her focus to Classic F3, still within the HSCC. In 2024, she raced Clubmans again. Her first season of racing was in 2017 and she competes alongside her father, Clive.

Julie Thwaites - competed at club and National level in the UK in the 1980s, with considerable success. She scored her first class win in the Garelli Sportscar Championship in 1982, and later went on to achieve nine more in 1986 and 1987, driving a Davrian in the Kit Car Challenge. She was recognised as Britain’s most successful female circuit driver in 1985 and 1986.

Martina Ward - began circuit racing in 2023, racing a Mazda MX5 in the 750MC's Mazda championship. In her first season, she was 17th in the championship, with her best round being Silverstone and her best result being tenth in the third race there. For this, she was awarded a Driver of the Day award. In 2024, she continued to race the Mazda. She was previously a sim racer, competing for two years before switching to real-life track action.

Geena Mae Watkinson - had her debut season in cars in 2020. She raced a Mazda MX-5 in the Max5 championship. So far, she has performed well in her class, winning a couple of races, although her pace against the rest of the field has been a little lacking. She hopes to race sportscars professionally in the future and wants to take part in the Le Mans 24 Hours.

(Image from http://www.chloejaderacing.com/)