Gaby dela Merced

Gaby dela Merced is a Filipino driver who raced single-seaters in the 2000s, up to Asian Formula 3 level.

She was fourteenth in the 2006 Asian Formula 3 championship, racing in the Promotion class. Her best overall finish was seventh, at Batul in Indonesia. She also ran quite well at Batanga and Zhuhai. One of her rivals was Michele Bumgarner. The two were the highest-scoring Filipino drivers, from five, with Gaby the second highest.

She first raced saloons in 2002, after two seasons in slalom and autocross. Her first championship was the SVI Challenge Cup and she was third in the novice class. Her car is not recorded, but her car for the same series in 2003 was a Honda Civic. She won at least two races at Subic International Raceway and was second in the championship, after duelling with her team-mate Mikko David at the front all year. 

She also competed in the BRC (Batanga Racing Circuit) Production Touring Car Championship, finishing third. 

Later, she raced in a Formula Toyota championship in the Philippines, which used a Japanese-spec single-seater with slicks and wings. She was runner-up in Formula Toyota in 2004 and also competed in half of the Asian Formula BMW championship, driving for Team Tec Pilipinas. Her best finish was eleventh, at Beijing. She had been awarded a scholarship drive for Formula BMW and this was her prize drive. The scholarship was decided via a shootout at Johor in Malaysia, and this was the first time she had driven a single-seater.

Post-Formula 3, she attempted to launch her career in America, like her compatriot Michele Bumgarner would manage the year after. However, she could not find a seat anywhere with the money she had.

Between 2006 and 2009, she does not appear to have raced much, and concentrated on her TV career, which included a stint on Filipino Big Brother. She made her comeback, racing in endurance events in the USA. One of these races was the 2008 25 Hours of Thunderhill, where she shared a BMW M3 with Robbie Montinola and Angelo Barretto. The all-Filipino team was twelfth overall and sixth in class. Earlier in the year, she made a guest appearance in the PTC at Subic.

She had to stop racing in 2010 after a knee injury. This was later found to be due to an inflammatory condition which needed surgery. This limited her participation for quite some time. For about five years in total, she had to stop doing all sports.

What also did not help was Gaby's involvement in a so-called Filipino racing team designed to get Filipino drivers into NASCAR. This 2013 plan turned out to involve no racing at all; a supposed multinational race at Charlotte was reduced to a driving experience day more commonly sold to complete novices. Gaby was sanguine about her experiences, claiming that "sh** happens".

Her next adventure was the Transasia TA2 championship in 2014, based on the Trans Am formula in America. Her car was a 450bhp Ford stock car and she raced across Asia for a Korean team. She made a few guest appearances in the series after that.

After another long hiatus, she returned to Asian motorsport for the Giti Formula V1 Race Challenge in 2019. This is a sportscar championship using the same Vita prototype as the all-female Kyojo Cup in Japan. She also guested in the Thailand Super Series round at Sepang, sharing a TA2 Ford Mustang with Australian Jaylyn Robotham. They were 16th in one race. 

Since then, she has done some drifting, and more media work, including some acting and TV hosting. Her last motorsport outings were the MSCC Mazda Cup in the Philippines in 2024.

She also competes in flag football, joining the Philippines womens' team in 2023. 

(Image copyright Gaby dela Merced)

Natasha Seatter

Natasha wins in 2011

Natasha is a well-travelled Malaysian driver, active since 2009, with race wins in different series, in different countries, to her name. She is half-American and was born in Malaysia.

Following four years of karting, she began her senior career by winning all four races of the Petronas Formula Xperience rookie driver competition, in a Formula BMW. This series was one of the supports for the Merdeka Millennium Endurance race, and therefore a big stage on which to perform.

This was followed by a year in Asian Formula BMW in 2010. Now, Natasha was competing against drivers from all over Asia and beyond, including future Formula One drivers, Daniil Kvyat and Carlos Sainz Jr, many of which were far more experienced than her. She managed a best finish of tenth, at Guangdong, and was 20^th in the championship.

In 2011, she continued in Formula BMW in Asia, now rebranded as the JK Racing Asia Series. She improved her best finish to fifth, in Singapore, and was a regular fixture in the top ten. Her final position was tenth.

During the winter season between 2011 and 2012, she travelled to the United Arab Emirates to contest the Formula Gulf 1000 series, held in Dubai and Abu Dhabi. Natasha was on the pace straight away, and was second in her first race, at Dubai. Later in the season, in February, she won her first race, again at the Dubai circuit. She also achieved another second place, and three thirds. Unfortunately, she missed the first two rounds, and as a result, does not seem to have been classified.

In between, she managed two rounds of Formula Pilota China, in Mongolia, gaining two third places, plus another third in a ladies’ VW Polo Cup race in India, and seventh in a mixed VW Cup race. Back at home, she drove a VW Scirocco in the Merdeka Millennium endurance race, and was 19^th, driving as part of the Scirocco team with Angus Kirkwood and Noel Edward Becker.

During the 2012-13 winter season, she competed in fourteen rounds of Formula Gulf, and walked away with seven wins, plus two second places. She was the runaway winner of the championship.

She drove in two rounds of the 2013 Asian Porsche Carrera Cup, a first for a female driver. These races yielded a thirteenth and 17^th place, at Shanghai.

For most of 2013, she raced in the Malaysian Super Series, in a Radical SR8. For the endurance part of the championship, she was joined by her father, Stewart Seatter, who also races in the Asia Pacific region. They were second in the second round, at Sepang. Natasha was second in the championship, after a battle with Angus Kirkwood, her former team-mate. She scored four podium finishes.

Late in the season, she rejoined Formula Gulf for its two Dubai races, and won both of them.

In 2014, she entered the South Korean rounds of the GT Asia championship, in an Aston Martin Vantage. She was eighth and ninth at the Jeollanamdo circuit, driving for the Craft Bamboo team with Tacksung Kim. Her first race earned her a “Best Performing Driver” award, for climbing to seventh from eleventh place, then fighting back to eighth, following a safety car period and a drive-through penalty.

Unfortunately, Natasha did not race for the rest of the year. Her plans for 2015 were unclear, but she did express an interest in contesting the Australian V8 Supercar series in the future. Continuing recovery from an injury kept her out of competition in 2015 and she retired for seven years.

She was persuaded back by the BHP Petrol Racing Team, who initially got her to race for them in a six-hour kart enduro. This led to a drive in the first two rounds of the Malaysian Touring Car championship, in which she finished second and third. She also partnered Nurul Husna Nasharuddin and Muizuddin Musyaffa for the Sepang 1000km, driving a Honda City. They were 29th overall.

Natasha and Nurul planned to race together in 2022, although this does not seem to have happened. As of 2025, Natasha manages the Janes Racing Team in Malaysia, and has been urging Malaysia's drivers and engineers to return and support their domestic motorsport scene.

(Image copyright CircuitProDigital) 

Female Single-Seater Drivers Around the World: Africa

Tasmin Pepper

The African continent has produced a few female drivers, the most famous being Desiré Wilson. Brittany Vorster now has her own profile. This page will hopefully expand in future. Drivers in other types of racing in Africa can be found here. 

Hannah Lee Daniel - South African driver from a Durban motorsport family. She started karting in 2022 and combined senior karting with a debut season in the MSA4 championship in 2025. Her final championship position was 16th, having not quite managed a top-eight position needed for points. She does not appear to have re-entered the series in 2026.

Tannith Gardner - races karts and cars in South Africa. In 2007, she substituted for Tasmin Pepper in the SA Formula Ford championship at Zwartkops, when Tasmin was on international karting duty. Her final championship position that year was thirteenth. In 2011, she raced in the SA Production Car championship, driving a Subaru WRX STi. She scored at least two eighth places that year at Port Elizabeth, before contact with another driver sent her car rolling off the track. She was unhurt. Early in her career, she won a gearbox karting title outright.

Anastasia Gerasis - races in the MSA4 F4 series in South Africa. Her first season was 2025, when she was 16. She was fourtheenth in the championship, scoring three eighth places. A second season in MSA4 followed in 2026. Before that, she had been active in karting for a couple of years.

Vicki Kemp - raced in South African Supercars in 2010, aged 18, with a view to moving into NASCAR. She was selected for 2010 NASCAR Driver Talent Search and Shootout, but did not get through. Her finishing record in Supercars was not good, but she did manage eighth and ninth places. After that, she switched to single-seaters, and competed in Formula VW in 2011. Her car was more reliable, and she  had a best finish of sixth, at Killarney. She was tenth in the championship. During her second Formula VW season, her performances were similar, and she was eleventh overall. After that, she does not seem to have raced. As a junior, she was the first girl to win a South African karting championship in 2007.

Donny (Donacius) Lamola - raced single-seaters in South Africa, beginning in 2013 with a Formula Ford drive at Zwartkops, assisted by Ian Schofield. The next year, she ws 14th in the South African Formula Ford championship. She competed in both Zetec and Kent-engined Formula Fords, on the circuits and in hillclimbs. A stroke limited her participation, but she continued to attend races. She died in 2020.

Glenda Mann - raced single-seaters in South Africa in the 1980s. She competed in the South African Formula Ford championship between 1983 and 1985. Among the cars she raced was a Donelly FF1600 and a Formula Vee car which she used in 1983. Her results are proving hard to find, but she won several races outright. She often competed alongside her brother, Basil Mann, who was a successful driver in both South Africa and Europe.

Simphiwe Mohlahlo - races in MSA4 and Formula Libre in South Africa. She began her career in 2023, racing karts and testing a Formula Ford. After some time spent in Formula Ford 1600 and Libre, she first entered the F4-based MSA4 championship in 2025, the first year it ran. She was not among the frontrunners, and returned in 2026, hoping to make an impression. At the same time, she competed in the Gauteng regional Formula Libre championship, finishing fifth overall. Before concentrating on motorsport, she was a makeup artist.

Jennifer Murray - South African driver who was part of their A1 GP team, driving in one test session in 2006. She was taken on following her performances in Formula Ford, in South Africa and at the 2004 Formula Ford Festival in the UK. In 2006, she was a consistent top-ten performer in the South African series, and was fourth overall. Between 2007 and 2009, she mostly competed in the Shelby Can-Am sportscar series in South Africa, in a 3300cc Dodge. Her best season was 2008, during which she won two races, visited the podium ten times and was the overall runner-up. She has also competed in Formula Volkswagen, and in the all-female Formula Woman Nations Cup. 

Gianna Pascoal - South African driver who began racing cars in 2026, when she was fifteen. She entered the F4-based MSA4 championship and finished twelfth overall, with a best finish of sixth at Killarney, her local circuit. From the age of eleven, she competed in karts with some success, in South Africa and abroad. This was in parallel with a competitive diving career. She is part of the More Than Equal driver development programme.

Helene Visser - raced single-seaters in South Africa in the 1980s. She did at least one season in Formula Ford in 1984, driving a Hawke DL19. During her career, she won at least one race outright, possibly in 1984 at Killarney International Raceway. That year, she entered the “Mini Monaco” event held around a golf course in Cape Town. Her husband Chris Visser also raced at the time.

Sofia Zanfari - Moroccan driver who competes in Europe. She started racing cars in 2025, aged 18, and signed up for the French F4 Championship. Her best finishes have been two 18th places, at Spa, although she is often on the podium for the Women's award, contested by six drivers in 2025. Her final championship position was 29th. Before F4, she competed in karting around Europe and also in the USA, including a run in the FIA World Championships in 2023.

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

Female Single-Seater Drivers Around the World: Germany & Switzerland

Ina Fabry in 2002

Austrian drivers can now be found here. Andrina Gugger now has her own profile, as do Angelique Germann, Carrie Schreiner, Marylin Niederhauser, Michelle Halder, Delia Stegemann, Lena Buhler, Tina Hausmann and Sophia Floersch.

Franziska Aich - one of the youngest-ever female racing drivers, having started in Formel König in 2001, at the age of 16. That year, she was not overly competitive and missed some rounds. Her best finishes were four 21st places, at Salzburg, the Nürburgring and Oschersleben. She made one start in the Formel König Interserie Challenge at Lausitz, but did not finish. In 2002, she returned to Formel König, but did not make much more of an impact. She was 26th. After 2002, she does not seem to have raced.

Marlene Dietrich - not the late film legend, but a German driver. She began racing in saloons, finishing 26th in the 2005 Volkswagen Polo Trophy. She was 21st the following year, before switching to single-seaters, in the form of Formula BMW ADAC. Driving for Team Zinner, she was 21st at the end of the year. Driving for a different team, she entered the Northern European Formula Renault series in 2008. Her best finish was thirteenth, at Alastaro, and she was a modest 21st overall. After a long break from motorsport, she returned in 2011, contesting the Austrian Formula Renault series. She does not appear to have driven in all rounds, and had a best result of fifth. This was achieved in the last round, at Hockenheim.

Ina Fabry - 2002 Austrian Formula Masters champion. This was followed up by two part-seasons in German F3, with the Wöss team, with a best finish of ninth, at the Nürburgring, in 2003. Her 2004 attempt consisted of just two races, again at the Nürburgring. Ina has raced single-seaters in Germany since 1999, spending three years in German Formula BMW and briefly trying her hand at Formula Renault. Her best BMW result came in 2001, when she was 17th in the championship. Prior to her car racing exploits, she was a karter from the age of eight and won several races. Budget problems have kept her from active participation since 2004, although she hopes to return and still works in motorsport. She is a member of the FIA's Women in Motorsport Commission. 

Kiara Henni - German driver who began racing cars in 2025, starting in the F4 Central European Zone (CEZ) championship. She drives for her family's Henni Performance team. She was 18th in her first race at the Red Bull Ring, having avoided a pile-up, before coming 18th again and 17th in her other races that weekend. After missing the first race of the second round, she was 15th and twelfth also at the Red Bull Ring. Twelfth remained her highest finish, achieved also at Salzburg in the next meeting. She was 26th in the championship. Previously, she was active in karting.

Lena Heun - former karter from Germany, who has done some single-seater racing in Europe. She made her car debut in 2007, driving in six rounds of the LO Formula Lista Junior championship, nominally a Swiss championship, but running around Europe. Her actual results are proving hard to find, although she may have had some class podiums, and she was 22nd overall. For a long time, she returned to karting, and had considerable success. In 2012, she made her first steps in to Formula Renault, coming second in an Interseries race in a Formula Renault car at Lausitz. She made guest appearances in the two Spa races of the North Europe championship, finishing one race in 26th. In 2013, she was meant to race in the North Europe championship, as part of an all-female team, but this did not happen. She has since returned to karting. 

Reena Jani - Swiss driver who did two seasons of Formula Lista Junior in 2006 and 2007. She was sixteenth in the 2006 championship and tenth the following year. Later, in 2014, she drove a Mini Cooper for Equipe Bernoise in the Swiss Mini Challenge. She is the sister of Porsche driver Neel Jani and works as a car designer.

Anja Krause - raced in Germany in 2000 and 2001. She was fifth in the DTC Light series in 2000, driving a Ford Escort RS2000 and finishing in the top five on several occasions. She finished in the top three, three times. In 2001, she switched to single-seaters. She struggled somewhat with Formel König and was 20th overall at the end of the year. After that, she does not appear to have raced at all.

Julia Kuhn – competed in the Formula 3 Euroseries in 2005 and 2006. Her best result was a 17th in 2006; for most of the part-season she was off the pace. Her 2005 season had panned out similarly. Before that, she raced Formula Volkswagens in Germany for one season, and took part in karting. After F3, she moved on to long-distance racing at the Nürburgring, scoring one class win and a third place in a BMW M3. In 2008, she was part of the Porsche Super Sports Cup Endurance series. Her regular co-driver was Carsten Tilke. Unfortunately, a heavy crash at Hockenheim put paid to her season in May. Julia was said to be disappointed, as she had got the 997 set up well and was hoping for good results.

Isabella Lauer – successful German karter who has done some Formula BMW racing. In 2011, she entered the Formula BMW Talent Cup Shootout, and this led to some more racing in the Formula BMW Talent Cup in 2012, at Oschersleben. She was not among the front-runners. Despite testing in Formula Renault and Formula ADAC Masters, she has not been active as a driver since then.

Katja-Isabel Müller - raced single-seaters in Germany in the 1990s. She reached as far as the Formula Opel Euroseries in 1997, after several seasons in Formula König, Formula Opel and Formula BMW. Her best overall result was eighth in the 1994 BMW ADAC Formel Junior Meisterschaft. 1996 was another good season; she was ninth in the German Formula Opel Challenge. She did some saloon racing in 1995 as well, driving a Citroen AX in German Touring Cars. Her season took in the 24-hour races at the Nürburgring and Spa. 

Mathilda Paatz - began racing single-seaters in 2024, aged 15. She was part of the ADAC Junior team and contested the French F4 championship. She was 20th overall, with a best finish of twelfth at Magny-Cours. Early in 2025, she took part in the Formula Winter Series in Spain, in preparation for a second F4 season in the CEZ championship, driving for her own Mathilda Racing team. The Winter championship led to a 31st place, with fourteenth places at Portugal and Catalunya as its highlights. Her first races in the CEZ series were better, and she earned a second place during the second meeting at the Red Bull Ring. She was a regular top five finisher and was eighth in the championship. Later in the season, she contested some of the E4 Championship and also the Italian F4 series, both for AS Motorsport. She was not as successful during these part-seasons, although she did manage a 15th and a 16th place at Monza in the E4 series. In between, she had been chosen as a wildcard entry for the Montreal F1 Academy races and finished eleventh once. She was signed by Prema Racing as the Aston Martin-supported driver for the 2026 F1 Academy season.

Jacqueline (Jackie) Weiss – German driver who mostly competes in karting in Europe, but did do two seasons of single-seater racing in 2007 and 2008. In 2007, she raced in Formula Gloria in Italy, and the Formula Cup of Mallorca. Both were run using similar cars. She did not do full seasons, but managed a class fifth in the Mallorca series, thanks to two podium finishes. In 2008, she raced in the Formula BMW Talent Cup, after almost securing a deal for 2007, and having a sponsor drop out. This was another part-season. After 2008, she appears to have struggled to gain enough sponsorship to compete.

(Image from http://www.wenz.sitesun1.de/html/bilder/frameset_bild.htm)

Natacha Gachnang

Natacha is a former karter from Switzerland, who is now racing single seaters in Europe. She is managed by Willi Weber, who was also the manager to Niki Lauda and Michael Schumacher. Other members of her family are involved in motorsports: her father runs his own kart manufacturing company, and the Formula One driver Sebastian Buemi is her cousin.

Her first steps in car racing came in 2002, when she first qualified for the Formula ADAC BMW series in Germany. Her first season of competition was 2003. This year, she had a mixed season. She was only 19th in the championship, but achieved a more impressive best finish of fourth.

She stayed in the series until 2005, without major success in the first two years. She repeated her fourth place twice at the Nürburgring, but did not mount a consistent challenge to the front-runners. However, she was sixth in the final standings in 2005 after a much better season. Her best finishes were two second places at the Nürburgring and the Norisring, and she scored an additional podium place at Lausitz.

2006 saw her drive in three different F3 championships, with varying results. She was part of the Austrian, German and Euroseries championships. She did best in Austria, winning one race and finishing on the podium twice. At the end of the season, she was fourth. In Germany, she raced in both the Trophy and Cup class and achieved podium finishes in each, although she was out of the overall top ten. Her seven races in the Euroseries, a far more competitive championship, were not as successful. Her best finish by a long way was tenth, at the final race of the season at Hockenheim. It was now being noted that Sebastien Buemi, who is younger than Natacha, was overtaking her in his motorsport career.

2007 was spent on a limited Star Mazda programme in the USA, with a view to developing her career further there. She finished in the top ten in all seven of her races, with a pair of podium positions (third and second) at Cleveland and Portland, but she did not complete enough of the season to mount a serious challenge. Whilst in the States, she was all set to enter her first Champ Car Atlantic race, but it did not happen.

She returned to Europe for Spanish F3 in 2008. This season proved to be the kick-start that her career needed. She was third overall, and won the Cup of Spain after winning five times. Her wins came at Jarama, Jerez and Valencia, including one at Valencia’s street circuit. Valencia proved to be a favourite location, as she was second and third in the main F3 street races there too, as well as coming second in Jarama. These were her best finishes of that particular series, although she mounted the podium at Spa as well.

In 2009, she spread her wings into sportscar racing, as well as pushing forward with her single-seater career. She entered Formula Le Mans as part of the Hope Pole Vision team, as well as the revived Formula Two. In addition, her Formula Le Mans team put her into selected Radical European Master Series races, driving a Radical SR5.

Formula Two has given her mixed blessings. Her best finish has been eleventh, which she managed at Valencia, Spa and Oschersleben. She has also recorded non-finishes at Valencia, Brno and Donington, and finished towards the back of the pack elsewhere.

Sportscars seem to suit her somewhat better. Driving with Christophe Pillon, her best finish in Formula Le Mans is third, at Le Mans itself and the Nürburgring, and she has scored further top tens at Algarve and the Nürburgring, in the form of a seventh and eighth, and a fifth. Problems with vibrations put her down to eighth and sixth at Silverstone, but this was found to be due to a damaged differential.

In a Radical, Natacha was second and third in Barcelona, second and second at Spa and second and third at Algarve. She is led the championship for a while with her driving partner, Tatiana Calderon, but was fifth overall.

After 2009, Natacha moved full-time into sportscar competition. She joined up with the Matech team to race their Ford GT, including a run at Le Mans. The campaign would take in the Le Mans Series and the FIA GT1 Championship. Her team-mate was Cyndie Allemann. Unfortunately, Natacha had a serious accident in the first race at Abu Dhabi, broke her leg and was unable to continue for most of the season. Her place was taken by Rahel Frey, until July. She returned for the Paul Ricard race, and partnered Olivier Panis. They were 18th and 21st. After that, Natacha did not appear.

Her Le Mans Series season was wiped out completely, although she did recover in time for the 24 Hours itself. Matech, a Swiss team, assembled an all-Swiss, all-female driving squad, consisting of Natacha, Cyndie and Rahel. Unfortunately, a fire early on caused a series of problems with the car, and they did not finish.

Away from Matech, Natacha also entered the Auto GP sportscar series, driving for the Charouz team. She was eleventh and twelfth at Spa, seventh and eighth at Navarra and tenth and fifteenth at Monza. Her car was a Zytek-engined Lola B05/52.

In 2011, she struggled to find funding or a race seat, and appears to have made one appearance in the modern car section of the French Formula V de V series, driving a Norma M20F. The situation was similar in 2012: as far as can be made out, she competed in one race, the Nürburgring 24 Hours. She drove for the Toyota Swiss team in a GT86, with Oliver Burri, Christoph Wuest and Andreas Lanz. They were 78th, but still won class V3.

Natacha's long-term plans at this point were unclear. In a familiar scenario, she appeared to be struggling for sponsorship. However, she made a comeback in 2013, back in sportscars again; the European Le Mans Series this time. She was driving a Judd-engined Morgan LMP2 car for the Morand team. Her first race for the team, the Silverstone 3 Hours, ended in a DNF. Her team-mate was Franck Mailleux. However, at the next round,  Imola, they were third, a result they repeated at the Red Bull Ring. Natacha drove with former F1 pilot, Christian Klien, at the Hungaroring, and was fifth. The same pairing was second at Paul Ricard, Natacha's best finish.

The team also entered Le Mans itself. Natacha, Franck and Olivier Lombard started eleventh, and also finished in that position.

She does not appear to have raced in 2014. In 2015, she did some rounds of the VdeV championship's Enduro Proto Challenge, driving a Norma. She did well, with a second at Mugello and a third at Paul Ricard. She was eleventh in the championship.

She did not race in 2016.

(Image source unknown)

Keiko Ihara

Keiko at Le Mans, in 2012

Japanese veteran Keiko had a most unusual introduction to motorsport. She had been working as a fashion model in Tokyo, and had never taken much notice of racing, until she was invited to the Japanese Grand Prix by her boss, and enlisted as a scantily-clad grid girl. However, while standing by Michael Schumacher's Ferrari, she became enchanted by its exhaust note, and became determined to race a Ferrari of her own.

She got her wish in 1999, when she got a drive in the Japanese Ferrari Trophy. Her debut year was most impressive, with three wins. Keiko now set her heart on single-seaters, and raced in Formula Toyota in her homeland for a time, before decamping to England to compete in Formula Renault. She went with her friend Takuma Sato, who was to win the British F3 title that year.

In Britain Keiko raced against some real stars, including eventual champion, Kimi Raikkonen. She was never really a front-runner, but nevertheless scored points and gained experience. For 2001 it was off to France and another step up the career ladder: Formula Three. Again, the competition was fierce from the likes of Tristan Gommendy and her countryman Ryo Fukuda. She raced for a whole season, and had a best finish of eighth, at Nogaro. Her midfield finishes left her thirteenth in the championship.

For 2002, Keiko intended to raise funds to move up another gear and contest the British F3 championship. She trained intensively to build up her upper body strength, in order to cope with the g-forces in Formula Three and beyond. During this quiet year she was invited to take part in a few Asian Formula 2000 races, a Formula Ford series. Happily, her guest appearances yielded a win and a couple of second places, bringing her back into the Asian motorsport limelight. She secured a deal with Team Yellow Hat to race in the inaugural Asian Formula BMW series. Eventual champion Ho Pin Tung of China was offered a Formula One test role following his success, which shows how well-regarded the formula is. Keiko was one of the front-runners, with a best finish of second and a whole series of podium places. She raced all over Asia and impressed many with her dogged driving style, and ability to fight back after a mishap. She also had the natural talent to qualify well, and give some famous drivers, like Ho and Marchy Lee, a run for their money. She was third in the final standings.

Perhaps one of the most well-travelled drivers on Speedqueens, Keiko was invited back to India at the end of 2003 to compete in two rounds of Formula LGB, India's own junior racing series. She won both races convincingly, to the surprise of many.

Spurred on by her excellent season in 2003, she signed up for Japan's Formula Dream in 2004. Formula Dream was a single-seater championship for aspiring F1drivers, hence the name. Despite putting in some solid performances, Keiko was not among the front-runners this time, and did not show the pace she was capable of in Formula BMW.

In May that year she made a trip back to Europe to do some sportscar racing, as part of the T2M team, in the Monza 1000km race. Sharing the Porsche 996 were Vanina Ickx and Wolfgang Kaufman. The trio failed to finish.

For the next two seasons, the focus of Keiko's racing activities was British F3. Thanks to her Japanese sponsors, she got herself a seat in the well-established Carlin team, which had strong links with the Jordan/Midland F1 outfit. As in Formula Dream, she did not manage to set the pace, and secured a string of consistent lower-field finishes instead. She was 17th in the 2005 final standings, and had a best finish of eleventh in 2006.

Despite a downturn in her race results, Keiko still harboured hopes of a Formula One drive, although she admitted that she "had better get a move on because I am old".

After the 2006 season, she kept a low profile for a while, and seems to have concentrated on other, non-motor racing projects. She returned to the circuits in 2008, in a guest drive in the Aston Martin Asia Cup at Zhuhai. This was a one-make series for Aston Martin Vantage N24 sportscars.

In 2009 she did some more sportscar racing. She appeared in the second round of Formula Le Mans, an ORECA one-make series for sportscars. She and Thomas Duchene were tenth.

After this, she took a long break from racing, and appeared to have retired, apparently due to health problems. However, she has made a comeback in 2012, signing a deal with the Middle East arm of Gulf Racing to contest the FIA World Endurance Championship, driving a Nissan Lola B12/80 with Jean-Denis Deletraz and Marc Rostan. As a warm-up, she drove an Aston Martin Vantage in the Dubai 24 Hours for the team, with Youssuf Bassil, Martin Baerschmidt and John Iossofidis. They were 50th, thirteenth in class.
Unfortunately, the car did not make the start of the first WEC race at Sebring, but Keiko was scheduled to enter the rest of the calendar, including Le Mans. She drove in six WEC rounds, finished four and had a best finish of sixth, at her old home track of Fuji. Her other results were two ninths and an eleventh, at her adopted home track of Silverstone.

Her first attempt at Le Mans was not as fruitful. The Gulf car expired after only 17 laps, before she even got a chance to drive.

Keiko's deal with Gulf Middle East continued through 2013, with the same car. She entered six rounds of the FIA World Endurance Championship, in the LMP2 class. She finished five of them, with a best class finish of fifth, achieved at Interlagos and Bahrain. This left her tenth in the LMP2 Trophy. Sadly, Le Mans gave her another retirement. Keiko, Fabien Giroix and Philippe Haezebrouck went out after only 22 laps.

Despite turning 40, Keiko's profile in 2013 was quite high, and she became a spokesperson for Nissan's Leaf electric road car. She also did some speaking on the subject of women in motorsports.

Her profile raised even further in 2014, and she had a busy calendar. Her season started with her joining the elite Larbre Competition squad, and driving their Judd-engined Morgan to 9th place, at Silverstone. This was a European Le Mans Series race, and she was assisted by Gustavo Yacamán. Using the same car, but with different team-mates, she made another attempt at Le Mans. This time, she got to the end of the race, as the ninth LMP2 finisher, and fourteenth overall. Her co-drivers were Ricky Taylor and Pierre Ragues.

In August, she stayed with the same car, but switched to the OAK Racing team. At her home track of Fuji, she won the LMP2 class in the Asian Le Mans Series, her first major win. Her team-mate was Chinese driver, Yuan Bo. 

Driving for the same team, she entered rounds six and eight of the FIA Endurance Trophy. These races both ended in third place finishes, at Fuji and Bahrain. 

She is hoping to continue in sportscar racing, despite saying earlier in her career that she would rather retire than abandon single-seaters! That said, she does not appear to have raced in 2015.

Keiko made one guest appearance in 2016, as an official Mazda works driver. She drove the Mazda Prototype in the 12 Hours of Sebring, alongside three regular Mazda team members. She was eighth overall.

She raced a Ligier LMP2 car at Zhuhai in October 2017. The event was the first round of the Asian Le Mans Series. She was fourth in LMP2, with Alex Au.

Larbre Competition ran the same car for her at the Fuji round of the 2018-19 WEC Superseries. She was fifth.

She is also a member of the FIA's Women in Motorsport Commission, and works to promote Japanese engineering and industry in motorsport.

(Image from Keiko's Facebook profile)

Catharina Felser

Cathi in the X-Bow

Catharina Felser was born in Germany in 1982. She began karting at the age of fifteen. Just a year later, her pace was enough to win National races. Despite her fledgling sporting career, she remained a diligent student at school and especially excelled in languages - she now speaks five.

The pinnacle of young Catharina's karting career was her trip to the European Championships in Italy in 1999, where she was seventh overall. This was her last big achievement before moving up to car racing.

In 2000, now aged 18, Cathi raced a Formula Ford, mainly in Austria. Her best results were three third places in the Austrian championship, plus another third in a guest race in the German series. She was fourth overall in the Austrian standings at the end of the year.
The following year, she moved back to competing in her home country, full-time, this time entering BMW Formula ADAC, an established training ground for aspiring single-seater racers. It was tougher going, but she did manage eight top-ten finishes against strong opposition. This was enough to give her 15th in the championship.

She did not stay in Formula BMW after 2002, preferring to test herself further in Formula Three. Her first F3 season was a real baptism of fire and she had to fight for every point she scored. To begin with, she was part of the van Amersfoort team. Their car gave her a best finish of 16th at the Sachsenring. A switch to KMS brought a slight but noticeable increase in performance and her best round was Hockenheim, where she was fourteenth and eleventh. her final championship position was eleventh.

Undeterred by her difficult season, Catharina returned to German F3 in 2003, as part of the Trella setup. She was up to speed straight away and came third and fourth in the first round, at Oschersleben. She could not quite match that at the Lausitzring, but still earned a respectable seventh and fifth place. A difficult couple of races followed: she was 14th and 16th at Hockenheim and her only retirement of the year came at the Nürburgring, although she was tenth in the second race of the day. Another couple of tenths at Lausitz brought her back up to speed, and she was ready for her second podium of the year shortly afterwards, coming third and then sixth at Spielberg. This was a good track for her that year, as the next two races there gave her a solid fifth and fourth place. At the final meeting of the season, Oschersleben, she was ninth and tenth. That season was completely dominated by the Brazilian Joao Paulo de Oliveira, but Cathi managed to put together enough points to finish sixth.

Despite really showing some speed in an F3 car, Catharina's racing career took a sharp change of direction in 2004, perhaps due to financial troubles. She moved into tin-top competition, in the shape of the SEAT Leon Supercopa one-make series. It was another difficult year for her, trying to learn a new car and also a new style of driving, and over the year she was consistently in about thirteenth place overall. In the two-driver rounds at the Nürburgring and Lausitz she shared her car with Daniel Bauer, and tended to do much better; her best result of the year was a fifth in the VLN support race at the classic Eifel circuit. Driving solo, her best finish was eighth, at Salzburg, where she also scored an eleventh position. She was 16th in the final standings.

At the end of the season, she tried to give single-seater competition another go, testing a Barber Dodge car in the USA. However, nothing became of the test and she returned to the German domestic racing scene in 2005.

Having tried team motorsport in the SEAT Leon, Cathi moved into endurance racing in 2005. At this time, Mazda were using female drivers to promote their sportscar range in various ways, and the 23-year-old from Uffing was recruited to drive an RX-8 in long-distance events, as part of an all-girl team built around her, Kati Droste and Steffi Halm. They entered selected VLN rounds at the Nürburgring, finishing well in class, as well as other events, as part of the BFGoodrich Endurance Championship. Assisted by the experienced Nicole Lüttecke, they finished their first 24-hour race together, the ADAC Nürburgring 24 Hours. They were 55th out of about 200 finishers and were fourth in their class.

Early in the 2006 season, the team were reunited for the inaugural running of the Dubai 24 Hours. They did not finish this time. Cathi and Kati Droste later teamed up for the Nürburgring 24 Hours. Their co-drivers were Kathi Konig and Christina Surer, and their car was a SEAT Leon Supercopa similar to the one Catharina had raced in 2004. They ended up third in their class, 62nd overall.

After testing a Lamborghini Gallardo at the end of 2005, Cathi finally got to race one of these exotic cars in 2006. She was invited to take part in the Salzburg round of the Divinol Cup and was eighth in both of her races.

Cathi had a quiet 2007. Her mount for this season was almost as far from the fuel-hungry and massively-horsepowered Gallardo as it is possible to be: a bio-ethanol-fuelled Renault Megane RS 26, which was quick nevertheless. Her only big event was the Tuner GP in Germany, although she carried out a number of tests in various cars.

In 2008, one of her tests paid off and she was back to racing full-time. The new KTM team had picked her to drive their X-Bow sportscar in the European Cup GT4 series. She was tenth in her first race at Silverstone, but fifth in the second, beating the sister car of her two team-mates. At Monza she was seventh, eleventh and fifth, again finishing once as the leading X-Bow. At Oschersleben, she was seventh, fifth and eighth, while at Spa she struggled somewhat, finishing twelfth and thirteenth in the first two races and recording a DNF in the third. At Brno she improved slightly, with two ninths and a tenth. At Nogaro, she was sixth, eighth and ninth. This rather inconsistent, but competent season gave her third in the championship's Sports Light class.

Catharina was not retained by the KTM GT4 team for 2009, although she continued to drive for the marque. KTM were keen to test their X-Bows in speed events, and Cathi drove hers to third in class in a company-orgnised hillclimb. She was fifth overall.

In order to market their cars to speed eventers, KTM organised a one-make hillclimb championship in Europe. Cathi was a competitor, as well as a racing instructor to the new recruits. She won the championship.

She has also been developing a TV career in Germany, which appears to have taken priority over racing in 2011. In 2012, she worked as a race reporter covering the DTM for German TV.

In 2012, she was also the team manager for Reiter Engineering, in the Blancpain Lamborghini Super Trofeo and the FIA GT1 Championship. She continued to do some driver instruction and co-ordination for KTM, as well as public speaking and media work.

In 2014, she made a small return to the circuits, as a guest driver in the FIA Lotus Ladies' Cup. She scored a second and fifth place at the Oschersleben round, driving under her own team banner.

(Image copyright Laurent Mercier)