Anita Liden

 

Anita Lidén is a Swedish driver who is most famous for attempting to build a career in NASCAR in 1970.

She tried to enter the Motor Trend 500 at Riverside, but never made the start, having no car and no backers. She had shown up at Riverside and hung around the gates in the week before the 500, handing out business cards in the rain and attempting to persuade car owners to take a chance on her.

Despite her chutzpah, the enterprise did not work. Her complete lack of stock car experience, apart from some slow testing laps, and general lack of American racing experience, worked against her. Her husband Lasse, another racer who was with her, was also unsuccessful in launching a US competition career.

Anita and Lasse lived near the Anderstorp circuit, where he raced both cars and motorbikes. She was formerly a model and got into motorsport through her husband.

She had raced in Formula Ford in Sweden in 1969, in her first year of competition. She usually used the name "Anita Snabb", which translates to "Fast Anita". Her car was a Merlyn. In 1969, she entered the Junior race at the Hyllingeloppet event at Knutstorp, finishing second.

After her trip to America, she returned to Sweden and quickly went back to single-seaters. She continued to race in Formula Ford, then in the Swedish and European Formula Vee championships. She took part in the Swedish series in 1970 and 1971 and the European championship between 1970 and 1072.

Much later, in 1976, she raced in the Lee Cooper Mini Lady Cup, a Swedish all-female racing series, and won at least one race, although not the championship, which went to Birgitta Uppling. Her car was advertised for sale in 1978, so her career appears to end there.

(Image copyright Autosprint, 1971)

Jenny Birrell (Nadin)

 

Jennifer Birrell raced sports and saloon cars in the 1960s and 1970s, competing in the fore-runner of the BTCC and the Sebring 12 Hours.

As Jenny Nadin, she started motorsport through rally navigation, chiefly for Pat Moss. She sat beside Pat for a season with Ford, driving a Cortina GT, in 1963. Their best results together were a seventh place in the RAC Rally and sixth in the Acropolis. She and Pat had met in showjumping competitions, both of them having an equestrian background.

Not long after, she took the wheel in rallies herself, encouraged by Pat’s husband, Erik Carlsson. She started out with a Mini in the British championship, then branched out. Her international outings included a run in the RAC Rally in 1966, driving a Hillman Imp, and a trip to the 1967 Monte in a Ford. 

Rallying brought her into contact with racer, journalist and event organiser Nick Brittan, who became her manager. In 1967, he persuaded her to enter the British Formula Vee championship, which was making its UK debut that year. She surprised everyone by putting her car on pole and then winning at Silverstone. Nick Brittan had overtaken her on the line and led for most of the race, but a late spin put her ahead. 

There were accusations at the time that the Volkswagen team had orchestrated Jenny’s win for publicity. Formula Vee had launched a week after Formula Ford and a first win for a woman was a valuable talking point. Some claimed that Nick had planned to pull over and let Jenny through. Others claimed that both of the official Volkswagen cars had illegally-tuned engines. No wrong-doing was discovered and the win stood.

Still, she was second in the 1967 Formula Vee Championship in her first season of racing, weathering a crash at Silverstone and scoring more podium finishes. She continued to race in the series in 1968, but she did not do as well and had two rather serious crashes, at Mallory and Thruxton.

By 1970, she had married Scottish driver Graham Birrell and was racing a Ford Escort as Jenny Birrell. She won at least one race at a club meeting at Croft and made her British Saloon Car Championship (the precursor to the BTCC) debut. Her first race was in the wet at Silverstone in 1971 and she finished tenth, despite a puncture at the start.

Later, she drove in America for the first time. She was part of the all-female Ring Free Oil Team for the 1971 Sebring 12 Hours, with Rosemary Smith and Janet Guthrie, driving a Chevron B16. Jenny practiced in the car but did not actually race. Rosemary and Janet did not finish. 

For 1973, she was competing in the Castrol Production Saloon championship, driving a Simca Rallye. It was in this car that she made her next BSCC appearance in 1974, finishing eighth at Mallory. Later in the season, she did several more races in a Chrysler Avenger, earning a ninth place at Ingliston.

In 1975, she joined another all-female team and finished the Spa 24 Hours in a Triumph Dolomite, with Christine Beckers and Marianne Hoepfner. They were 24th, eighth in class. The car was sponsored by “Butch Tailor”, a Belgian menswear fashion brand. Back in the UK, she was team-mate to Bernard Unett for the BSCC, driving an Avenger. The pair often battled for class honours. Jenny’s best overall finish was fifth, at Oulton Park. The Halesfield Motors team also ran Jenny in that year’s Avon Tour of Britain, with another Avenger.

Rallies then became the focus of her career. She had been competing in British and Irish events on and off alongside her circuit-based activities, but she rallied more intensively later.

She was still entered British rallies between 1973 and 1974, using a Simca. In 1977, she was sponsored by Century Oils and drove a Triumph TR7 in the British championship. Her best finish was a 28th place in the Burmah Rally.

After a lengthy break from the stages, she reappeared for the 1983 Ulster Rally in a Talbot Sunbeam, co-driven by Gabriel Konig. She was 47th. Another Talbot, a Samba, was her preferred car for a season in Ireland in 1984, taking in events in both Eire and Northern Ireland, as well as the Manx Rally. Later, she switched to a Peugeot 205 and scored her best result of the season, a thirteenth place in the Killarney Rally of the Lakes.

The 205 took her through another season in the UK in 1985, and also her first trip to Turkey. She was third in the Rothmans Bravo Rally. This in turn led to a part-season in the 1986 Turkish championship, which yielded a fifth place in that year’s Bravo event.

For the next two seasons, she took part in the Maestro Challenge in the UK, driving an MG Maestro. After that, her career begins to wind down; she drove a 205 on the 1990 Ardennes Rally and then had a final run in the Manx Rally in 1992, driving a Lancia Delta Integrale.

The later part of her competition career coincided with a successful period in motorsport administration, working for the British Touring Car Championship and the National Formula Ford series, among others.

(Image from racingteamvee.com)

Judy Charlton (Witter)

Judy Charlton became the first woman to win a South African motor racing title when she won the Formula Vee championship in 1973.

At the time, Judy was racing as Judy Witter, using a a Witter Formula Vee which she had helped to build the year before with her father, Joseph. She was still in her teens.

She married Arnold Charlton, brother of single-seater racer Dave Charlton, and competed for a long while as Judy Charlton.

Judy was very fast from the start, but the combination of a very young female driver and a new chassis provoked suspicion among competitors and officials. The Witter’s engine was declared illegal. Even when Joseph changed it out for a different one, this was followed by everyone using that engine having their results suspended and their cars impounded. This was the top six in the championship. Only after much argument and justification was Judy recognised as champion. She was awarded her trophy in 1974, plus her prize of a Merlyn Mk25 Formula Ford, spares and a tow car.

The wrangles over her champion’s status do not seem to have affected her 1974 season in Formula Ford too much. Unfortunately, results are very hard to come by but photos show her competing at the main South African circuits, including at the SA Grand Prix support race.

In 1975, she raced in Formula Ford again, and was third in the South African championship.

Her achievements were rather overshadowed by those of Desiré Wilson, with whom she shared a Ford Escort in the 1975 Kyalami 1000km race. The result has been lost, although it is known that the pair drove a Ford Escort 1.6. Desiré won the SA Formula Ford series in 1976.

Later, she specialised in saloon racing, and was joint winner of the South African Group One championship in 1977, with Sarel van der Merwe. Her car was a Datsun 140Y.

Later, she drove a Datsun in touring car races, including a run in the Wynns 1000 at Kyalami with her husband Arnold, in a 280L. She used this car for at least two seasons, driving solo in the Kyalami Star production car event in 1980.

She continued to race, on and off, until 1994.

Her last major appearance was in Formula GTi in 1994, when she took over her son’s car due to his National Service duties. She has since raced her original Witter Formula Vee at a historic meeting, after it was restored.

(Image copyright Mike Wesson)

Female Single-Seater Drivers Around the World: Canada

Ashley Taws

Female drivers have been a feature of the Canadian single-seater scene since the 1970s. Formula Ford has been particularly popular. Louise Roberge and Megan Gilkes now have their own posts.

Amy Castell – began racing Formula Ford 1600 in Canada in 2012, at the age of sixteen. She was the youngest driver on the grid, and she was instantly competitive, despite driving a 40-year-old Zink Z10 car. Her best finish of the season was third, at Calabogie Motorsports Park. Later that season, she had a big accident and had to take some time off, but she came back in 2013, about half-way through the season. Since then, she has raced a 1990 Reynard SF90. In 2014, she won her first race, at Honda Indy, and was third in the Toyo Tires FF1600 championship. In 2015, she competed in the B Class of the Canadian F1600 Championship Series. She managed four podium finishes – one second and three third – and was third in the championship. 

Molly Elliott – Canadian driver who raced single-seaters in her home country in 1986. She competed in both Formula Ford and Formula Vee. Formula Ford 2000 was her most successful series, and she was ninth in the Canadian championship. Molly’s later activities are not well-documented, but she was still racing in Formula Ford in Canada in 1991. She was 20^th in the championship, with a best finish of eighth, at Mosport. 

Caitlin Johnston – races in Formula Ford 1600 in Canada. Her first season was in 2007, after she won a senior karting championship.Her best year has probably been 2010, when she was third outright in the Formula Ford Ontario Championship, with two runner-up spots at Mosport as her best finishes. That year, she also competed in three rounds of the NASCAR Canadian Tyre Series. Periodically, she has raced in the US as well as Canada, and has tried 2000cc Formula Ford as well as 1600. After a couple of quieter years, she was fourth in the 2014 F1600 championship, earning one podium position and a start from pole. She has been much less active since then. 

Patricia Smith – raced in Formula B in Canada for a part-season in 1973. Her car was a Ford-engined March. She was a rival of Linda Wilson. That year, she was 23^rd in the championship. She scored at least one finish, a seventeenth place at the Sanair circuit in Quebec. Patricia was from Montreal herself, and was sponsored by PS Transport, which looks to have been a family firm.

Carol Soucy - Canadian driver from Quebec, who raced in Toyota Formula Atlantic in 1997. She was 33rd overall in the championship, having entered three races. Her best finish was thirteenth, at Trois-Rivieres. She did not finish the other two races. In 2002, she did at least a part-season in Formula Ford in Canada. Prior to her Atlantic exploits, she had also raced in Formula Ford in 1996.

Linda Wilson – Canadian driver who raced in single-seaters in the 1970s. She took part in Formula B in 1972 and 1973, driving for the Fergusson-Wilson team. Her car was a Chevron B20. She scored at least one fifteenth place at the Sanair circuit in 1973, one of six races in Formula B that she did that year. She was seventeenth in the championship.

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

Roxie Lott

Roxie with Rick Mears and Al Unser in 1986

Roxie Lott was an American driver who was probably most famous for her efforts in the British Formula 3 Championship in 1984.

She was born in Indianapolis in 1961. She attended her first Indy 500 at the age of three, and announced to her mother that she was building a racing car engine when she was six, as soapbox carts were not fast enough for her.

When she was twelve, she began racing in junior Quarter Midget events, in a car her mother bought on hire purchase. While still at school, she spent a lot of time at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, sometimes missing classes to do so. She apparently became friends with both Mario Andretti and Al Unser. When she was there, she helped various teams out, polishing and cleaning cars and doing odd jobs.

She achieved some success as a midget racer. Between 1976 and 1978, she won fifteen races, and went to Grand National meetings twice. After spending some time learning about full-size midget cars, she became more interested in road racing, and enrolled at the Skip Barber driving school. In 1979, she got to race a Formula Ford at Mid-Ohio as part of her training. Her Formula Ford programme took her across the States and as she had to drive herself to the circuits, she soon became burnt out. In 1980, she caught glandular fever and had to take some time out.

At around that time in 1980 or 1981, she travelled to England for the first time, working for Teddy Yip and Theodore Racing. She helped to run the Theodore cars in the Aurora F1 series in the UK, assisting Theodore driver Kevin Cogan. She got a run out in a Formula Ford at Snetterton, run by the team, and finished third.

In 1982, she went on record saying that her biggest ambition was to race in the Indy 500, in an interview with the Indianapolis Star. However, despite her friends in high places and enterprising nature, she struggled for sponsorship. She raced Formula Super Vee again with some assistance from Cam 2 Oils, although the car was not that reliable and her season was also disrupted by a big testing crash. She did more Formula Ford in 1983 with Cam 2, earning a few top-ten finishes.

1984 was meant to be a breakthrough year for Roxie. She returned to England to race in Formula 3, with RD Motorsport. Speaking afterwards to the Indianapolis News, she said that this should have been a good experience, but it was not. She had taken out a loan to pay for her $5,000 drive, only to find that the "team" had seven drivers and two cars, until one driver disappeared with one of the cars and most of the spares, including an engine. She described the car as having "rusted brakes, corroded cables and a work crew off the street."

After a test at Donington, she only got to start one race, the Marlboro International Trophy at Silverstone, in April. This race ended after four laps, when she was unable to continue after a spin. Her pink Ralt RT3 gained some media attention, but by and large, it was not a positive experience for its driver. She was offered further drives by Murray Taylor's team, but she could not raise the necessary cash.

After her British disappointment, it seems to have been increasingly difficult for Roxie to gain sponsorship, and she only raced sporadically. As she was never in a championship long enough to learn the car and understand her opponents, she struggled for pace. In 1986, she managed to score a point in the Formula Super Vee championship in the States, driving for Arciero Racing.

In 1988, after another couple of guest appearances in support races, Roxie called time on her racing career. She was twenty-eight years old. Some sources claim that she tried to take the Indy rookie test, but nothing official says that she did. Her ambition to race in the Indy 500 was put on hold indefinitely.

After turning her back on motorsport, she proved herself in another high-speed arena: flight. She worked as a commercial pilot for several years and racked up enough flight time to be promoted to Captain very quickly. In aviation, she was known as Roxie Lott Strish, having married Larry Strish. She retired after his death in 1995.

Later in life, she gave driving tours of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. She died of ovarian cancer in April 2007, and was mourned by the Indianapolis racing community.

(Image copyright Indianapolis News)

Hannelore Werner

Hannelore Werner in 1969

Hannelore raced in single-seaters, touring and sportscars in Germany in the 1960s and early 1970s, although her most notable results were achieved in a single-seater. She was born in 1942, and initially trained as a dental technician.

Despite having her own career outside motorsport, she had the advantage of starting her racing whilst still very young. Her first race was in 1960, a saloon race, driving a DKW. During the early part of her career, she often drove DKW models. This seems to have included a one-make trophy for DKW and Auto Union cars, the “Silberschildrennen” at the Nürburgring. Despite crashing during the race, she was fifth overall, in an Auto Union 1000.

Her first big touring car race was the Nürburgring 500km in 1963. Her car was a little DKW Junior, shared with Manfred Roesner. They did not finish. 

The same pairing drove an Auto Union Junior in the 1964 Nürburgring 500km, but again, could not finish. Hannelore, driving a 796cc DKW F11 with a driver called Fischer, was 24th in the Nürburgring 6 Hours.

With Roesner, she tackled both of the big Nürburgring saloon races again in 1965, in DKW cars, They were 23rd in the 500km, in the Junior, and did not finish the 6 Hours, in an F11. That year, Hannelore made her first big overseas racing trip, to the UK, for another round of the European Touring Car Challenge, at Snetterton. Driving the F11 with Wolf-Dieter Mantzel, she was 16th in the 500km race, second in the T850 class for small cars.

Away from the bigger races, and driving solo, she was a regular presence in the German touring car championship of the time, the DTRM. Her usual finishing spot, in 1965, was second in the class for 700-850cc cars, in the F11.

In 1966, she switched over to single-seater racing, in Formula Vee 1300. She made an impression immediately, in Germany at least. In 1967, she was part of Caltex’s “Coupe de Charme” for female Formula Vee drivers, but missed out to Jenny Birrell. The same year, she drove in the German Grand Prix support race for Formula Vee, at the Nürburgring. She was driving for IGFA Racing, but she, and her three team-mates, got caught up in an accident.

Saloon racing had not been forgotten: Hannelore teamed up with Wilfried Oetelshoven for the Nürburgring 6 Hours in 1966, driving an F11. They did not finish.

Also in 1967, she was recruited by the new Mahag Olympic Formula Vee team. She won at least one race that year, at Zolder. She stayed with the team for two seasons, and remained competitive. She was largely feared and respected by her male opponents, as well as her female rivals in the Coupe de Charme. She travelled around Europe in order to race, and also went over to the USA, to take part in a Formula Vee race at Daytona, with Jenny Birrell and other Coupe de Charme regulars. In Germany, she raced in a second German Grand Prix support race, at the Nürburgring. However, she was a disappointing twelfth.

Making up for this, she won the 1969 equivalent of the Nürburgring 24 Hours with Rüdiger Faltz. This event was run more like a long-distance trial, in that period, but she won it nevertheless, in a BMW 2002 Ti, run by the Alpina team. This was one of a few races she did for the BMW Alpina team that year, although she did not finish the Spa 24 Hours or the Nürburgring 6 Hours.

The year before, in 1968, she had had her first taste of sportscar racing, driving a Porsche 911 in the Spa 1000km. She and Willy Zanders were 15th overall. This was not something she pursued much further.

Her association with BMW carried through to other areas of motorsport, too. In 1970, she drove a BMW 2002 Ti in the Monte Carlo Rally, and was 31st, with Oda Dencker-Andersen as navigator. They joined forces again in 1971, in a similar car, and were 17th.

During 1970, Hannelore really started to expand her motorsport horizons. As well as her BMW rallying adventures, she was picked up by Ford of Germany for long-distance touring car races, in a Capri. Dieter Glemser was one of her team-mates, although they drove sister cars, rather than together. Although the Nürburgring 1000km and Grand Prix support races, as well as the Salzburg ETCC race, ended in DNFs, she was a strong second in the Monza 4 Hours, driving with Manfred Mohr. Her usual team-mate was Yvette Fontaine.

At about the same time, Hannelore picked up some significant sponsorship from the Eifelland caravan company, whose directors were keen to support her in taking her single-seater career further. Her first big single-seater event was a round of the French Formula 3 championship, at Magny-Cours, in July. She drove a March 703, and did not finish. The 703 was swapped for a 702 shortly afterwards. This car was used in the Mantorp Park F2 Trophy, in Sweden, and the Preis von Baden-Württemburg und Hessen. Hannelore did not finish either of those races in the classification, either. However, at the start of August, Eifelland entered her into the Nürburgring Grand Prix support race, and she was a fine second, defeated only by the 702 of Xavier Perrot. The car was not the most competitive on most circuits, but it obviously worked here.

In 1971, the team continued with March machinery for Hannelore, competing mainly in Formula Two, although team-mate Rolf Stommelen had a stronger Brabham BT30. Her first race of the year was a long-haul trip to Colombia, for the Bogotá Grand Prix. The race, in two parts, was won by Stommelen. Hannelore was not classified in her 702. In her new 712M, it was a similar story at the Speed International Trophy at Mallory Park, although Rolf Stommelen was otherwise occupied. She finished the Jim Clark Memorial Trophy, at Hockenheim, in eleventh, just behind team-mate Hermann Unold. The ADAC-Eifelrennen gave her a fifteenth place.

She did not qualify in Madrid, the fourth round of the European F2 championship, but was then ninth in the Lotteria di Monza Grand Prix, having qualified as part of the Formula 5000 class. This was followed by a DNQ at Rouen-les-Essarts, and a DNF at Imola. A second attempt at the Mantorp Trophy gave her a twelfth place, but a second go at the Preis von Baden-Württemburg led to a disqualification, after she cut a chicane. The Crystal Palace Spring Bank Holiday F2 race, in May, had seen Hannelore collide with a stationary Graham Hill. He was not seriously hurt, but it was rather embarrassing publicity for Hannelore.

Away from Formula Two, a guest spot in the Shell Super Oil British Formula Three championship, at Silverstone, ended in engine failure. Her car was a March 713S. She tried to qualify for the Paul Ricard, Mallory Park and Brands Hatch rounds, but could not manage it. Touring cars had been put to one side for the time being. All in all, it was rather an up-and-and-down year, with much experience gained, but a lot of frustration.

Judging by the entry lists, Hannelore expected to have another full season in European Formula Two, driving both a March and a Brabham BT38, but she did not end up taking her place in most of her predicted events. The only significant F2 race she actually drove in, was the Rhein-Pokalrennen at Hockenheim. She was thirteenth, in the Eifelland team’s own car, based on a March 722. A similar car, based on the 721, was raced by Rolf Stommelen in Formula One that year, without great success. The team was apparently set up to allow Stommelen to compete in Formula One, but there is a hint of an interesting “what if?” story here.

Hannelore married Günther Hennerici, one of the owners of Eifelland, about then, and retired from active motorsport competition, in order to start a family. After her three children were born, she pursued business interests of her own, including a guesthouse.

(Image from http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hannelore_Werner)

Female Single-Seater Drivers Around the World: the Americas

Suzane Carvalho

Drivers who have competed in the US oval racing feeder series, if they are not on this page, are likely to be found here. Maria Cristina Rosito, Samin Gomez, Roxie Lott, Bruna Tomaselli, Veronica Valverde, Chloe Chambers, Lindsay Brewer, Maite Caceres, Cecilia Rabelo and Ianina Zanazzi now have their own profiles. Argentine drivers now have their own post, as do Canadian drivers.

Maria Francisca Aceitón – Chilean driver who did one season of her national Formula 3 championship, in 2001. She was recruited by a team looking specifically for a female driver, and jumped straight from karting to full-scale single-seater racing, at the age of 22. She was tenth overall. After her single F3 season, she returned to karting, winning a 125cc championship in 2013. She is from a motorsport family; her father was a racing driver too.

Lindsey Adams – raced between 2006 and 2009, starting in regional championships, following five years of successful karting in multiple classes. In 2006, when she was 19, she was second in the Southwest Formula Mazda championship, with two wins. In 2007, she moved into Formula BMW, entering six races in the US championship. Her best result was thirteenth, achieved twice at Miller Raceway. She was 18^th in the championship. She also raced in Formula Mazda again, for more experience, as part of the Skip Barber championship. After that, she stepped away from single-seaters, racing Legends and Late Model stock cars. She won at least one Legends race in 2008. After deferring her college place to race professionally, she started a business career in 2009. During her time on the circuits, she was a spokesperson for breast cancer charities.

Valeria Aranda - usually races single-seaters in Mexico. She has been competing in Formula 1800 since 2017, for part-seasons, although she managed seven races in 2019 and had a best finish of eighth at Monterrey. This and a ninth at San Luis were her first top-ten finishes. For the past two years, she has been racing for the Del Rio team. In 2019, she tried pickup truck racing for the first time and was thirteenth in a round of the Mikel’s Trucks championship at Mexico City. In 2020, she drove a SEAT in 1800cc touring car races, making appearances in three different championships. She did best in the Copa Notiauto, finishing second and fourth at Pachuca. At the beginning of 2021 she was part of an all-female team for the 1000 Milhas Brasil, then she raced in the Mikel's Trucks Series for almost a full season. She was tenth in the championship. Her best finish was seventh at Puebla, one of four top-ten finishes that year. A second season in Trucks led to championship eighth, with a best finish of fourth at Monterrey. In 2023, she raced again in Trucks and her best finishes were two sixth places. She was tenth in the 2024 Truck series, although she improved her best finish to fifth, in the last round at Mexico City. She has been involved in motorsport since the age of seven and first raced a car at 17.

Madison Aust - races in the US F4 championship with Kiwi Motorsport. She first worked with the team during a test organised by W Series in early 2022. She was not selected for further testing by W Series. She was 28th in the championship, peaking with a ninth place at New Jersey Motorsports Park but then struggling at Circuit of the Americas. This was in tandem with a part-season in USF Juniors, where COTA was her best track. She finished twelfth. At 16 years old, 2022 was her first season of senior motorsport, although she had done some karting. Her team had plans to enter her into some USF Juniors races in 2022 as well and she did six of the races, attending the Mid-Ohio and Circuit of the Americas meetings. Her best finish was twelfth at COTA. Twelfth was her bet US F4 finish in 2023; she did the first round at NOLA before switching to TC America. Driving a BMW M2, she won the TCX class twice at Virginia and finished on the podium multiple times, on the way to third in the class championship. In 2024, she carried on with tin-tops, competing in the Toyota GR Cup. This wasn't a hugely successful year, but she started 2025 well with a run in the IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge at Daytona, driving a Hyundai Elantra. She and Suellio Almeida were fourth in the TCR class.

Julia Ayoub - Brazilian driver who raced in Formula Delta in 2021. After a part-season she was eleventh in the Mitsubishi-engined single-seater championship, with a best finish of fourth at Velo Citta. Prior to this, she was active in karting in Europe and was part of the the FIA Girls on Track Rising Stars programme in 2020 and 2021. She also tested an F4 car for W Series at the start of 2022 but was not selected for an F3 test.

Amanda Cartier - raced in US F4 in 2019. She was one of the oldest drivers on the grid at 42 and she only began racing karts in 2014. Her first experience of F4 was the SCCA’s 2019 Formula Pro USA Western championship, in which she was sixth. Her best finish was eighth at Sonoma and she also won the Masters class there. Driving a different F4 car, she made a guest appearance at Circuit of the Americas for the US F4 series for the same World Speed Motorsport team. Her team-mate was Courtney Crone and her best finish was 27th.

Juliana Chiovitti - raced in the Canadian Bridgestone F2000 Series in 2004. She was fourth overall, with two wins and three further podiums, just in front of James Hinchcliffe. Her performances brought her to the attention of Kathryn Nunn, who invited her to an all-female shootout for an Indy Lights seat at the end of the year. Juliana lost out to Sarah McCune. Previously, in 2000, she was assessed as part of a women’s training programme for Toyota Atlantics, with a view to CART in the future, but this did not lead to anything. She began racing very young, having grown up around her family’s kart track, and was second in a Formula 4 championship early in her career.

Sabré Cook - made her single-seater debut in the first race of the 2017 USF2000 championship at St Petersburg. She was 15th and 17th in her two races. Pre-season, she missed out on a scholarship race seat in USF2000 with the Mazda Road to Indy programme. She was selected on the basis of her karting results. These include three outright championships. Sabré’s first experience in a car was a run in a Spec Racer Ford in the 2017 SCCA National Runoffs. In 2018, she raced in USF2000 again, although she had to sit some rounds out due to damaging the car at Road America. Her best finish was fourteenth at Indianapolis. She also did some rounds of the US Formula 4 championship. She was one of the selected drivers for the W Series in 2019 and finished twelfth in the championship, making her the last automatic 2020 qualifier. Her best finish was eighth at Misano, although she did manage third in the reverse-grid non-championship race at Assen. The 2020 W Series was cancelled due to coronavirus, but she did do some rounds of the Indy Pro 2000 Series with Team Benik. Her best finishes were two tenth places at Road America. In 2021, she returned to W Series, but it was an indifferent year for her and she was 20th in the championship, with an eleventh place at Spa her best result. She also made guest appearances in the MX5 Cup in the USA, finishing twelfth and thirteenth at Daytona. Later in the year, she drove the Yeeti BMW M2 CS in one round of the NLS. For 2023, she signed for the Porsche Carrera Cup in the USA, in the Pro class, but she was unable to complete the season. A second Carrera Cup campaign in 2024 was split between two teams, and she was twelfth overall.

Courtney Crone - American driver who won the Formulaspeed National Championship in 2018, driving a two-litre Formula Mazda car and winning nine races from fourteen. She used the same car in SCCA Formula Atlantic and the West Coast Formula Car Challenge in 2017. In 2018, she also raced in F1600, which uses Formula Ford chassis and a Honda engine, as well as some classic Formula Ford. The following year, she tried out Formula 4, making a guest appearance at Circuit of the Americas. Her best finish was 15th. Previously, she raced midget cars from the age of four. She has tried to enter the all-female W Series twice and been unsuccessful. Since then, she has done a few races in midgets including the 2021 Chilli Bowl. In 2022, she signed for the IMSA Prototype Challenge, driving a Ligier LMP3 car for Jr III Racing. Her best finish was fifth in the season opener at Daytona. This continued in 2023, when she was fourth in the LMP3 class pf IMSA VP Racing SportsCar Challenge. She also did some rounds of the German Prototype Cup, driving the Duqueine and a Ginetta. There was less racing in 2024, but more career progress: she did a few Lamborghini Super Trofeo races, then was selected as an F1 Academy wildcard for the Miami races. She was fourteeenth and eleventh. In 2025, she will drive in the series full-time for Prema, as well as racing in the Eurocup-4 Spanish Winter Championship for preparation.

Caitlyn McDaniel - US driver based in the UK who started her senior career in 2025. She signed for the GB4 championship, driving for Fox Motorsport, aged 18. At the time of writing, her best finish has been a fourteenth place at Oulton Park. At the end of July, she also tried out a Caterham at Zandvoort. Previously, she had been active in karting since 2021, including a run in the Jamie Chadwick Series in England. Her long-term goal is top-level sportscar racing.

Ava Dobson - US driver who has competed in both her home country and the UK. She began racing aged 15 in 2023, winning a scholarship to compete in the USF Juniors series. She did the Road America rounds and managed and eleventh place. She returned to the championship for 2024, but had to pull out after injuring herself in an accident at Barber Motorsports Park. Later in the season, she moved to the UK to do some rounds of the GB4 championship, racing at Silverstone and Donington for VRD Racing. She finished once in the top ten, taking ninth at Silverstone. Her second GB4 season was with the Arden team.

Angela Durazo - raced in Formula 4 in the USA in 2018. She was the first female driver to enter the championship. Her part-season resulted in a best finish of 21st at Mid-Ohio, out of about 36 starters. She is possibly the only racing driver currently active who has rheumatoid arthritis, which curtailed her triathlon career. She works as an actress outside motorsport.

Zoey Edenholm - raced in US Formula 4. Her best F4 result so far has been a ninth place at Virginia in July. 2019 is her first year of senior competition after several years of karting, although she first tried to break into cars in 2017, testing a USF2000 car at Indianapolis. The following year, she took part in the Lucas Oil School of Racing at Sebring, as a recipient of the Pippa Mann Scholarship. In 2020 she made a surprise move into Stadium Super Trucks, entering two races in the Speed Energy championship. In 2021 she made a brief return to US F4 at Circuit of the Americas.

Molly Elliott - raced single-seaters and sportscars in the US in the 1980s. Having raced single-seaters since 1983, she is believed to be the first woman to start a Formula Ford race from pole, at Charlotte in 1986. Her final position in the race was second. She also raced in Formula 2000, finishing tenth in the Canadian championship in 1986. She was named as part of an all-female team for the 1987 SCCA Escort Endurance Championship, driving a Saleen Mustang, but it is not clear whether she actually got to race.

Claudia Fuentes – Chilean driver most famous for her exploits in Formula 3. Her first race was in 2005, when she was 17, making her the Chilean championship’s youngest ever driver. She had a second season in Chilean F3 in 2006, and is described as being quite successful, despite actual results proving hard to find. She may also have raced touring cars, although again, details are sketchy. She began a rally career in 2012, driving a Honda. 

Amber Furst - most famous for attempting to qualify for the Indianapolis 500 in 1983. She had applied to take her rookie test, but was turned down due to her lack of experience on ovals. Her ex-Rolla Vollstedt car was meant to be driven by Bill Henderson in qualifying instead, with Amber as team manager, but this did not happen either. Amber was 33 at the time, and said in interviews she had been racing for five years, usually at Portland International Raceway. In 1982, she was racing Formula Fords, having started in that class. In 1981, she was third in the Oregon championship and seventh in the Northwestern. Further details of her career are proving hard to find. 

Juliana Gonzalez - Colombian-born driver living in Mexico. She started racing very young, at fifteen, in Mexico, winning one race in Formula Renault and scoring four further podiums. She then moved to the USA, contesting the 2006 and 2007 Formula Ford 2000 championship. She was tenth overall in 2006. Her best 2007 finish was second, at Road Atlanta, and she was usually in the top ten after her first few races. She did not compete for the whole 2007 season, but also took part in some Panam Formula Renault races. In 2008, she moved up to the Star Mazda series, but only managed to start one race, at Sebring. Her final position was fifteenth. She does not appear to have raced since then.

Hannah Greenemeier - began her car racing career in US F4 at the start of 2023. She was one of the winners of the Parella Motorsports diversity scholarship and was signed by Kiwi Motorsport for the F4 championship. Her first races were at NOLA and she was 12th, 11th and 16th in the three rounds. In 2024, she switched to sportscars, racing an Aston Marttin in the Pirelli GT4 America championship. She and her team-mate Hannah Grisham were tenth in the Silver class, after finishing on the podium once, in second place at Barber. Previously, she was a successful senior-level karter, winning the 2021 US ProTour title. 

Jenna Grillo - raced in SCCA Formula Atlantic in 2017. She was thirteenth in the championship with one third place at Virginia as her best result. She won her class and it was only her first race weekend in the car. Just before then, she was second in the SCCA Spring Sprints at the same circuit. Alongside her single-seater racing, she also drove a Ginetta sportscar in some FARA endurance events. 2016 was her first racing season in cars, and she took part in some rounds of the F2000 series. She was eleventh in the championship. Jenna suffers with fibromyalgia.

Ava Hanssen - began racing single-seaters as a senior aged 14, in 2023. Her first race was in a historic Formula Ford and she won at the Circuit of the Americas SVRA race. She continued in Formula Ford in 2024, competing with Formula Race Promotions F1600 series. She was eleventh in her first race at Road Atlanta and improved through the year, earning her best finish of fourth in the final round at Summit Point. Her car was a 2012 Mygale. In 2025, she moved up to the Ligier Junior Formula series, an F4 championship. Her best result has been fifth at Road Atlanta. Prior to her debut in cars, she raced karts from the age of four.

Nancy James - veteran club and national racer, active since 1973. Her first car was a Lotus 67 Formula Ford. In the 1990s, she and her husband built their own single-seater cars, in which Nancy set several speed records at different tracks. In 2007, she was still competing in Formula Ford, and in 2001, she raced a Radical at Spa.

Shantal Kazazian – winner of the Chilean Formula 4 championship in 1991. This was a dominant performance, and she claimed her title two races before the end of the season. She was only 18 years old. In 1992, she moved into Formula 3, and became the first female points scorer in Chilean F3, with a fifth place in the first round. She was racing for a team sponsored by Hellmann’s Mayonnaise, along with her brother, Shahan. She did not continue in single-seaters after 1992, although she did participate in some ladies-only races in Argentina, later in the 1990s. After her motorsport career ended, she was a successful jetski racer, before working as an artist.

Kristy Kester - American driver last seen competing in Formula Star Mazda. She began her career in SCCA single-seater events in 2007, and was fourth in a divisional championship. With her own team, she moved up to Star Mazda in 2008. Her best finish was fourth, at Portland, and she visited the top ten on three more occasions, giving her ninth overall. In 2009, she did not fare as well, despite scoring some official support from 3G. Her best finish was only tenth, at Iowa, and she only took part in seven rounds, finishing 22nd. Since then, she has not been able to compete due to lack of sponsorship. She is now a medical student and MMA fighter.

Sabrina Kuronuma - competes in single-seaters and endurance events. She did some races in the Gaúcho Formula 1.6 championship in 2011 and 2012. She was set to move to the USA to drive in the Indycar feeder series, and had a team and finances in place, but health problems meant that this was not possible. In 2011, she was part of an all-female team that raced in the Tarumã 12-Hour event, with Isadora Diehl and Patricia de Souza. They were eleventh overall, in a Volkswagen Golf. She attempted to get to America to race in Formula Atlantic, in 2014, but does not seem to have made it.

Julia Landauer – raced single-seaters in the States, before switching to Late Model stock cars in 2009. She came through the Skip Barber system at a young age, finishing sixth in the Southern Regional Series at sixteen years old, in 2007. She won her first Skip Barber championship two years earlier. After a short part-season in the Skip Barber National Series, she graduated to Formula BMW in 2009. Despite three non-finishes in the first three races of the season, she improved, and by the end, at Mosport, she achieved her best finish of fifth, one of three top tens in the second half of the season. She was sixteenth overall. After a break, during which she attended university, she started racing Late Models at her local circuit, Motor Mile in Virginia. In 2015, she was one of the leading drivers in her region, with four wins. This led to a ride in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series, driving a Toyota. She was fourth in the championship, with a second and third place at the end of the season. In 2017, she made a couple of K&B Series East appearances, driving for Troy Cline's team, but most of her year was spent in its West counterpart, with Bob Bruncati Racing. She was seventh in the championship, with a best finish of fifth at Douglas County Speedway. She did a couple more races in 2018, earning a twelfth place at Loudon in the NASCAR Pinty's Series. She did six more Pinty's Series races in 2019, earning one top-ten finish at Bowmanville and leading a lap at Hamilton. In 2020, she travelled to Europe for the NASCAR Whelen EuroSeries. She was seventh in the shortened four-round championship, finishing fifth at Zolder. It was back to the States for 2022, when she entered two NASCAR Xfinity races. She finished one at Homestead, in 28th place.

Kim Madrid - races a historic Formula Ford in the USA. She has won races at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in 2022 and 2023, driving a 1978 Crossle. In 2018, she won the Crossflow Cup for historic Formula Fords. She has been racing on-track since 2004 and previously campaigned a Formula Vee, winning the FV1 championship four years in a row, from 2007 to 2010. As well as racing her pink Crossle, she also helps to run championships.

Maria Jose Perez de Arce - Chilean driver who began racing single-seaters in 2019, when she was only fifteen. She raced in Formula Codasur, finishing sixth in the championship for the PDA Comp team. In 2022, she entered the FIA Motorsport Games in the F4 category, representing Chile. She was 21st in the qualifying race and 22nd in the final. In between, she has been active in karting.

Kelsey Pinkowski - races F4 in both America and Japan. After some testing in 2024, she signed for the Ligier JS F4 series for 2025, driving for the Crosslink Motorsports team. At the time of writing, her best result has been an eighth place at Road America, one of three top-ten finishes. In Japan, she is part of the kids.com Team KCMG squad, racing against other women in a KCMG F4 car.

Samira Rached – Mexican driver who competes in Formula 1800 and the Super Copa Telcel. She began racing in Formula Vee in 2012, and moved into Formula 1800 in 2014. That year, she was eleventh in the championship, with two top-ten finishes, an eighth place at Puebla and a tenth at Pachuca. At the time of writing, she has managed three top tens in the 2015 series. In 2014 and 2015, she has also been part of the Super Copa Telcel, organised by a TV channel, and was one of its leading drivers in 2015. Another season in the Formula V series was not as successful; in 2016, she did five races, with a best finish of ninth, at Zacatecas. 2017 was a struggle for opportunities, but she managed two races in Formula 1800. She was sixth at Guadalajara and eleventh at Mexico City. 2018 was a similar story: she did two F1800 races, with a best finish of ninth at Mexico City. 2019 seems to have been spent mostly in speed events, although she did start one race at Queretaro. She races for a family team, run by her father, Raul.  

Kay Rathmann - raced in Formula Vee in the late 1960s. In 1969, she was part of the ladies’ contingent in a big Daytona race for Formula Vee, alongside Jenny Nadin and Hannelore Werner. She was classified 33rd, the first of the female drivers, despite not being as experienced as the other two. She seems to have been part of Volkswagen’s “Coupe de Charme” for women drivers in Formula Vee. Also in 1969, she drove in another Formula Vee race, at Daytona, alongside several Mercury and Apollo astronauts, including Gordon Cooper and Pete Conrad. She had done some Formula Vee racing with Conrad at the same track in 1968. By 1972, she was still competing, and entered another  big Formula Vee event at Daytona, the Brundage Trophy. She did not finish. Kay was married to Jim Rathmann, who sometimes entered her in his cars.

Monserrat de la Rosa – Mexican driver who races in the Telcel Super Copa in her home country. She started racing single-seaters in 2011, in the Mexican Formula Vee championship. After doing some touring car racing in her national championship in 2012, she took part in Formula V-1800 in 2013. For some of the season, she tested a FF2000 car in the USA, with the hope of a race seat in 2014, but this did not transpire. She did compete in the smaller “Pony” class of the Super Copa, but not in the main draw. She was seventh at Tangamanga. In 2015, she returned to V-1800, for at least one race. She also took part in a celebrity race at San Luis, which she won. At the same meeting, she was fifteenth in a V-1800 race. Early in the season, she was linked with a drive in a GT3 car, but this only seems to have been some testing. Throughout her career, she has struggled for sponsorship, and has only raced a few times each season. In 2016, she switched to dirt track racing ("Car Cross"), and was third in her novice class. She launched her own dirt track team in 2017 and won some races in 2018. 

Glenna Sacks - raced in Formula Vee in America in the 1970s. Her career began in 1972, and she initially raced a Datsun that used to belong to her husband. The next year, she moved into single-seaters, mostly Formula Vee. She was doing well in SCCA events until a serious accident wrote off her car and left her with shoulder and neck injuries. She bounced back, without the wrecked Vee, and later raced a Formula Ford and an Austin-Healey Sprite.

Sara Sanchez - former karter who has raced single-seaters in Uruguay. She appears to have competed in a junior series called Super Formula 2000 in 2008, which may have been a Formula Renault series, although details are sketchy. Her best finish was fourth. In 2009, she entered Formula Chevrolet in Brazil, but only drove in one race, at El Pinar. She was seventh. The championship was cancelled shortly after, due to lack of entries. The same happened in 2010, leaving Sara with one unclassified finish to her name. Sara is Brazilian.

Kerstin Smutny - mostly races open-wheel cars in the USA. She began her senior career at 16, in 2006, in the Formula TR Pro Series for Formula Renault cars. She was eighth in her first season and seventh in her second, in 2007. In 2008, she dropped back down to racing Midget cars, and was fourth in the Washington state championship. A detour into saloons then followed; she drove in the VW Jetta TDI Cup, and was 21st overall. After that, she took a break from motorsport, partly enforced by a lack of sponsorship, and returned in 2012, back in single-seaters. She entered some rounds of the Formula Car Challenge Championship, in a FormulaSPEED Mazda. She was third and second at Infineon Raceway, and was third in the championship. She did not race in 2013 or 2014, but was active in karting in 2015. Her racing plans were put on hold during 2016, due to pregnancy. 

Nicole Solano – Costa Rican driver who raced in Formula Renault (Formula 2000) in the Americas in 2010. She was third in one race at La Guácima, in Costa Rica, and seventh in three others, but the rest of her results, and her championship position, are not forthcoming. She was only fifteen years old in 2010. Her brother, André Solano, also raced in the championship, and was the eventual winner. Nicole does not appear to have raced since then.

Ginni Swanton – raced in Star Formula Mazda between 1995 and 2004. For quite a lot of this, she was part of the Pro section. In the National-level competition, her best season was 2003, when she was 19^th overall. Her best race finish was fourteenth, at Nazareth. In 2004, she did eight races with Bucknum Racing, and was 29^th. Previously, in 2000, she raced in the Formula Mazda Western Division. In 2001, she raced in both series, and ran quite well in the Western Division, with at least two top-ten finishes, at Phoenix. As well as dedicated Star Mazda races, Ginni also competed in SCCA races, in her Star Mazda car.

Payton Westcott - began her senior career in 2025, racing F4 in Europe at the age of 15. Her first championship was the 2025 Formula Winter Series, based in Spain. She drove for the Van Amersfoort team and was 27th in the championship. Her best result was a thirteenth place at Aragon Motorland. For the main 2025 season, she signed for the Italian F4 series with the same team. In the first round at Misano, she was 20th and 26th, not finishing the other race on the timetable.

Mianna Wick - most famous for her historic racing in a 1996 Lola Indycar, which she first drove in 2015, after testing a later Indycar a year earlier. Her Indycar activities have mainly been shows, although she also appears to have done some hillclimbs. She started racing cars in 2013, after several years of karting, including Superkarts. Her first car was a Formula Ford 1600, in which she won a Flying Miata Time Trial in 2013. She acquired a Formula Mazda for the 2014 season, and won two races at the SCCA Labor Daze meeting. In 2015, she was first and second in the Formula Mazda at the SCCA Freedom Sprint. 2016 was mostly spent concentrating on raising sponsorship for running the Indycar, as well as some driving in the car.

(Image from http://www2.uol.com.br/suzane/pilotos/suzane.shtml)