Friday, 12 June 2026

Alexandra Asmasoebrata (Allida Alexandra)


Alexandra Asmasoebrata, also known as Allida Alexandra or Andra, is an Indonesian driver who competed up to international Formula Renault level. 

After four or so years of karting, she first stepped up to single-seater racing aged 16, taking part in the 2004 Formula BMW Scholarship shooutout in Spain. She was not among the winners and did not make her competitive debut until the following year. Her first races were in 2005, when she did some rounds of the China Formula Campus series, winning her class.

She first drove in the Asian Formula Renault Challenge in 2006, aged eighteen. She was 24th overall after participating in seven races. The best of these was her last one at Shanghai, where she was ninth overall. The following year, she did six races, starting at Zhuhai, Sepang and Beijing. Her best finish was a fourteenth place at Beijing.

In 2008, she reappeared in AFR. She was twelfth this time, with a best finish of fifth at Zhuhai, in her first race of the season. This was one of four top-ten finishes she had that year, the others being an eighth and two ninths at Shanghai and Sepang.

For most of her career, she combined Formula Renault and karting. The following year, she was third in the 

A shorter season in 2009 meant that eighth was her best finish, also at Zhuhai, a feat she bettered in 2010 with a fourth place at Zhuhai. She was eighth in the championship. By then, the series was being held entirely in China. 

In 2011, she drove in both the Asian Formula Renault Challenge and Formula Pilota in China. It was her best season yet; she was third in Formula Renault with five podium finishes, four thirds and one second, at her favoured Zhuhai. 

Unfortunately, she only entered four races in 2012: three rounds of Asian Formula Renault. Her finishes were two sevenths, and two DNFs. 

She bounced back in 2013, taking part in six Asian Formula Renault races and earning two thirds and four fourths. She was fourth overall. 

In 2014, she was set to race in Asia Formula Renault again, but does not appear to have competed. A long lay-off followed, where she had three children among other things. She returned to the tracks in 2026, racing in the Mandalika Kartini race, a women's championship held at the Mandalika circuit in Indonesia. There were seven other entrants in Krida Agyas. Alexandra was third.

Alexandra is the daughter of former Indonesian racing driver and politician, Alex Asmasoebrata. It was him who first took her karting and she is open about how this helped her during her own career.

(Image copyright Alexandra Asmasoebrata)

Tuesday, 2 June 2026

Diana Rosario



Diana Rosario is a racer from Macau who is best-known for her efforts in single-seaters, and later, sportscars.

As there is only one circuit in her home country, which is a street circuit and therefore not usually in use, she had to cross the border to race, in China and further afield in Asia. 

Her first time in a single-seater was in 2004, when she was 20. She took part in the Formula Racing Development training school following several successful years of karting in Macau. In order to gain more experience, she worked at kart circuits after school. Her career almost came to a premature end in 2000 when a 16-year-old Diana broke her collarbone during karting practice, but she later credited the experience with helping her mature as a driver.

In the early part of her career, she concentrated on single-seaters, sticking to championships promoted by FRD. She entered the 2005 Formula Campus Challenge in China, driving for the Perfect Beauty team. After eight races, she was unplaced. A few years later, she would return to the Ford-powered series, finishing second in 2009 and winning the title in 2009. Her 2009 victory was by 38 points over her nearest rival, La Wai Lung of Hong Kong.

She competed sporadically in Asian Formula Renault from 2008, with a best finish of fifth overall in 2011. The championship was run in China and her best result came at Zhuhai, where she was fourth.

At the same time, she was developing a parallel career in sportscars. She competed at the prestigious Macau Guia race meeting in 2010 and was 22nd in the Macau GT Cup, driving a Ferrari F360. Presumably in the same car, she took on the Zhuhai rounds of the Asian GT Series, finishing second and third. Her second run in the Macau GT Cup in 2011 gave her an 18th place, competing against Chinese driver Rose Tan Ying. Eduardo Mortara was the winner.

She committed fully to sportscars in 2012. The GT Cup was not her best event and she was 25th in a Ferrari F430, but her two races in the Asian GT Series were enough for eighth in the championship. Further afield, she took the Ferrari to Sepang for a round of the Malaysian Super Series, finishing eleventh in the GT class.

In 2013, she was linked with a drive in the Asian Le Mans series, but does not appear to have competed. 

Later, in 2018, she made a comeback in the Asian Blancpain GT Series, driving a Mercedes GT4 for Craft Bamboo Racing. Her best finish was fourth at Ningbo, alongside team-mate Naomi Ran Zhang. She had shared the car with James Tang earlier in the season.

She has not raced since then.

(Image from "Indigenous Species" by Susana Chan)

Monday, 25 May 2026

Anna van Vredenburch Limburg-Stirum


Anna on the 1950 Monte

Anna von Vredenburch Limburg-Stirum was a Dutch rally driver who competed under her birth name, and as the Countess Limburg-Stirum. She won the Coupe des Dames in the 1949 Monte Carlo Rally and entered the classic alpine event six times.

Born in 1914, she first competed in rallying before and after the Second World War, starting when she was in her twenties. Her first attempt at the Monte Carlo Rally seems to have been in 1937, co-driving a Ford as Miss van Vredenburgh. The Countess Limburg-Stirum was recorded as her navigator and was probably a relative of her future husband. They were fourth in the Coupe des Dames rankings. Two years later, in the last pre-war Monte, she and the Ford were 25th overall, tied with Mrs AC Lace. In between, still in a Ford, Anna had come 85th in the 1938 Monte.

Anna married Frans Willem Van Limburg Stirum in 1946. He also competed in the Monte at least twice, driving Ford cars.

On her return to rallying, she was twelfth in the 1949 Monte, and won the Coupe des Dames, still in a Ford. Her navigator was Miss Van Vredenburch, who may have been her younger sister, Elisabeth. Their start point was Monte Carlo itself.

The Ford was brought out again for the 1950 Monte. The Countess got to the finish in 131st place, assisted by Mrs. Stahl Wytema. In April of that year, she was part of a Dutch four-woman team in a big American-styled Ford Vedette, in the Tulip Rally. One of the other drivers was Miss Vredenburch, possibly Elisabeth, who had been part of the team the year before.

She had one more go at the Monte in 1951 with Mrs Stahl-Wytema, but their Ford didn't make it to the end.

Anna was part of two major Dutch aristocratic families. Research into her personal life is made difficult by the number of "Countess Limburg Stirums" who existed at roughly the same time. They include ladies in waiting to the Dutch queen and cookbook writers. Some of the Limburg Stirum family was related, by marriage, to Audrey Hepburn, through her mother.

She died in 1999.

(Image copyright Alamy)

Wednesday, 20 May 2026

Brittany Vorster


Brittany Vorster is a former international Formula Three driver from South Africa. She showed some early promise, but her career stalled at Formula Three level.

She competed in single-seaters in South Africa in 2010, after travelling to Brazil for the first running of the Brazil Open. Her preparations for the event were the first time she had been in a Formula 3 car and she did not qualify. Her South African results are not forthcoming. 

Prior to this, she raced in Formula GTi in South Africa, and was fifth in the 2008 championship after three podium finishes. She went to America late in the season to try out for the Skip Barber karting scholarship, which would have won her a season in Star Mazda in 2009. Her opponents included Conor Daly and Josef Newgarden.

Her first experiences in South America were the following year instead; she was part of a six-driver team for the Granja Viana 500 kart race. Among her rivals were Felipe Massa, Lucas di Grassi, Rubens Barrichello, Tony Kanaan and Ricardo Zonta. She and her team were 26th overall. Massa and di Grassi were part of the winning squad.

She apparently signed with the Prop Car team for the 2010 Formula 3 Sudamericana Lights championship, but it isn't clear how many races she actually did.

A serious accident at the end of the 2010 season meant that she decided to retire. 

Before that, she was active on the karting scene, both nationally and internationally, from 2005. She won the Northern Regions Kart Club DD2 class championship in 2006. Away from motorsport, she was also a model.

Away from the track, she was a model and TV personality. 

(Image from https://continental-circus.blogspot.com/)

Saturday, 16 May 2026

Alba Larsen


Alba Hurup Larsen is a Danish single-seater driver currently racing internationally in F4.

She came to prominence when she joined the all-female F1 Academy in 2025, driving for MP Motorsport in a Tommy Hilfiger-sponsored car. She was only 16 years old and this was her first full season in cars. 

Alba's family were friends with Jan Magnussen and his family and she was close to his two younger children growing up. Naturally, this led to an interest in motorsport and to competitive karting from the age of twelve. She travelled around the world to race and won a junior championship in New Zealand in 2023.

She got her big break with the FIA Girls on Track scheme, also in 2023, when she was selected from hundreds of girls who had taken part in Girls on Track events. The assessments included a kart slalom course. The final test for the chosen drivers was timed laps in an F4 car, which was difficult for her as she had never driven anything with a clutch before. She managed another round of testing and assessment despite being unwell.

In 2024, she began her senior career in F4 India, also run by MP, driving for the Speed Demons Delhi team. She did the first two rounds at Madras and Chennai. Chennai was the better circuit for her and she was sixth and eighth. 

During the winter season, she competed in the Formula Winter Series, for the first three rounds. Her best finish was fourteenth at Aragon and she was 32nd overall. 

Her first F1 Academy season began well, qualifying third at Shanghai, but she was not always able to convert pace into results, particularly at Shanghai when she was penalised for colliding with Emma Felbermayr. Her best results were two fourth places in the first and last rounds of the year, at Shanghai and Las Vegas. She was seventh overall. 

Away from F1 Academy, she raced in British F4 for about two-thirds of the season. This proved more challenging, and she could only manage two eleventh places at Silverstone and Thruxton as her best finishes. She was 23rd overall.

For 2026, she was selected as the Ferrari representative driver in F1 Academy, still with the MP squad. She had joined the Ferrari Driver Academy a couple of months earlier. 

Her racing year began with a part-season in the UAE F4 championship, driving for Evans GP. She did the first three rounds, held at Yas Marina and Dubai, with a best finish of tenth, at the Abu Dhabi circuit. Her 22nd position in the championship was the second-best performance in her team.

The 2026 F1 Academy season was disrupted by war in the Middle East, which meant the second round in Saudi was cancelled. Alba qualified second for the first race of the year at Shanghai, but it was a reverse grid and she crashed into Felbermayr again. She did better in the feature race, finishing eighth after a good start.

From a very early stage in her career, Alba has supported other girls wanting a career in motorsport. Her Alba Academy was set up to do this.

(Image copyright F1 Academy)

Friday, 1 May 2026

Natya Soodeen


Natya Soodeen is a rally driver from Barbados who started competing seriously in 2020. After a debut at Vaucluse Raceway in 2019, her first rally was delayed due to the coronavirus crisis. She managed to spend time training in Sweden and the USA before the King of the Hill Rally in October.

Her car was a BMW 318 Compact E36 and she was entered into the Barbados championship’s BimmaCup. Co-driven by Justin Sisnett all season, her best finish was a 24th place in the BRC Winter Rally. She was third in the BimmaCup. Her first entry into the Sol Rally Barbados ended early on, as she rolled her car.

In 2021, she concentrated on rallysprints in Barbados. Her best overall finish in the BMW was 21st, in the MCBI/BRC Sprint. As well as rallies, she won a national autocross championship.Away from active competition, she was elected head of the Women in Motorsport committee for Barbados.

In 2022, she rallied the BMW quite extensively in Barbados, with a best finish of 21st in the BRC Winter Rally. She had a new navigator in Tammy Nelson, having wanted to compete with a woman co-driver earlier. Sadly, she did not finish the Sol Rally Barbados again.

She got rid of the Sol Rally Barbados albatross in 2023, taking the BMW to 39th overall with Sameisha Williams.  It was an exciting year for her; she scored her first top ten in a single-venue stage rally in Barbados, and she also had her first overseas event. The Martinique Rally Tour was part of the French championship and she was fourteenth overall, winning the ladies' award.

She continued to compete extensively in 2024, aking the BMW to Martinique again. This time, it developed mechanical problems and she retired on stage 13, near the end of the second leg. She and Sameisha finished the Rally Barbados again, in 58th place, not helped by a penalty.The BRC Winter Rally was her best event again and she was 25th.

After so long with the BMW, it must have been a big change to switch to Peugeot power at the start of 2025. Natya's new car was a Peugeot 208 R2. She had an inauspicious start, failing to finish the season-opening BRC Shakedown Rally. The reason was prosaic; she was having trouble depressing the clutch fully. A month later, clutch pedal adjusted, she was finishing Rally Barbados, in 48th place from 67 finishers. She was then 18th in Martinique.

A series of class wins in sprint events in Barbados followed, leading to a class championship at the end of the year. She brought the BMW out again for the BRC Winter Rally, but did not finish.

She continued to rally the Peugeot in 2026.

Before turning to motorsport, Natya represented both Barbados and Trinidad and Tobago in equestrian events until she was suspended by sporting authorities, for reasons that were never made clear.

(Image coypright Natya Soodeen)

Thursday, 23 April 2026

Solenn Amrouche


Solenn Amrouche is a French driver who began her career in sportscars, before switching to single-seaters. She is known for racing a Vortex sports prototype in Europe.

She began her career in the Mitjet silhouette series when she was 17, and also raced a Porsche and a Fun Cup VW with her father, Lionel Amrouche.

Her first full season in sportscars was in 2023, and she was a class runner-up in the Spanish GT Endurance championship. She shared the car with her father and won one race outright. They were fourth in the championship, having never finished lower than fourth. This was a new version of the car too. As well as the Spanish championship, Solenn shared the Vortex with Lorina Padovani for the Ultimate Cup in France, finishing as class runner-up twice. She also took part in the Barcelona 24 Hours with three male team-mates: Stephane Cottrell, Julien Boillot and Philippe Gruau. They were 31st overall and sixth in class. This was her first experience of a 24-hour race.

She continued to compete for the Vortex team in 2024, in the Spanish Endurance Championship and in the 24H Series European championship, where she picked up a GTX class win at Barcelona. She also raced a Porsche in the 992 class for the Seblajoux team, finishing 19th and twelfth at Portimao.

Her Spanish GT season was plagued with car problems to begin with and she wrote it off as a development year, but still picked up a class win at Navarra. This was after missing the first two races with a malfunctioning Vortex. She was fourth individually in the GTX standings and ninth overall in the championship.

In 2025, she changed to single-seaters, racing a Formula Regional-spec Tatuus F3 car in the Hoosier Cup, which runs as part of the Ultimate Cup series. She started slowly at Paul Ricard, but got quicker as the weekend went on and was fifth in Race 3. This improved to fourth in Portugal, then third place at Aragon, her best of the season. Her final championship position was seventh.

The Vortex had not been forgotten either and she did one race in it at the Dubai 24 Hours, finishing third in class. Her team-mates were her father, Gilles Courtois and Philippe Bonnel.

She took her single-seater racing further for 2026. At the end of of 2025, she was announced as a driver in the GB4 championship in the UK, driving for the Arden team.

(Image copyright Solenn Amrouche)