Winter Break

Speedqueens is currently undergoing its yearly update and clean-up, so there will be no new posts for a while.

Merry Christmas, see you all next year!

Ulrike Krafft

Ulrike on the ETCC podium in 2013

Ulrike Krafft is a German driver who has been competing in the ETCC since 2011.

She began at the age of 20, in slaloms in 2004, winning her first title in 2005, driving an Opel Corsa. This was her first experience of any kind of motorsport, and she showed flair and competitiveness very early on.

Her first circuit races were in 2006, in the Dacia Logan Cup in Germany. Her best finishes were three fifth places. She did these alongside slaloms, in which she was still highly competitive, finishing second in her club’s championships for young drivers and allcomers.

She carried on in the Logan Cup in 2007, and performed well enough to win her club’s racing championship. Her season started very well, with a win at Oschersleben, but a series of technical problems later on put her and her team-mates out of the running.

2008 was a similar story. Ulrike and her team-mate, Henrik Stoldt, were very competitive, and even led the championship, until the final round. A lost wheel and other mechanical problems lost them the title. They were awarded the “Fairness Cup” as a consolation, for their sportsmanship.

The following year was a quiet one for Ulrike. Her ADAC Hansa team only entered one round of the Logan Cup, in which Ulrike was fourth. She spent much of the rest of the year concentrating on her university studies. She qualified in engineering, after studying in Hamburg and France, and earning herself a job with Bosch.

Following her graduation, she returned to motorsport, and moved up to the ADAC Procar series.  She was with the ATM Ladies team, driving a Ford Fiesta in Division II. She was fifth in the division, with a best finish of second, at Hockenheim, one of three podium places. The team consisted of three female drivers: Ulrike, Saskia Müller and Stephanie Neitzel, who also managed the team.  

In 2010, she also tried rallying, in a Dacia Logan, both as a driver and co-driver. Driving, she entered the Niedersachsen Rally, but did not finish. Her navigator was Katharina Wüstenhagen. As a co-driver, she was also unsuccessful, scoring a DNF in the Ostsee Rally with Pierre Humbert.

On the circuits, she held position in 2011, finishing fifth despite a slightly shortened season, with two second places at Oschersleben and Sachsenring, and a third at the Sachsenring. Sadly, a technical problem with the Fiesta, which began with a DNF at Zolder, put her out of four races. She also made her debut appearance in the ETCC, which was a two-round meeting at Salzburg. She was second in class for her two races, driving the Fiesta.

In 2012, she moved into the ETCC full-time, in the S1600 class, driving a different Fiesta, run by the Ravenol team. The championship had now expanded to four rounds. She was third in the S1600 championship, with a best finish of second, at Monza, plus third places at Imola, Salzburg and the Slovakiaring.

She contested the ETCC again in 2013, which was run over ten races, in five rounds. She was quite successful, winning her class once at Pergusa, and finishing third on six occasions. Her overall result was third in the Super 1600 class, in the Fiesta. However, she lost her Ladies' crown to Andrina Gugger, who was racing in the more powerful Super 2000 class.

In 2014, she came back to the ETCC, still in the Fiesta. She was a leading player in the S1600 class again, with five wins, from five pole positions. She was second in the S1600 standings, and would have won, had she not suffered two non-finishes at Zolder, where she started from pole. An official Ladies’ Trophy was awarded this year, and Ulrike won it easily, from Ksenya Niks and Andrina Gugger.

2015 was not quite as successful a season as 2014, but Ulrike was still one of the drivers to beat in S1600, in her Fiesta. She won one race, at the Slovakiaring, having started from pole. She earned a second pole position at Pergusa, at the end of the season, but could only convert it to a win in the second race. She was third overall.

The Super 1600 class was more competitive in 2016, and Ulrike missed several rounds of the championship. Despite a win at the Slovakiaring and a second and third place, she was seventh overall in her Fiesta. She also did some historic racing while she was away from the ETCC.

She did not race in 2017 and in 2018, she announced that she was pregnant with twins.

Ulrike’s long-term aim is to race in the WTCC.

(Image copyright Brigitta Niemann)

Jamie Chadwick

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

"Charlotte" (Cécile de Montgolfier)

"Charlotte" in 1975

“Charlotte” was a French rally driver of the early 1970s. She never used her given name in connection with motorsport. She was from the Ardèche region, and worked as an ambulance driver.

Her career began in hillclimbs, in a VW, and later, an Alpine-Renault 1100 and a Porsche 911. Her rally career started in the navigator’s seat in 1970. The Paris-St.Raphaël Rally is described as her first event, although the name of the driver, and the make of the car, is lost. They did not finish, following a roll.

In 1972, she started driving herself, usually in an Alpine-Renault A110 Berlinette. Although she always drove as an amateur, she received sponsorship from Esso. This, and her choice of car, has led to some confusion between her and the drivers of Team Aseptogyl. Charlotte was never an Aseptogyl team member.

Her biggest achievement in 1972 was probably her win in the National class of the Paris-St. Raphaël Rally. She also won two other class awards, driving an Alpine-Renault 1600 with Annie Hanriot.

By 1973, she was tackling some of the big French events, including the Tour de Corse, in a Gordini-engined Renault 12. She did not finish. That year, she was also the runner-up in the Paris-St. Raphaël Rally, in an Alpine-Renault. With Marie-José Hommel, she competed in the Tour de France, but her attempt ended at the Montjuic Park circuit, due to problems with the Alpine during a speed test. In the same car, she was twelfth in the Ronde Cévenole.

In 1974, she was fourth in the Paris-St. Raphaël, and competed in the Tour de France, in the Alpine-Renault, although she did not finish. Her best result was a 15th place in the Rallye du Var. Her other rallies, including the Tour de Corse, mostly ended in DNFs, although she was seventh in class in the Mont Blanc Rally. She did better in hillclimbs, winning several Coupes des Dames and placing well in her class. Another try at the Tour de France led to more frustration, after a spin at Magny-Cours, again during a speed trial, put her out of the running.

In 1975, she tried circuit racing, in the Coupe Renault Elf Gordini. This decision was partly motivated by her amateur status; rallying, at the level of which she was capable, required time for recce and preparations, which circuit racing did not. Charlotte was one of two female drivers in the Coupe, driving a modified Renault 5, the other being Joëlle Pasquier. She was thirteenth on the Le Mans Bugatti circuit, and eighth at Albi. Later in the season, she planned to team up with Corinne Tarnaud for another Tour Auto, in a Porsche 911 this time.

Sadly, this was not to be. Charlotte was killed in a road traffic accident, whilst attending another car crash with her ambulance, in September 1975. She was 29 years old.

(Image from http://pilotos-muertos.com/)

Christina Orr-West

Christina in 2015

Christina Orr, of New Zealand, is mostly known as a single-seater specialist. A precocious talent, she raced karts from an early age, and Formula First at twelve. This made her the youngest person to race a single-seater in competition. Not only that, but she was on the podium too. She was fourteenth in the championship.

The next year, in 2002, she was second in the New Zealand Formula First championship. During that year’s winter season, she moved up to Formula Ford, and won a “Rookie of the Series” award.

Her first full season of Formula Ford began in late 2002, and she was ninth overall, after a part-season. The following year, she was sixth, racing against the likes of Brendon Hartley and Charlie Kimball. She finished on the podium once. 

Her 2003 season was marred by tragedy, as she was involved in an accident in which a fellow Formula Ford racer, Michael McHugh, was killed. A lengthy inquest followed, but Christina was later absolved from blame, despite the protestations of McHugh’s family.

Putting 2003 behind her, 2004 saw her first international events – two races in the Australian Drivers’ Championship. Later, it was back to the NZ Formula Ford championship. Christina kept improving gradually, and was fifth at the end of the season. She scored two podium places, and two fastest laps.

In 2006, she moved up to Formula Toyota, New Zealand’s top-level domestic single-seater series. She was seventh in the winter series, before the main 2006-07 season started. Although she was not able to get another podium place, she did well in the championship, and was fifth overall.

2007 was a quiet year. She travelled to Australia, for the Bathurst 12 Hours, as part of an all-girl driving squad with Samantha Reid, Lauren Gray and Leanne Tander. They drove a Holden Astra, but did not finish.

Her next Formula Toyota season was 2008. This was something of a mixed year, with her best finishes being two fifth places at Manfeild. For the most part, she finished in the top ten, and was eighth overall.

The same year, she also entered four Indy Lights races in the USA. Her long-term goal was now a race seat in one of the American oval series. Out of her four races, she finished three times, and  had a best result of 16th, at Chicagoland. She hoped this would lead to more Stateside opportunities, but sponsorship was not forthcoming.

Most of 2009 was rather quiet for Christina. She did make one major appearance in Australia, in the Bathurst 12 Hours. She was part of a second all-female team, with Molly Taylor and Heather Spurle. They drove a Subaru Impreza, and were 27^th overall, second in class.

After almost a year's lay-off, she returned to motorsport for the 2009-10 southern hemisphere season, driving a Holden Commodore saloon in New Zealand. She entered the BNTV8 and NZV8 series, in a self-entered car. Her best finish in BTV8s was eleventh, at Teretonga, and she was 22^nd overall. She was 14^th in the NZV8 Hamilton 400 Trophy.

A second season in the BNTV8 series in 2010-2011 panned out in a similar fashion. She drove a Commodore, and had a best finish of twelfth, at Taupo, and she was 20^th in the championship.

A break from motorsport followed, during which Christina became a mother.

She returned to New Zealand in 2014, to race Utes. She signed up for the SsangYong Actyon Ute Racing Championship, one of five female drivers to do so. Despite her long lay-off, she was quickly on the pace, and became one of the series’ leading drivers. She won two races, and finished on the podium in four more. Her final championship position was third.

Christina raced Utes again for the 2015-2016 season, but was not quite as quick, and did not make it to the series podium at the end of the year.

However, her third Ssangyong Utes season got off to a fast start, with one win at Taupo at the second meeting of the year. She won again in the last meeting at Pukehohe. In addition, she picked up nine podium positions, three poles and two fastest laps. She was third overall.

She was third again in the 2017-18 Utes championship and signed up again for the 2019-20 season. In addition to the Ute, Christina also started racing an Audi R8 in the NZ Endurance Series, sharing the car with Ben Byers. The pair have scored one third and one fourth place.

She won one race in the Ute during the 2019-20 season.

After a break due to the coronavirus crisis, she returned to the circuits in 2021, racing a Toyota GT86 in the Toyota 86 New Zealand one-mae series. She was a reliable top-ten finisher, as expected, and had a best finish of third at Manfeild. Her final championship position was seventh and she signed up for another season in 2022. Unfortunately, this year was not as successful and she only really got into her stride late on, recording a sixth place at Hampton Downs in the final race of the season as her best finish. She was twelfth in the championship.

She raced in both Australia and New Zealand in 2023. Guest spots in the Mount Panorama rounds of the Australian 86 series gave her a disappointing 27th, 25th and 29th place, but she began the 2024 New Zealand series more strongly, with two top-tens at Taupo. She had been ninth in the championship in 2023. In between, she did a couple of three-hour races in a Mercedes AMG GT4 with Breanna Morris, as part of the South Island Endurance series.

(Image from http://nzmotorracing.co.nz/)

Female Drivers in the Carrera Panamericana

Jacqueline Evans in her "Eva Peron" Porsche, 1953

The Carrera Panamericana was a road race, organised by Enrique Martin Moreno, of Mexico. Its inaugural running followed the opening of the Mexican section of the Pan-American Highway. The route initially ran from Ciudad Juárez, via Texas, to Chiapas, on the Guatemalan border, and consisted of nine stages. Later editions ran in the opposite direction. The first race, in 1950, was a single-class affair for sports and saloon cars, but from 1952, a class system was implemented.

The first Carrera attracted a mix of seasoned US, Mexican and South American racing professionals, European circuit racers, rally drivers and amateur thrill-seekers. At least seven women drivers entered, some of whom fell into the latter category. Marie Brookreson was an ageing adventuress who entered in her own Lincoln, which was mostly driven by Ross Barton, a pilot in his seventies whom she had met when he crash-landed on her estate.  Mrs Lammons’ Buick was sponsored by Hi-A Brassieres.

The race gradually became more and more professionalised, and female participation dropped sharply after the first event. Jacqueline Evans, a British-Mexican actress and racer, was the only female driver to compete in all five Carreras. In 1953, she drove a Porsche 356 running in memory of Eva Peron.

From its beginning, the Carrera was an extremely dangerous race, and its cancellation was largely down to this factor. Women did not escape entirely unscathed; in 1951, Teresita Panini’s car was involved in a serious accident. Her father, Carlos Panini, a Mexican pioneer aviator who was driving at the time, was killed. Teresita was not seriously injured.

The Carrera was revived as a classic road rally in 1988.

Below is a list of all the female drivers who raced in the Carrera Panamericana. As ever, in a mixed team, the woman’s name in always given first, for clarity. Names in italics are assumed to be female drivers, although this has not been verified.

1950

Jacqueline Evans (Chrysler Windsor) – 45^th

Lucille Acevedo/Andrea Gonzáles (Buick) – 47^th

Marie Boone/Arthur Daniel Boone (Buick) – disqualified

Merryl Bedford/Mrs H.R. Lammons (Buick) – DNF

“Mrs. Warren”/E.P. Warren (Buick) – DNF

Marie Brookreson/Ross Barton (Lincoln Cosmopolitan) –  DNF

Margie Allen/Buster Anthony Hemesbedy (Mercury) – DNF

1951

Teresita Panini/Carlos Panini (Alfa Romeo 6C) – DNF

Jacqueline Evans (Chrysler Saratoga) – DNF

1952

Jacqueline Evans (Chrysler Saratoga) – 37^th

1953

Jacqueline Evans (Porsche 356) – DNF

1954

Asención Morales/Olegario Perez Pligo (Ford) – DNF

Jacqueline Evans de Lopez (Porsche 356) – DNF

(Image from http://lacarrera2007.blogspot.co.uk/)

Saloon and Ute Racing in New Zealand

Alyssa Clapperton with Craig Baird's Holden Commodore

New Zealand female drivers have competed in both touring cars and Ute racing in recent years, both at home, and in Australia. For the earliest female racers from New Zealand, click here. Chelsea Herbert now has her own post. 

Jessica Antonievic – raced in the SsangYong Actyon Ute Racing Series in the 2014-2015 season. This was her first season of motorsport. She was 39^th in the championship, after finishing all of her races. She works as an administration manager for SsangYong, and has had racing ambitions for some time. She was recruited for the series partly to increase its diversity. She did a second season of Utes in 2015-16, and usually finished, if near the back. Her third year in a Ute was a part-season, mostly the later races. 

Stef Baigent – raced in the SsangYong Actyon Ute Racing Series in 2014-2015. She was 41^st in the championship, after scoring points in two of her races. In 2015, she returned to the series. She is the daughter of Kent Baigent, an NZ touring car racer, and the two of them have occasionally competed together in endurance events, driving a BMW M135. The father-daughter team was still in action in 2017. 

Sheridan Broadbent - races in the SsangYong Ute series in New Zealand. She is part of the Race 4-D Cup team which races in support of breast cancer charities. The team is all-female and was started by Bronwynne Leech. Sheridan’s first season in Utes was 2016-2017, and she was 34th overall, with a best finish of 24th at Hampton Downs. She finished 28th in the 2017-18 championship. She also races historics, including a Ford Cortina.

Debbie Chapman – twice a participant in major Bathurst races. In 1999, she was tenth in the Bathurst 500, driving a BMW 320i. In 2002, she drove a BMW 318i in the Bathurst 24 Hours, but did not finish. She raced alongside her husband, Dennis. They were recognised for ten years of service to New Zealand motorsport in 2004. After that, she has remained active in endurance racing in New Zealand. In 2006, she and Dennis were still racing a 318i, and were still competitive. Two years later, Debbie was still competing in endurance racing, and was also nominated for the Lupp Award, which goes to a driver involved in historics.

Alyssa Clapperton – had her debut season of New Zealand V8 Touring Cars in 2015. She drove a Holden Commodore for Team Kiwi Racing, partnering Craig Baird, after being chosen from 2000 hopefuls for a TKR Academy race seat. As well as NZV8s, she did some guest races in the SsangYong Actyon Ute Racing Series. During the 2015-16 season, she raced in BNT NZ Touring Cars, in a Team Kiwi Commodore again. Despite missing some races, she was fifth overall, with a best finish of fourth, at Manfeild and Hampton Downs. She also made some guest appearances in Aussie Racing Cars, driving for Team New Zealand. 2017 was a shortened season for her. She raced in NZ Touring Cars in a Ford Falcon, and then the Cheapies Under $4000 series in a Toyota. She began racing in 2012, in local club races, in a Toyota Starlet. In 2013, she competed with her father, Ian, driving a Holden Commodore in endurance races.

Tessa Field - races in the Ssangyong Actyon Ute series in New Zealand. The 2017-18 championship was her first year of racing a Ute. She is a reliable finisher, if not yet quite on the pace. Her best finish has been 23rd, at Bruce McLaren Motorsport Park. During the Southern Hemisphere summer, she raced a Honda Civic in the Mitre 10 Mega Summer Series and won one race, at Taupo. In 2018, she raced the Honda in the SF Cup Winter Series, securing at least one podium.

Amanda West - races in the Ssangyong Actyon Ute championship. 2017 appears to have been her first year of competition. She found Utes rather hard-going to start with, and had to contend with some technical problems, including gearbox issues. Her season ended with 27th in the championship. She also raced a Mazda RX8 in the IRC Summer Series the year before, and scored at least one third place.

(Image copyright Matthew Hansen)