Zihara Esteban

Zihara Esteban is a well-travelled Spanish driver whose racing has taken her in many different directions, taking in competition on two continents and in multiple disciplines, including rallying.

She began her senior career in the Spanish Clio Cup in 2011, after several years as a successful karter, both on the domestic and international scene. Her first season was rather up-and-down, with a lot of DNFs, but she managed one tenth place, at Catalunya, and was 24th overall, third in the Ladies’ standings. 

In 2012, she spent much of the year in karting again, but she also tried out the Euro Racecar NASCAR series, recently licensed from the States. She ran at the Loire and Valencia rounds, with a best finish of thirteenth at Valencia. 

2013 continued in the same way: karting, with four races in the Euro Racecar championship, at the beginning of the season. This time, she had two top-ten finishes, tenths at Nogaro and Dijon. As before, she was competing in the second-tier Open class, driving a Chevrolet, although for different teams. 

In 2014, she did not do much circuit racing; she took part in the Maxi Endurance 32 Hour race at the Algarve track, finishing third in a SEAT Leon, and fourth in a Renault Clio, driving in two teams. 

However, her main focus was rallying, in a Ford Fiesta R2. She did seven rallies, and her best result was 15th, in the Rallye del Bierzo. That year, she did her first WRC Rally, the Catalunya event. She was 46th. 

In 2015, she rallied a Peugeot 208 in Spain. Her only major rally was the Comunidad de Madrid RACE Rally, which she did not finish. She came back to the Spanish rally championship in 2017, driving a Peugeot 208. She was tenth in the Ciutat de Valls Rally, the best result of her special stage career. Her third attempt at the Spanish WRC round gave her a 49th place; she restarted after SS10 under SuperRally rules, having had problems and then received a penalty for a jump start.

A break from competition followed, then she switched to circuit racing again, doing the Valencia rounds of the 2020 NASCAR Whelen Euroseries for DF1 Racing. Her best finish was twelfth. During her time off, she developed a new strand to her career: stunts for film and TV. She performs both precision driving and physical stunts, appearing in several Spanish-language TV series. 

In 2021, she travelled to Mexico and did her first truck races in the Mikel's Trucks series. She did the first five rounds of the championship and was never out of the top ten. Her best finish was third at San Luis Potosi and she was twelfth in the championship. 

Staying in Mexico, she shifted back to touring cars, where she started. She contested the 2022 Copa TC2000, driving a Ford, and was second in her first race at Queretaro before scoring several more top-ten finishes. Only DNFs dropped her to twelfth in the championship. 

Another TC2000 season in 2023 was more successful and she won three times, on the way to championship second. This was the first time a woman had won a race in the category.

She did another season in TC2000 in 2024, but only appears to have raced a couple of times.

She did another part-season with Alessandros Racing in TC2000 in 2025. Sharing a BMW with Alex Sanchez, she contested the mid-part of the season. Their best result was a fourth place at Mexico City.

She now lives in Mexico City, where she plays padel competitively alongside her motorsport activities. She has also tried her hand at off-road competition again, taking part in a rally raid in 2025.

(Image copyright Zihara Esteban)

Jacqueline Evans de Lopez

 

Jacqueline Evans de Lopez was a British-born Mexican driver who competed in five runnings of the Carrera Panamericana between 1950 and 1954. 

She is most famous for her drives in a Porsche 356 in 1953 and 1954, although she was disqualified for going over time limits on both attempts. In 1953 she was excluded for the offence at Oaxaca, despite appealing the decision with the race directors. The Porsche was her own car and was painted with a tribute portrait of Argentine first lady Eva Peron, who had died in 1952.

Her best result was 37th in 1952, driving a Chrysler Saratoga. 

She used Chrysler models, a Saratoga and a Windsor, for her other two entries, finishing once in 1950, in 45th place. The car was a 1947 model and she started from 17th place to reported huge cheers. Her time was just under 36 hours and she drove the whole distance solo.

She crashed out the following year and retired due to injury, albeit not serious. Her car hit a rock close to Tehuantepec. According to contemporary press reports, her co-driver Sergio Diaz was seriously injured.

Details of other races she may have entered are sketchy. A report in the Manchester Evening News on the 17th of February 1954 describes briefly an accident where her car, a Jaguar, hit a railing in Mexico City.

At one point she claimed to be Mexico’s champion woman driver and that a cup had been named after her, although this has proved hard to verify.

She was born Grace Alice Evans Antrobus in 1915. She may have started acting while she was still in the UK and is sometimes described as having won a singing contest, or having entertained troops during the war. In 1946, she emigrated to the USA and quickly discovered Mexico on a holiday the year after. She often joked that she went for a vacation and stayed 40 years. Newspaper reports, however, suggest that she did return to live in London in the late 1950s, studying method acting at the Stanislavsky Studio in Chelsea in 1960. In 1958, she was reported to be staying in Chelsea with another Mexican actress, who had to rescue her when she was overcome by a gas leak.

Her name was often given as Evans on cast lists, although she included her married name, Lopez, on her early race entries. Her husband Fernando is normally described as being a Mexican bullfighter. They divorced some time in 1951 and some reports suggest she remarried, only to be widowed in 1956.

Away from the tracks, she was an actress in Spanish-language TV and films from 1947. This may have been her link to Eva Peron, who was also a radio and TV actress before her marriage to Juan Peron. She later played Eva Peron’s mother in a 1981 TV film starring Faye Dunaway.

She continued to act until 1986, when she made a rare appearance in a British film, Murder in Three Acts, which was set in Mexico. 

Among her other achievements were reportedly publishing her own newspaper in 1951, which is sometimes described as being a “golf magazine”. She spoke in interviews of writing songs and a play.

She died in Mexico in 1989, aged 74.

Regina Sirvent

 

Regina Sirvent races stock cars and trucks in Mexico. She is a racewinner in pickup racing. 

2017 was her first season and she started early. She was 14 when she had her first race in a NASCAR pickup, after seven years of karting in Mexico and the USA. Her best finish in trucks was seventh, at Pachuca, and she was eleventh overall. She also did a part-season in Mexican Super Touring, in the Light class. Her car was a Chevrolet. She was only 30th on the leaderboard due to missing most of the early rounds, but she did manage two top-ten finishes, the best of these being an eighth at Mexico City. 

In 2018, she continued to divide her time between cars and trucks, competing in Mexican Super Touring and the Mikel's Trucks series. Driving a Chevy, she scored two podiums in Super Touring, a second at Amozoc and a third at Mexico City. She was fourteenth overall. In Trucks, she was tenth overall, despite not being as quick. Her best finish was eighth at Queretaro, one of five top-ten positions. 

In 2018, she also made her single-seater debut, racing in the NACAM F4 series at Aguascalientes. She scored one fifth and two seventh places. This was a one-off appearance.

2019 was mostly spent racing in Mikel's Trucks, where she earned a fourth place at Aguascalientes and five further top-ten finishes. She also made guest appearances in TC2000 and Super Touring 1 in Mexico, driving a Ford. TC2000 was not one of her greatest moments; she only finished one of her three races in 26th place, at Mexico City. Super Touring 1 was more fruitful and she came close to a podium at Mexico City, finishing fourth.

When the 2020 season finally got under way, she won her first race in Mikel's Trucks. Her victory at Queretaro followed a start from pole and she also picked up a fastest lap. The second race of the meeting gave her a second place. After a few mechanical problems mid-season, she won again at Queretaro, then finished third in Race 2, on her way to third in the championship.

In June 2020 she was announced as one of four teenaged drivers taking part in a shootout for a place in NASCAR’s Drive for Diversity programme. She drove a Legend car against the other candidates. 

Her NASCAR Mexico season in 2021 took in races in the Peak and Challenge series. She did six Challenge races and finished tenth in four of them, earning a 16th place in the championship. Her two Peak races at Tuxtla and Queretaro were not as successful, earning her 21st and 18th places.

A deal to run in the Truck championship again seems to have fallen through and she did not return to Trucks in 2022 either. She remained active in both the NASCAR Mexico and Challenge series, with the Challenge giving her the best results. She finished in the top ten of three of her five races, coming tenth at Tuxtla Gutierrez, eighth at Queretaro and ninth at Puebla.

NASCAR Mexico proved more of a challenge. Queretaro was her best circuit; she finished 16th there.

She was thirteenth in the 2023 NASCAR Mexico series, only four points away from the top ten. Her popularity led to her winning a fan vote to compete in an away race in Los Angeles. This went a little way to making up for the rumours about an ARCA race seat with the Venturini team, which proved to be untrue.

2024 was spent in the NASCAR Peak Challenge, driving a Chevrolet. She earned her first podium in the series at San Luis Potosi, finishing second. It was an inconsistent season, but she showed some real speed and was eighth in the championship.

She did one NASCAR Mexico race at the Coliseum in LA, finishing 18th. However, this led to further opportunities in the ARCA championships in the USA in 2025. She drove for Kimmel Racing in three events, with a best finish of thirteenth at Iowa.

This was combined with more NASCAR Mexico. She was racing in the Challenge series and was ninth in the final standings. She had an inconsistent year, but a highlight was a class second place at Chiapas.

(Image copyright Angel Ferretiz/NASCAR)

Josie von Neumann

Josie von Neumann raced sportscars in America in the 1950s. She was one of the most talented of the many female drivers on the US sportscar scene of the time.

Her earliest outings were ladies’ races in an MG TD. She won her first race, a five-lap ladies’ handicap at Torrey Pines in 1951, laying down a gauntlet for the entrants in a burgeoning women’s racing scene centred around the Women’s Sports Car Club in California.

Early in her career, she raced an Allard J2 special with a Cadillac engine. In 1952, Josie continued to be the woman to beat in it. The car belonged to Bud and Gwen Goodwin and it was considered a very challenging car to drive. Josie won a ladies’ race at Madera in it. Throughout her career, she often had access to very good cars, due to her family connections. John von Neumann was her stepfather who had become her adoptive father and he had a considerable stable of cars. The red and white TD had been a birthday present from him. Later on, her mother Eleanor was the family’s titular entrant after doing well out of her divorce from John. The von Neumanns helped many notable drivers at the start of their careers, including Richie Ginther and Phil Hill. John also ran a Porsche 550 for future Le Mans winner Ken Miles in 1956. The Women’s Sports Car Club itself was closely associated with the California Sports Car Club (CSCC), of which Ken Miles was a leading member. He was the editor of the club magazine and Josie had her own column.

Always a fan of European cars like the rest of the CSCC, she had continued success in ladies’ races in a Porsche 356 in 1953 and 1954. A Ferrari 500 Mondial followed and it was in this car that she branched out from ladies’ races and started making an impression in the main draw. She entered SCCA events at Bakersfield, Torrey Pines and Glendale. She did best at her favoured track of Torrey Pines, finishing tenth overall and first in class. Carroll Shelby was the winner and Phil Hill was second, driving with John von Neumann. Both were in Ferraris.

She shared the same car with Richie Ginther at the Santa Maria airport track in 1956. This was a difficult and dangerous course that was only used for a couple of seasons. They were fifth overall in the Ferrari. Contemporary newspaper reports suggest that Josie had been planning to use a Porsche 550, but that car was driven by Ken Miles that year, entered by John von Neumann. At about this time, Josie took a break from the track, married John McLaughlin and had a son.

In 1958 and 1959 she returned and drove a Ferrari 250 Testa Rossa. This was a sought-after car at the time. Josie’s detractors liked to claim that she was not the fastest of the Californian ladies, merely that she had better cars than everyone else, but she was a steady pair of hands who was capable of handling very fast machinery. Her rivals sometimes appeared to be out of their depth in cars of the calibre of the Testa Rossa.

She was fifth in the SCCA Nationals at Vaca Valley in 1958, behind her father, who was her team-mate and the race winner. She was also second in a Modified race at Del Mar, a round of the Pacific Coast Championship. This year, she was almost unbeatable in ladies’ races, racking up at least eleven victories on her way to a Pacific Coast women’s title.

In 1959 she concentrated more on open events, entering only a few women-only races. She was fourth in the Avandaro GP and eleventh in the LA Times GP in the Testa Rossa. She was also fourteenth and 16th in the Riverside and Vaca Valley USAC races. This was significant as she would become the first woman to receive a full USAC racing license that year, allowing her to compete as a professional. Her appearance in the Riverside 200 Miles was her first “big” USAC race and she was eleventh, despite admitting to being nervous and only expecting to finish. Josie’s interviews at the time reveal a personality at odds with her list of results; she claimed that women were naturally less good drivers than men and that they were often more nervous. Todd McCarthy, in his book about the US sportscar scene “Fast Women”, speculates that it was the longer races she found hard.

1959 was also the year that she first competed internationally. The East Coast racing fraternity usually decamped to the Bahamas in December for Nassau Speed Week, but West Coast stalwart Josie joined them this year with the Ferrari. Competing against the likes of Stirling Moss, Richie Ginther and Dan Gurney, she was 16th in the Governor’s Trophy for cars over 2000cc. Her best result was a fifth place in the Ferrari race, which was won by Phil Hill in a later TR.

Much earlier in the year, she raced in Mexico for the first time. Josie was third in the Lago de Guadalupe, sandwiched between famous brothers Ricardo and Pedro Rodriguez who were second and fourth respectively.

After 1959, she disappeared from the scene, despite being in possession of a full USAC license and considerable experience. She moved away from her previous home with her son and lived among a huge menagerie of animals, including as many as twenty cats. She died in 1997, aged 64.





Younger women were coming through and becoming more competitive, but the American sportscar racing scene was becoming increasingly professionalised and the both the Women’s Sports Car Club and the CSCC were in decline.

Alexandra Mohnhaupt

Alexandra Mohnhaupt is a Mexican driver racing in Formula 4 and Formula 3. In 2018, she became the first female driver to win a Formula 4 race.

She counts her home town as Puebla in Mexico, but she has both German and Mexican family. She races under a Mexican license and her career began there, in karting.

2015 was her debut season in senior racing, although she was only sixteen years old. She started in the NACAM F4 championship in Mexico. Out of thirteen races, she scored eight top-tens, the best of these being two sixth places, at Pegaso. One of these was from pole position. She was fourteenth in the championship.

The NACAM championship runs over the winter period. After the Mexican season finished in June 2016, she travelled to the UK to compete in the British F4 series. This proved a challenge for her, although by the end of her season, she was edging towards top-ten finishes, such as her eleventh place at Knockhill. She did six races, competing at Knockhill and Snetterton.

She raced in the NACAM series again from 2017 and was seventh overall, coming close to a podium finish at Toluca. This was one of five top-five finishes she earned that season. She was the leading driver for her team, MomoF4.

Her three British F4 guest spots were less successful. She entered the Snetterton round again and was fifteenth in all three races.

Another winter season in the NACAM series followed. She was immediately on the pace, with a third and two seconds in her first races at Mexico City. At her home track of Puebla, she won two of her three races, the first woman to win a Formula 4 race anywhere. This took her to second in the championship. She held second after a third, fourth and fifth at Aguascalientes.

Shortly after her Puebla wins, it was announced that she would be racing in the UK again, this time in the BRDC Formula 3 championship. She was due to be driving for Douglas Motorsport alongside Jamie Chadwick.

Alexandra never actually raced in F3 in the UK. She did take part in an official series test at Spa, but crashed. Her injuries were initially reported as being "mild concussion and bruising."

The day before the Yucatan rounds of NACAM F4, she pulled out of that championship, citing two causes. The first of these was neck injuries received in her Spa crash. The second revolved around the series' acceptance of another driver who had allegedly received a year-long drugs ban from IndyCar-sanctioned series. Her team, MomoF4, pulled out of the championship after the meeting.

Alexandra said in the press conference held to announce her retirement that she had not ruled out a return in future, but she was now concentrating on finishing her education. True to her word, she made a comeback five years later, returning to NACAM F4. It was a part-season but with some success; driving for RAM Racing, she was third twice in the first round at Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez. The RAM deal ended after the next round at Queretaro, which yielded a fifth and two sixth places, but she rejoined with HRI Mexico for the final round at AHR and picked up a seventh and a sixth. She was ninth in the championship.

Switching direction entirely, she made her truck racing debut in 2024, contesting one round of the NASCAR Mexico Truck Series. This turned into a longer Trucks season in 2025, driving for Prime Sports Racing. Her best finish was fourth at Aguascalientes and she was stronger in the second half of her season, despite an airborne crash at Amozoc. Her final championship position was eleventh.

(Image copyright Liliana Velazquez Leon/Sintesis)

Gisela Ponce

Gisela Ponce is a Mexican driver who has raced in both NASCAR and touring cars, and now competes in truck racing.

She is from a racing family: her brother Javier is a racing driver, her father (also Javier) raced for many years, and her grandfather was the president of his regional motorsport association.

After several seasons of karting, she took her first steps in senior motorsport in 2009, when she was nineteen. Her first racing season was in the VW Stock 1600 championship, driving an original Beetle. Her first outing ended with a third place at her local track, Aguascalientes. She was fourth overall, and second in the rookie standings.

In 2010, she worked with the Volkswagen team and undertook training with them, then competed in a VW Golf in the regional Aguascalientes Copa RC Racing series. She finished second after a very strong season, and won at least one race.

In 2011, she formed her own family team, and contested the 1600cc Mexican Touring Car Championship. She was third in the final standings, having led for part of the season. This run in a national series was accompanied by more races in the Central Mexican touring car series. She was the champion in the VW Sedan class, and second in the Chevy 1600 class.

Her NASCAR adventures began in 2012, when she entered the Mexican Stock V6 NASCAR series for the first time, driving a Chevrolet for the OAM Ramirez team. Her best finish was fifth, at Mexico City, and she was in the top ten for nine of the twelve races. Her finishes gradually improved over the season; her best result was in the last round. She was seventh overall.

As well as NASCAR, she found time for some Mexican touring car races, in another Chevrolet. She scored one podium in the 1800cc Mexican Touring Car Championship, and was seventh overall.  

For 2013, she had a lighter schedule, with only a couple of guest slots in NASCAR. This would become a pattern in her career: a strong year followed by one where she was less active, due to a lack of sponsorship. She only got to her local Aguascalientes rounds, but earned a pair of fourth places.

It was back to business in 2014, with a few races in NASCAR, yielding a fifth and eighth place, at Aguascalientes again. She raced for her family team in the Super Touring 1 Light series, in which she was back on form, finishing fourth.

In 2015, she made a move into truck racing, in the Campeonato Tractocamiones Freightliner. She was fifth overall, having been in contention for a championship win until quite late in the year. This was in addition to a season in the Mexican Super Touring 3 series, where she was sixth, with one podium place. Her car may have been a Chevrolet.

Most of 2016 was spent truck racing, in a Freightliner. She did not do quite as well as in 2015, despite running a full season, but was still ninth overall. Late in the year, she made a guest appearance in the Mexican V6 Series, and was eighth at Mexico City.

A limited season in Trucks followed in 2017. She made guest appearances in the Mikels Trucks and Freightliner one-make series, scoring one seventh place in the latter. She did not finish her Mikels Trucks race at Monterrey.

She also participated in the 24 Hours of Mexico, an endurance race for saloon cars held at Amozoc Puebla. This was her second attempt at the race.

She did two races in Super Touring Light in 2020, but had to cut her season short as she was pregnant. She returned to the tracks in 2022, racing a BMW in the Copa TC2000 Mexico. She was seventh in the championship with a best finish of fourth at Mexico City.

In 2023, she did some endurance racing in a Honda Fit. She and her team-mates won the Endurance 2 category at Puebla. 

(Image from eaglentsracing.com)

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/)

Stock Car Racing Outside the USA

Carole Perrin

This post is about women drivers racing stock cars outside of the USA, in NASCAR-style series and in Pickup Truck races. These have been a feature of South and Central American racing for many years. Mara Reyes now has her own profile, like Gisela Ponce and Arianna Casoli. More recently, a European NASCAR series has been successfully launched, after a British version did not take off.

Robin Bleekemolen - Dutch driver who began her career aged 15 in the Euro NASCAR Rookie Challenge. Her first race in a Bleekemolen Racing Toyota Camry was at Most in Czechia. She progressed into the Open class in 2026, substituting for her grandfather, Michael Bleekemolen at Brands Hatch in the UK. Her first race gave her a tenth place, the highest placed of four female drivers. She is unusual in that she has competed alongside both her grandfather and father in the same series. 

Luli del Castello - races in the Euro NASCAR Whelen Euro Series. Her career in stock cars began in 2022, when she signed for Caal Racing’s EuroNASCAR2 seat. So far, her best finish has been a 15th place at Brands Hatch, driving the team’s Chevrolet Camaro. In 2024, she returned to the series for a part-season, with a best finish of fourteenth at Oschersleben. Previously, she raced sportscars and tin-tops in Italy. In 2021, this included some races in the BMW M2 CS Racing Cup, sharing the car with Francesco Malavasi for the first round. In 2019 and 2020, she raced in the Supercars Series, in a Chevrolet Corvette.

Mariam Davitidze - Georgian driver who started racing in the Euro NASCAR series in 2026. She drove a Toyota for the Kolkhi GRT team, in the Open class. The team has the aim of bringing more Georgian drivers into motorsport. Her first finish was in Valencia, in 18th place. Before stock cars, she competed in karts from 2021, including the Kart Endurance category of the FIA Motorsport Games. She began her circuit racing career in the Georgian touring car series in 2025.

Michaela Dorcikova  - Slovak driver who raced in the Whelen Euro NASCAR Series in 2019. She entered the Hockenheim rounds with Alex Caffi Racing, in the Elite 1 division. She was taken out by another driver in the second race, having finished 17th and fourth in class in the first. In 2021 she made two more guest appearances, racing a Ford Mustang at Most. She was thirteenth and 16th in her two events. Her racing background is autoslalom, in which she has won championships, and karting, with some touring car races in Slovakia. She competed in drifting in the 2022 FIA Motorsport Games after a long lay-off due to injury, before coming back to EuroNASCAR in the Pro class, for a part season. Her car was a Mustang and her best finish was thirteenth at Most. In 2024, she won Slovakia's first gold medal at the FIA Motorsport Games, winning the Auto Slalom event with David Nemcek. She is the team manager for LMP2 outfit ARC Bratislava.

Nancy Gutierrez - began racing seriously in 2015, in the NASCAR Mexico Pro Series. During the season, she and her brother, Manuel, were both reprimanded by the authorities, although Nancy’s rebuke was for verbally abusing officials, rather than on-track conduct. She had a best finish of seventh, at Mexico City, and was sixteenth in the championship. She was the only woman taking part. In 2016, she entered the V6 Championship in Mexico, but only appears to have raced once, at Guadalajara. She was ninth.

"Happinessa" (Vanessa Neumann) - German driver who races in Euro NASCAR. She began her on-track career at the start of 2025. For her first year in the series, she raced in the Open class and the first couple of races in the Rookie Challenge, for the Bremotion team. Her best results were two fifteenth places, achieved at Valencia and Brands Hatch. She was 17th overall in the championship. Her car is a Chevrolet Camaro. Away from the track, she is a media personality.

Shantel Kalika - Canadian driver who competes in NASCAR. She first started in the Pinty’s Series in 2018, starting three races in Canada driving a Dodge. She scored two fourteenth and one fifteenth place. In 2019, she entered the series again and scored one twelfth place at Jukasa Motor Speedway, during the APC 200. This was one of five races she did in the series that year, although she did not finish two due to excessive vibrations in her car. She has been racing since 2010 in club-level events, mainly driving trucks, and won a title in 2016. Her family is involved in motorsport.

Alina Loibnegger - Austrian driver who races in the NASCAR Whelen Euro Series championship. She made her first starts in the EuroNASCAR2 class in 2021, driving a Chevrolet Camaro for the Solaris team. Her best result so far has been a 16th place at Valencia, right at the start of the season. Im 2022, she equalled this at Brands Hatch. In 2023, she signed up for NASCAR2 again, but ended up doing a part season in the Pro class. Her best finishes in her Camaro were two 17th places at Vallelunga and Valencia. She first drove a stock car in the 2019 Club Challenge attached to the Euroseries. This is a series of speed trials rather than wheel-to-wheel races. She scored at least one second place.

Ana (Cecília) Mello - raced in the Stock Paulista championship from 2005 onwards, alongside her sister, Maria Izabel. They shared a car in their first year, but competed against each other after that. She continued to race in the championship until at least 2009. Her best result seems to be a win in the Light category in 2008, driving a Chevrolet Omega. In 2006, she drove an Omega with her sister in the Mil Milhas, finishing 17th. Her other results have proved hard to find, although she was usually strong in the Light class.

Maria Izabel Mello - sister of Ana Mello, who began racing at the same time. She raced her own car from 2006 onwards, although she and Ana were often in the same team. “Bel” seems to have been slightly less competitive than Ana, although she did have the upper hand on her in the 2006 Stock Paulista championship, finishing third in the Light championship to Ana’s fifth. She drove in the 2006 mil Milhas in a Chevrolet Omega, with Ana, Carlos Tigueis Batista and Leandro Mussio. They were 17th overall.

Maria Cristina Moreira - native of Rio de Janeiro who raced in Brazil in the 2000s, mainly in one-make series. In 2001, she participated in the Brazilian Women’s Ford Fiesta Championship, but was not among the front-runners. In 2002, she had a decent season in Pick Up racing (the Fiesta series toured with Pick Ups in 2001), and was eighth in the championship. She also raced in the Renault Clio Cup for at least some of its rounds in 2004, and finished fifteenth, from 25th on the grid, at Autodromo Nelson Piquet. Later, in 2006, she made some appearances in Stock Car racing, in a Yamaha-engined car. She was 16th overall. 

Fernanda Parra - started racing in 2004, in a Chevrolet Omega, in São Paulo. She was 16th in the Light class. The following year, she did her first Mil Milhas race, in the Omega, and was 38th. One of her team-mates was her father, Fernando. In 2006, she raced in the Light class of Brazilian Stock Cars, in a Chevrolet Astra this time. She was 23rd. That year, she also tried sportscar racing, and did four rounds of the Brazilian Trofeo Maserati, finishing fifteenth. A second visit to the Mil Milhas, with Fernando, gave her thirteenth overall, in the Omega again. Her third season of Stock Cars gave her a 36th place, in the Astra, and in 2008, she switched to Pickup racing. She was 18th in the championship after five races. Her last definite major appearance seems to have been one Stock Car race in 2008, where she drove a Mitsubishi Lancer. She may have raced Pickups in 2009, but no results are forthcoming.

Gabriela Prado – Brazilian driver who raced in the Whelen NASCAR Euro Series in 2015. Her car was a Chevrolet. Brands Hatch was her best circuit, and she was fifteenth in one of her races there. She was fifteenth in the championship. 2015 was her first season of car racing, although she had previously done some karting. She also competes in surfing.

Estefania Reyes - NASCAR racer from Mexico. She has been competing in Mexican stock cars since 2007, using a MotorSpeed Dodge. In 2008, she was 28th in the championship after completing ten races. Her best finish was thirteenth, at Queretaro. She was sponsored by Mattel's Barbie in 2007. Previously, she raced single-seaters in Mexico and was a front-runner in the 1600cc class in 2006. She is one of the youngest recorded female racing drivers, having made her debut at fifteen. She sat out the 2009 season after being injured in a road traffic accident, and returned to NASCAR Mexico in 2010, towards the end of the season. She continued in 2011, but only managed four races and struggled with qualification.

Isabelle Tremblay – raced stock cars in Canada between 2009 and 2013. She began her career in 2008, racing on short ovals, and became the first woman to win a race at the St-Eustache Autodrome. In 2009, she took her first steps in the ACT Castrol Series, with a part-season. In 2010, she did four races in the NASCAR Canadian Tyres Series, in a Ford, with a best finish of 20^th, at Toronto. She did better in regional Sportsman races, finishing ninth in her championship. In 2011, she ran an expanded NASCAR programme, and her results improved, the best being an eighth place, at Mosport. If her finishing record had been better, she would have finished higher than twelfth in the championship, and could have won the Rookie title. That year, she also tried some single-seater racing, and won once in class in a Formula Ford race at Montreal. In 2012, it was back to NASCAR, in a Dodge this time, but she only took part in six races, finishing four of them. The best of these were two tenth places. She returned in 2013, but only for one round, at Trois- Riviéres. She was 20^th. Away from motorsport, Isabelle is a radio presenter.

Vanessa Vorcaro - races historic stock cars in her native Brazil. Her car is an Opala 250 and she has been racing in the Old Stock championship since at least 2018. So far, her results have not been the most impressive and she was disqualified at least once in 2018. Her best finish seems to have been a 15th place at Interlagos in February 2019. She narrowly avoided an accident on a bend in the second race.

Kelly-Jayne Wells - front-runner in Pickup Truck racing in the UK. She has been in Pickups since 2004 and scored outright wins in 2005, 2006 and 2007, in both the Rockingham and UK championships. This is in addition to many top-five places, including a third in her first season. She has won four times overall. Her best championship finish is fourth in the Rockingham series and seventh in the overall championship. Previously, she raced on short ovals from a young age. She also drove a Eurobrun F1 car for a EuroBOSS press day, but did not actually compete. A lack of funding hindered her participation in 2008, but she found a race seat with Hodgson Motorsport for 2009. She drove in the first three meetings, with a best finish of fourth.

(Image from www.julietonelli.com)

Female Drivers in Touring Cars in the Rest of the World

Shea Holbrook

This post works in the same way as the last one, only it features female touring car drivers from places other than Europe. Australian drivers now have their own post, as do American drivers, Canadian drivers and drivers in TC2000. Violeta Pernice now has her own post, as do Delia Borges, Samantha Tan, Delfina Frers, Dora Bavio, Valerie Chiasson, Josefina Vigo and Laleh Seddigh.

Paula Calderón - races in touring cars in Colombia, her home country. Her first major race was the 6 Hours of Bogota in 2009, driving a Kia Picanto. With her team-mates Nelson Gutierrez, Pavel Russi and Alejandro Torres, she won the ST2 class. After a break, she returned to the circuits in 2012, in the ST2 class of the Colombian touring car championship. Driving a Kia Turbo this time, she was second overall, alongside Daniel Alvarado. In the same car, she was 22nd in the Bogota 6 Hours, racing against her sister, Tatiana Calderón. In 2014, the Calderón sisters planned to race together in New Zealand, but this did not happen. Paula does not seem to have raced at all. 

Maria Stephanie Devoto - raced in Turismo Libre in her home country of Uruguay in 2012. Her car was a Volkswagen Gol which she shared with Rossina Longardi. She was not among the front-runners and did not score any points in the championship. Her best finish seems to have been a 15th place at the AUVO circuit. She got into motorsport through Rossina, who was her neighbour and convinced her to race with her. She was 21 at the time.

Pamela Esquivel – races touring cars in Mexico. In 2013, she won her first major race, a round of the Mexican Endurance Touring Car championship. Her car was a Ford Ka, and she was sixth in the championship. The same year, driving the same car, she was fourth in the Pony 1600 championship, with three third places. After that, she raced in Super Touring, still in Mexico, and was eighth in the 2014 Light championship, driving a Ford Focus. After another season in that category in 2015, she moved up to Super Touring 1 in 2016, driving a Renault Clio. Her best result was a fourteenth place at Mexico City. Super Touring 2 was a more successful hunting ground for her, and she took one race win on her way to third in the championship. She started her motorsport career as a rally co-driver, and her first circuit race was a 24-hour race in Mexico City, which her brother also entered. At the end of 2017, she came third in the same race, in her Ford Ka, "Katarina". Her co-drivers were her brother Jose, Elias Mussi and Luis Rossell. She and Katarina raced in Super Touring 1 Light in 2018, finishing 15th in the championship with a best finish of ninth, at Pachuca. In 2019, she switched to a Renault Clio for the same championship but did not do as well, with a best finish of eleventh and 20th overall. Her 2020 season consisted of two Super Touring races and some endurance events. She won a GT championship in 2021.

Aixa Franke - competed in Top Race in Argentina, driving a Mercedes for SDE Inbest Racing. Her best result has been sixth at Buenos Aires. 2021 was her first season in a major championship, although she has been active in club-level motorsport since 2019, including runs in a prototype in the GT2000 championship. She was encouraged into Top Race by fellow driver Hernan Sala, having put together a deal. In 2024, she a Chevrolet in the TC Pista Mouras Argentina series. As well as touring cars, she has raced single-seaters in Formula Nacional Argentina since 2022. She is one of the founders of Racing Girls, an organisation for Argentine women in motorsport.

Valentina Funes - raced in Argentina’s Top Race championship in 2021 and 2022, competing in the Junior category. She was part of an all-female team, Vitarti Girls Racing, driving a Chevrolet. The first round of the championship at Concepcion in Uruguay was her motorsport debut, aged 20; she had trouble with her car in practice but managed one sixth place. This was her best result of a part-season, although she was a regular top-ten finisher. From 2022, she has concentrated more on single-seaters, taking part in Formula Nacional Argentina. She was thirteenth in the 2023 championship, then improved to eighth in 2024. Her best finish was fourth, at Concepcion in Uruguay. A part-season in 2025 led to 20th place, with two top-tens including a ninth at General Roca. She was previously active in karting and sim racing.

Silvina Genjo – winner of the Copa Corsa womens’ one-make series in Argentina in 1998. The same year, she also tried single-seater racing, in Formula Renault. Also in 1998, she did some races in Turismo Nacional, like many of her women-only series colleagues. Her car was a VW Polo. In 2000, she appeared in the TN series again, driving a VW Gol. Between 1998 and 2001, she also seems to have raced in a Kia one-make series in Argentina.

María de los Angeles Hanhcik – Argentine driver active since the early 1980s, although she only really came to prominence about ten years later. She did two seasons in the Copa de Damas, driving a Nissan Sentra, and was the series runner-up in 1995. In 1997 and 1998, she took part in Formula Hyundai Femenina, finishing fourth in 1998. That was the year that she moved into mixed motorsport, in the Turismo Nacional championship.  For the next ten years, she combined drives in this series, in cars including a Renault 19, with one-make racing in a Kia and a Ford Fiesta, and Formula Tico. During this time, she was second in one TC race, although it is not clear which year. Since 2007, she has continued to race, on and off, and makes guest appearances in the TC series most years. She is also a performance driving instructor for BMW.

Seda Kacan - Turkish driver who races touring cars in her home country. She won the first round of the Turkish Track Championship in 2023, driving an Audi TT, becoming the first woman to do so. It was only her second season in cars and her third in any kind of motorsport. This led to her being asked by the Turkish Bitci team to drive one their Audi RS3s in the last round of the 2023 Italian TCR series. She finished both races in 18th and 19th place. In 2024, she raced in the European TCR Endurance championship, in another Audi. Her co-driver was Ibrahim Okyay and they were third in the championship. Another run in the Italian series in 2025 was limited to three rounds of the DSG class, in an Audi. She only began racing at the age of 27.

Sharima Khan – represents Guyana in the Caribbean championship. She began racing in 2012, at seventeen, when she raced alongside her father in endurance events. Since then, she has raced at her local South Dakota circuit in Guyana, and made some history in 2015 when she finished second there, driving her Honda CRX. She raced a little at the start of 2016, and then represented Guyana again in the CMRC in November, in the Honda. In 2017, she had a new Honda, and seems to have entered the CMRC meet again. In 2018, she moved up to Group 1 of the CMRC for the first time.

Agustina Mattio - Argentine driver who currently competes in the Junior category of Top Race, driving a Chevrolet for Vitarti Girls Team. Her best result in the series has been twelfth, at Buenos Aires. Previously she raced single-seaters, starting in Formula Renault in 2016. She did four seasons in Formula Metropolitana between then and the 2020-21 winter season. Her best year was 2019, when she scored two top-ten finishes at La Plata and finished 18th overall. She also tried Formula 4 in 2017.

Veronica Peyon - race-winning driver in the Peruvian touring car (TC2000) championship. Her most successful season was 2017, when she won two races at Chutana and picked up four additional podiums, driving a Honda Civic. She had been racing in the championship on and off since 2012. She first won a race in 2014, in the eighth round of the series. In 2018, she continued in the Civic, run by the Etna team, and won her second 200km of Lima race, with Rodrigo Pflucker. This was her second win of the year, one of three. She was third in the championship, despite missing one round due to illness.

MaJo Rodriguez – raced trucks in 2016, in her homeland of Mexico, in the Super Copa Telcel series. Her truck was a Freightliner. Previously, since 2013, she competed in the Mexican national touring car championship, winning the T6 category twice in 2013 and 2014. Both years, she won the 24 Hours of Monterry, in the T5 and T6 categories. In 2015, she was runner-up in the Super Touring Light series, driving a Chevrolet, after taking three wins. She quit truck racing part-way through the 2016 season in order to concentrate on touring cars, driving a Ford in the Super Touring 1 championship. In the 2017 Super Touring series, she achieved three second and three third places. This was combined with almost a full season of truck racing in a Freightliner. She was eighth in the Freightliner one-make series and fourteenth in the Mikels Trucks championship. 2018 was another year of trucks and tin-tops, with Super Touring 1 Light being her best series. She won twice at Amozoc and Puebla and was second at Queretaro, driving a Chevrolet. In addition to this, she was still competitive in her Freightliner, picking up one third place at Mexico City in the Mikel's Trucks series. She continued in Trucks in 2019, running best in the Freightliner series where she was seventh overall. Mid-season, she did a part-season in Mexican TC2000, driving a Ford. Her best finish was thirteenth at Mexico City. Most of 2020 was spent in her Freightliner truck and she repeated her third palce at Leon this time. She only did one Super Touring meeting, driving a SEAT and partnering Valeria Aranda. 2021 was a busy year for her, with a complete year in the GTM Gran Turismo Mexico series as her main focus. She won one race at Guadalajara and was second at Leon, leading to sixth place in the championship. A part-season in the Copa TC2000 championship, driving a Ford, gave her four eighth places and she was eighth overall in the Freightliner championship, with one second place. Finally, she made one appearance in the Mexican Formula 5 championship, a single-seater series, finishing seventh at Puebla. She did another TC2000 season in 2023, driving a Ford. This time, she was 18th overall, starting from pole once at Puebla and picking up a series of top-ten finishes. She also found time for four Super Touring 1 races in an Audi. In 2024, she continued to race both trucks and cars in the Super Copa. She moved into NASCAR in 2025, competing part-time in the NASCAR Mexico series in a Chevrolet. In the Challenge series, she scored one tenth place at Aguascalientes. 

Ana Gabriela Rubio – Mexican driver who races touring cars. She began with the local championship held at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez, after growing up around motorsport, and watching her father comepete. In 2013, she was eighth in the Pony 1600 championship, in a Chevrolet. She moved up to Mexican Super Touring in 2014, competing in the Light 2 category, in another Chevrolet. She was fifth overall.  2014 seems to have been her last year of active competition. 

Dana Ruz - races in the Mexican TC2000 series. In 2023 and 2024, she competed in the Copa 1.8 class. She first raced in the series in 2022, alongside Gisela Ponce. Her car in 2024 was an Audi and she was twelfth in the championship. Her best finish was sixth at Pachuca and she won a "Hard Charger" award for most places gained at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez. She raced again in 2025, in an Audi, improving her results and earning a fifth place at Mexico City. Her given name is also spelled "Danae".

María Luz Salvucci – races in the Argentine Touring Car Championship. She had her first season in 2015, in Class 2 of the National series. Her car was a Ford Fiesta. It was not a full season, and she managed a best finish of 21^st, at Viedma. In 2016, she drove the same car for the same DG Motorsport team, still in Class 2. Previously, she was active in karting in Argentina and the USA. Her brother, Ignacio, also races in the Turismo Nacional series.

Gisela Segade Sanchez – races touring cars in Argentina. In 2015, she took part in the Top Race series, driving a Chevrolet Vectra. Her best result was a sixth place, at Concepción in Uruguay. It was a tough season, with crash damage meaning she sat out a race, and later complained about the number of collisions in the series. She was 19^th in the championship, and third in the Ladies’ Cup. She did most rounds of the Top Race championship in 2016, driving a Volkswagen, but had a poor finishing record and was 26th in the points, with only three finishes from nine races. In 2017, she had a bad patch in the middle of the Top Race season, with DNFs, disqualifications and a few missed rounds. Her best finish was eleventh at Obera, and she was 26th overall. Between 2010 and 2013, she did part-seasons of varying length in the Turismo Pista touring car championship, driving a Dodge and a Fiat.

Laura Sanz - 2020 Mexican Super Touring 1 Light champion. She has been racing in the series since 2018, driving a Chevrolet run by her family team. She was fourth in her first season, with her first win at Amozoc and two further podium positions. She did not repeat her win in 2019 but was much more consistent and was third in the championship. Her winning season included five wins from ten races, only two of which she finished off the podium. She moved up to the Copa 1.8 class of the championship in 2021, finishing fourth. Her best finishes were three third places. She earned her first win in the series in 2022. In 2023, she only did a part-season in a SEAT and did not manage to win, although she finished on the podium twice. In 2024, she was fourth in the Copa Notiauto Mexico, driving a Chevrolet, and she was second at Mexico City. A stronger field in 2025 meant that another win, at Pachuca this time, was not enough to get her on to the overall podium, although she scored three more podium finishes in her SEAT. She was fifth overall.

Pat Sonnenschein - South African driver who raced in the 1960s. She competed in the Kyalami 9 Hours in a Mini, in 1964 and 1965, finishing sixth and 15th respectively. Her team-mate was George Armstrong. Later, in 1969, she drove with Christine Beckers, in an Alfa Romeo 1750 Berlina. They were 18th overall. She raced between 1963 and 1969, and among her other cars was a Ford Zodiac, the first of its kind to be raced at all.

Martha Tapia - races Super Touring cars in her native Mexico. She made her debut in the category at the end of 2015, driving a Ford Ka with Cynthia Jaramillo. She was ninth and seventh in her first two races. In 2016, she was third in the Super Touring 2 Light championship, in the same car. She improved this to a runner-up spot in 2017, not far off winner Cesar Ortega. For the first time, she tried Super Touring 1, but only made a guest appearance. In 2023, she made another guest appearance after six years, racing a Mini at Mexico City in Super Touring 1. She appears to have done some more races in the series in 2024.

Clare Vale - has competed in V8 Supercars in her native South Africa since 2007. In recent years, she has alternated between this and drifting. Between 2008 and 2010, she ran full seasons in Supercars, and her best overall finish was tenth, in 2010. She rose to prominence the year before, when she achieved a pole position, and went on to lead a race in her Ford Mustang. In 2012, she only did a part season, before returning to drifting. Prior to Supercars, she did two seasons in the Shelby Can-Am championship, in 2005 and 2006, finishing twelfth and eleventh respectively. She had also raced a Subaru in production car events, a Porsche 917 GT car and a classic Chevron in historic races.

Sandra Villaruel – Argentine actress who has done some motor racing. In 2012, she made a guest appearance in the Buenos Aires round of the Argentine Mini Cooper Challenge, and was eleventh. In 2014, she was set to compete in Class Two of the Turismo International championship, as part of Top Race in Argentina. During the second race, at Santa Fe, she crashed her Ford Fiesta heavily and briefly lost consciousness. She has not raced since. 

(Image copyright K&N Filters)