Formula One is booming. On the back of the success of Netflix’s popular Drive to Survive series, viewing figures for the sport have soared, raising the statuses of those competing at its summit.
And its fanbase has diversified. Around 40 per cent of those following the antics of Max Verstappen, Lewis Hamilton and co are now believed to be women – a huge leap from just eight per cent in 2017.
Yet, for all the wild progress made amid F1 fever, the sport still features a male-only grid and has done for 32 years, since Giovanna Amati made three appearances in the 1992 season.
In 2014, Susie Wolff took her seat behind the wheel of a Williams car for the first practice of the British Grand Prix, becoming the fifth woman to participate in a race weekend. A decade later and the lack of a successor has been glaring.
Enter Abbi Pulling. The British driver has had a remarkable 2024, winning the F1 Academy, earning a place at next year’s prestigious GB3 Championship in the Rodin car, and even taking part in a Formula E test event for Nissan – and winning.
Could the 21-year-old finally end F1’s decade-long wait for a female driver? Mail Sport caught up with Pulling to ask exactly that, and how she plans to kick on after a breakthrough year.
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Abbi Pulling swept to F1 Academy glory this year after a dominant campaign
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The Brit has the aim of becoming the first female driver to appear on an F1 grid since 1992

Susie Wolff was the last woman to take part in an F1 race weekend – lining up for practice 10 years ago
Abbi, you have had an outstanding 12 months, but how did you first get into motorsport? And do you have any advice for girls looking to get into racing?
‘I got into racing through my dad. I was really lucky that my dad was involved in motorsports, motorbikes to be specific, but at the time I started there weren’t many girls.
‘Looking to start in racing, I was one of the few that was always in the paddock so I was lucky for the sacrifices my dad made but also it’s really nice to see the opportunities and the exposure that are coming about now.
‘There are more and more girls getting involved whose families aren’t involved. They see it on TV or social media. At F1 Academy we’re normally somewhere that’s close to the F1 so it’s nice to see how it’s evolving.
‘The best advice I have to females who want to get involved is just giving it a go.
‘There’s different places, you can go to a kart track, there’s FIA girls on track, F1 Academy have Discover Your Drive, Alpine have the Race(H)er program, there’s so many things now that are there to support you no matter what level you’re at.’

Pulling bagged a record nine wins during the F1 Academy season leaving the field behind

The Brit was signed by Alpine in March 2022 as part of their Alpine Affiliate programme
You’ve dominated the F1 Academy field this year. What’s been the key to all the success?
‘This season’s been incredible especially going off some of the heartache of last year – it was a really tough season.
‘For us as a team it was a new tyre compound and a different philosophy of how to run this car and the first time taking the car to the track.
‘So we kind of started on the back foot but we’ve taken this year in our stride, putting the work in, myself and my engineer, to really get on top of it all.
‘Almost every time we’ve gone out I’ve been really happy with the car and the work we’ve done and I think it all shows.
‘It’s just a matter of keeping doing what we’re doing, with the preparation, all season I’ve been telling myself to not get ahead of myself don’t get complacent keep the same structure as what I’ve always done and if it’s not P1 it’s not P1 but as long as I put my best foot forward every time and so does the team then we’ve got to stand back and be happy with the weekend.
‘All season there’s no one in particular I want to beat it’s just myself against the clock. I just want to maximise everything that has been given to me and I think nine times out of 10 this year I’ve maximised as much as I can.’
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Two years ago she became the first female to drive an F1 car in Saudi Arabia (not pictured)

Pulling pictured with the trophy after winning Race 1 of the Abu Dhabi round in December
Is the competition a force for good in women’s motorsport? It clearly increases the exposure of female events but some critics suggest that leaving it closed to male entrants reduces its impact.
‘I think it’s incredible what it’s doing. Not just for the drivers but for young girls watching – you’ve got to see it to believe it.
‘In the last kind of five years female participation at lower levels has increased significantly. There are more go-karters which is where every Formula One driver starts now.
‘For the likes of me, it’s also kept my career going and I’m seen as an inspiration to these young girls which is crazy to think.
‘But if it wasn’t for the championships like F1 Academy I probably wouldn’t have kept racing.
‘People make the argument that it’s segregating but if it wasn’t for F1 Academy I wouldn’t have made the connection with Rodin Motorsport and wouldn’t have made the connection with Rodin Cars who have supported me in British F4 this season so actually opened up the door of going back into mixed competition which I couldn’t afford otherwise.
‘So I’m really thankful for every party involved, obviously Alpine, Rodin are personal partners, and F1 Academy for just existing really.’

Pulling also competed in the 2023 edition of the all-female tournament with Rodin Carlin

She told Mail Sport that she got into racing through her father, who was into motorbikes
Is life on the motorsport circuit as glamorous as it sounds?
‘I wouldn’t say it’s too glamorous for myself at least, maybe some of the other girls might have had a different experience.
‘It’s tough, you’ve got to put the work in, put the graft in and it’s stressful.
‘My whole car career has been stressful mainly for financial reasons, going into most Christmasses not knowing if I’m going to continue and if I am what it’s going to be. If it was to be a progression.
‘That’s why I’m bagging for the championship this year as you get a fully-funded drive for the following year which would make my Christmas a lot nicer.
‘I think it’s doing everything it needs to.’
Despite more women watching F1, it remains a male-dominated sport. Did you ever find this intimidating, or did you see it as an exciting challenge?
‘For myself, I didn’t find it intimidating. I lived in blissful ignorance to be honest. I didn’t even notice I was the only female there and the only girl going karting because I wanted to have fun and get behind the wheel and improve in myself.
‘It was a little bit more satisfying when you had upset the boys a bit because you’d beaten them.
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Pulling revealed she was happy with her performances during a breakout 2024
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She said the financial side has never been easy but recent success makes Christmas easier
‘I think I’ve been quite lucky that I’ve only ever had a couple of negative experiences because of being a female.
‘I think you do have your own battles to an extent with people trusting your ability and so on but I think I’ve managed to silence the critics and I’ve managed to show that I belong and that I’m not just here to be the fastest female – I’m here to be a race driver and to be winning at any level.
‘That’s my aim at the end of the day, like any other racing driver, male or female, they want to be the best.’
Will we ever have another female F1 driver? And could it be you?
‘I think we will [have a female F1 driver soon]. I think it’s not a matter of if it’s a matter of when. I think it’s something you can’t put a time stamp on.

Opportunities aplenty lie ahead for Pulling in 2025 after winning the F1 Academy this year
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Her goal is to make it into F1, the pinnacle of the sport, but she says there are other options
‘Of course I want it to be myself which would be incredible. I think that any young driver in my position right now would want to be aiming to get to the pinnacle which is F1.
‘I also very much keep my options open – there is also more to racing than F1 and it’s hard for anyone to get there and even so, lots of the drivers that have won F2 or had an incredible junior career have not managed to get it.
‘Sometimes it’s just being in the right place at the right time and that’s kind of the really hard part about motorsport.
‘But I’ll keep pushing for as long as I can to get to the pinnacle but, as I say, there are other opportunities. Recently I did a Formula E test and that was incredible so there’s a lot more to it.’