In 2023, Bianca Bustamante won two F1 Academy Series races with Italy’s Prema Racing team. Her success led her to becoming the first woman to team with the prestigious McLaren racing, and she is among the new wave of female drivers competing in Formula One Academy, as well as other top racing circuits. Los Angeles Times sportswriter Kevin Baxter wrote about the push for more female drivers and joined host Kelvin Washington on “LA Times Today” with more.  

Although a woman competed in the first ever NASCAR race in 1949, Baxter said racing has been a male-dominated sport for decades.  

“It’s funny because when the drivers are in their helmets, in their racing suits, their fire suits, no one can tell if it’s a man or woman, Black or white. But this drive for diversity is a big thing in motorsports in every series. When you speak specifically about F1 or IndyCar or the other open wheel circuit, there have been five times that many women who have orbited the Earth than have driven in an F1 or IndyCar series race,” Baxter said.  

Still, women such as Brittany Force and Danicka Patrick have made their mark on the sport. Baxter also noted that the fastest racer ever, regardless of gender, is a woman named Shirley Muldowney.  

Baxter explained how the racing series is pushing to diversify their drivers and appeal to their large female fanbases. 

“Forty percent of the fans of automobile racing, IndyCar racing are women. And we know that women make a lot of decisions in households across the country. About what sponsors to back. Do we buy this detergent or that detergent? And they make a lot of decisions about disposable income. Do we go to the races? Do we watch the races on TV? So this is a very important segment of the market. And Mark Miles at Penske, who’s in charge of IndyCar racing... started this new series called Indy NXT. He likened it to the minor leagues in baseball, as a way to bring women along slowly, allow them to develop their skills, allow them to progress, and eventually get them onto the major circuit,” Baxter said.  

Another barrier to entry for many drivers is money. Racing is an expensive sport to get into. Baxter explained that it takes millions of dollars to support one team through one season, which means drivers need to make relationships with sponsors in order to compete, especially women.  

Click the arrow above to watch the full interview. 

Watch “LA Times Today” at 7 and 10 p.m. Monday through Friday on Spectrum News 1 and the Spectrum News app.