All-woman F1 Academy series to race in Saudi Arabia to start an expanded 2024 schedule

LONDON: Formula One’s F1 Academy series for female drivers will race next year in Saudi Arabia to start an expanded schedule with a more prominent role in grand prix weekends.

The event in March in Saudi Arabia — which lifted a ban on women driving on its roads in 2018 — starts an expanded seven-round calendar announced Tuesday for the F1 Academy in its second season. The series will also race in Miami in May before heading to Spain, the Netherlands, Singapore, Qatar and Abu Dhabi.

For the first time, all F1 Academy events will be held as support races for the F1 championship.

Of the six F1 Academy events in this year’s inaugural season, only the finale this week at the Circuit of the Americas in Texas is supporting an F1 event. Spanish driver Marta Garcia leads the standings with three races remaining.

“This calendar cements our ambition to become a truly global series, expanding our reach and improving visibility for our mission,” F1 Academy managing director Susie Wolff said in a statement. “We want to inspire young girls and women across the globe and show them that there’s a place for them in our sport, and racing alongside F1 will help us achieve this.”