Williams tester Susie Wolff said a grand prix category just for women is “definitely not the right way forward”, while another female driver Alice Powell was less scathing but said she would prefer to compete against men.
And Michela Cerruti, who has raced in the new Formule E series, said the women’s F1 series would be essentially “to attract attention” and “much less interesting than seeing women racing against men”.
New Lotus development driver Carmen Jorda has a different view entirely.
“Nowadays you see women competing in their own championships in most sports: football, tennis, skiing, you name it,” she told F1’s official website. “In none of these championships are men and women competing against each other. So the question is: why not have a F1 world championship for women?”
Jorda also told AP that women will never beat men in F1 “because of the physical issue”.
“I don’t want to fight for 10th or 15th. What I want to do is to win,” she added. The question now is whether Ecclestone’s proposal will go any further than mere debate.
The president of the FIA’s ‘women in motor sport’ commission is Michele Mouton, a French driver who finished the world rally championship second in 1982.
WDC for women must surely be a good idea.
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All this talk by Susie Wolf, about her only wanting to race against men, is in reality, a load of bollocks.
The fact is, that she was not even considered as a sub for Bottas, even though her hubby still has a substantial shareholding in Williams. Reality ‘bites’ Susie…… you should look at other sports.
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There will be some sports where women compete against men……. but for the moment, I can’t think of any.
Cricket, rugby, football, athletics etc……… in truth pretty much every sport has male and female versions.
It’s not that motor sport is particularly ‘male dominated’……. ALL sport is male dominated……. it’s just that motorsport is a bit behind the curve.
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The benefits are clear:
Include 50% of the population, and it brings more money into the sport, and more family interest….. which can only be good for introducing future generations to F1.
Think of all the female product advertising that F1 could be getting a share of 😉
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A perfect example would be Louis Hamilton.
Check out the forums where people include their picture 😉
How many people would feel included, if it were not for the presence of LH.
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The financial argument is clear….. more sponsors, more money, more cars, more jobs in the industry.
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There can be no doubt that Bernie has lost the plot in many ways, but this idea should certainly be taken seriously.
🙂