Twenty-eight drivers were given the very good news today that they had been chosen to go through to the next stage of the selection process of W Series, the all-new single-seater racing series for female drivers only. Two of them are Australian racing drivers Caitlin Wood and Alexandra Whitley.
“So bloody happy to get to the next phase of the W Series. Successfully completed all the assessments across the selection program finishing in the top 4 of the Race of Champions. Bring on these F3 cars! Big congrats to my fellow aussie Alexandra Whitley, lets do this girl!!” said Caitlin via her Facebook page.
“This week has been the experience of a lifetime, truly exceptional in so many ways. I am proud to say I have made the cut and will test an F3 with HiTech Motorsport along side 28 other girls in Spain in March. Words don’t describe how we are feeling. I cannot thank the W Series team enough for the opportunity they have given us. We have learnt so much about ourselves on and off the track and will all put our best foot forward in Spain,” said Alexandra via her Facebook page.
Not surprisingly there were smiles and tears, but in a stirring speech here at the Wachauring in Melk, Austria, it was made very clear by W Series CEO Catherine Bond Muir that the judging panel had had an extremely difficult job, because the level of talent demonstrated by the 54 drivers who attended the three-day selection event here was exceptionally high.
“All W Series’ qualifier-drivers here at the Wachauring [Melk, Austria] are superstars, every single one of them. But the sad fact is that not all of them will continue to the next stage of our driver selection programme. That’s competition. That’s sport. That’s racing,” said Catherine Bond Muir, W Series CEO.
“But one thing I’ve seen over the past three days, and that I’ve been massively impressed by, is that each and every one of our qualifier-drivers is tough, brave and strong. And of course we’ll therefore encourage them to work hard on their driving for the next few months and then consider re-applying for the 2020 W Series season when the time comes,” added Catherine.
The next step for the lucky 28 drivers will be a four-day test in the W Series Tatuus F318 Formula 3 car in late March. W Series will then race at six events on the DTM programme in Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands, Italy and the UK, running from May through to August.
The following 28 successful qualifier-drivers have made it through to the next stage of the W Series selection process:
Sarah Bovy, Belgium
Jamie Chadwick, UK
Sabre Cook, USA
Natalie Decker, USA
Marta Garcia, Spain
Megan Gilkes, Canada
Grace Gui, China
Esmee Hawkey, UK
Jessica Hawkins, UK
Shea Holbrook, USA
Francesca Linossi, Italy
Vivien Keszthelyi, Hungary
Emma Kimilainen, Finland
Natalia Kowalska, Poland
Stephane Kox, The Netherlands
Miki Koyama, Japan
Milou Mets, The Netherlands
Sarah Moore, UK
Tasmin Pepper, South Africa
Vicky Piria, Italy
Alice Powell, UK
Gosia Rdest, Poland
Naomi Schiff, Belgium
Shirley Van Der Lof, The Netherlands
Beitske Visser, The Netherlands
Alexandra Whitley, Australia
Fabienne Wohlwend, Liechtenstein
Caitlin Wood, Australian
Photographs by W Series.