David Coulthard has unveiled a women only race series, scheduled to get underway next year.
"If you want a fundamental change in the outcome, you need a fundamental change in the process," said former F1 star turned TV pundit, David Coulthard, the driving force behind the new W Series.
"W is a fundamental change in creating an opportunity to bring through female talent to the highest possible level," he added.
While Susie Wolff is the last woman to drive an F1 car in anger, taking part in a number of FP1 sessions in 2014 and 2015 with Williams, the last woman to start a Grand Prix was Lella Lombardi back in 1976.
It is hoped W Series will attract twenty of the world's top women racers for what will initially be a six race championship based in Europe. With a prize fund of around £1.1m, the women will race identical machinery supplied by the series organisers.
"I have a reasonable understanding of the constituents of a top-class driver's necessary skill set," said design guru Adrian Newey, who is also involved in the series. "And brute strength isn't on that list.
"That being the case, I believe the reason why so few women have so far raced successfully at the highest levels against men is a lack of opportunity rather than a lack of capability."
"Can they be as good as Lewis Hamilton? I don't know," admitted Coulthard. "But I do know there are an awful lot of men in F1 who are not as good as Lewis. So if we don't create a platform that may give an opportunity to accelerate that access, then nothing is going to change."
"There are just too few women competing in single-seaters series at the moment," said Catherine Bond Muir, the series CEO. "W Series will increase that number very significantly in 2019, thereby powerfully unleashing the potential of many more female racing drivers.
"W Series drivers will become global superstars, inspirational role models for women everywhere, and every organisation, every company, every sponsor and indeed every single person who helps W Series' winners and champions achieve those ground-breaking successes will be able to celebrate their part in it, publicly, to lasting worldwide acclaim. W Series is an inspiring innovation whose time is now."
However, though delighted to see women racers being recognised, Susie Wolff argues that women really want to be judged by taking on their male counterparts.
"I respect anything that sets out to inspire and promote women in motorsport," she said. "My view on this, and I know that this is the shared position of the organisations I work with, is that we should continue to encourage and create opportunities for women to compete on the same level as men.
"We fundamentally believe that the best opportunity to identify top female talent is by facilitating a dynamic where more women can compete and rise to the top in a mixed competition on equal terms."
"What a sad day for motorsport," tweeted racer Pippa Mann. "Those with funding to help female racers are choosing to segregate them as opposed to supporting them. I am deeply disappointed to see such a historic step backwards take place in my life time."
Coulthard and Newey are both listed as members of the series advisory board, while Bond Muir, a lawyer with 25 years’ experience working in sport, is CEO. Former McLaren and Manor team manager and sporting director Dave Ryan, is the series racing director, while Tim Crow is commercial boss and the legendary Matt Bishop is communications director.
The series will use the Tatuus F3 T-318, homologated to the latest FIA F3 specification, featuring side impact panels, front and rear carbon impact structures, wheel tethers, an extractable seat, and the new Halo system along with a 4-cylinder turbocharged 270hp engine tuned by Autotecnica Motori, Sadev SL-R 82 six speed gearbox with LSD and Magnetti Morelli, paddle shift gear change and ECU and data acquisition by Magnetti Morelli.
sign in