Formula E CEO Jeff Dodds lauded the second women’s test as a moment that he and Formula E are “very proud” of.
The test featured much more track time for the 14 women entered and also more off-track activity with a special hospitality area and a host of invited media and other social media influencers to help promote the event.
“Today, 14 of the world’s best women drivers took to the track here in Valencia in the Gen3Evo Formula E car for the second-ever All-Women’s Test,” said Dodds.
“This time, we have been able to give the drivers a whole day on track – double the track time compared to last year – totalling six hours split across two sessions. During this time, we’ve not only seen impressive consistency but also rapid development, with lap times falling quickly as the drivers got to grips with the complexities of the Gen3Evo.
“Nine of the women drivers have posted times that were within just tenths of a second in each sector compared to the official drivers after the first day, once again proving how valuable track time is in developing experience and confidence in this machinery.”
Nissan’s Abbi Pulling spoke to FEN about the implementation of a power steering system to the Gen4 car, which is set to be unveiled officially next April.
“No doubt it will make a difference as it’s quite a big thing having power steering in a car,” she said.
“I think the only single-seater series to have it is Formula 1 and Super Formula. Even the lads say that they struggle at times. So, that says enough really. And I think in that aspect, it makes it more realistic that a female can come into Formula E (to race).
“It takes away that whole factor of ‘am I actually going to get the most out of this push lap?’ Because are my arms up to it, basically. Which is really important for females. Because at the end of the day, it’s no secret, we’re just not as physically capable in that aspect. Which is unfortunate, but we can get as close as we possibly can.”
Pace setter at Valencia Chloe Chambers, driving for Mahindra, largely agreed with Pulling but also added that “the steering weight is heavy, but I’m used to driving cars with no power steering.
“I think maybe for some of the other drivers, who come more from a sports car background, they probably struggled a bit more than I. But I’ve been training for heavy steering weight anyway, so this shows me kind of the level that I need to be at in terms of physical performance.”
Lindsay Brewer, who ran with DS Penske at the test this week told FEN that she believed the implementation of powering steering will enhance women in being able to “shine” more in Formula E.
“Oh, praise the Lord!” said Brewer when told Gen4 would feature a power steering mechanism. “ I think it’s going to be a good opportunity to showcase talent in a different way. Rather than strength and talent. I think a lot of other people are going to be able to shine.
“But of course, I guess I just should have trained harder too. I think the power steering is going to really help a lot of people. Even the men are complaining about it. That’s why it’s being brought into Formula E and I think a lot of people are going to be happy with it.”
F1 Academy driver Ella Lloyd hot-footed it from a test at Bahrain this week to join Alice Powell in the Envision Racing squad at the Valencia test.
Lloyd told FEN that she initially had to re-learn some aspects of driving the Gen3Evo car after initially getting her debut in a McLaren Nissan last year before moving in to an Envision Jaguar seat.
“Obviously all the systems and all the dials on the wheel do different things so it’s kind of relearning all of that,” said Lloyd.
“And then obviously the car setup is slightly different and the way you’ve got to drive then is slightly different. I think I went in driving how I drove the last time but it probably didn’t quite work and then, I came in with what I needed to do and kind of adapted my driving then it was a decent last run. I’m pretty happy with it.”
Juju Noda spent the whole weekend at Valencia with her father, the former F3000, sportscar and briefly F1 driver Hideki Noda. The 21 year-old acquitted herself well with Antonio Felix da Costa’s Jaguar I-Type7.
Noda told FEN that she could have been much higher up the order but for a few mistakes on her push laps in the afternoon.
“At the end, I set a new personal best in sector one, but after that I made some mistakes, but I think if I had put the whole lap together I could have done a better time,” said Noda.
“But that wasn’t the goal for this test, and I’m glad I was able to complete the test plan.
“I think the best thing about doing this test with Jaguar TCS Racing was that the technical understanding of all the mechanics and engineers was so high, and even just by watching the test I was able to learn a lot. When it was my turn to drive, the information from the engineers and the way the team communicates was a really good learning experience.”
Bianca Bustamante, who drove for the CUPRA Kiro team, said that she felt “quite a lot of potential” has been left on the table in the morning session.“I couldn’t really optimise new tyres and made a mistake here in there so all in all I was just happy to put a lap together.
“Obviously, there’s still so much room for improvement; I wasn’t able to optimise sector one and I did end up doing on the second run on the older tyres,” added the Filipina driver.
“There’s still much more in there and I think with more running in this car and more laps and working more with the team I will definitely be able to get my pace up there. But all in all, I’m so, so happy, the team has done brilliantly preparing me for this test in the sim, giving me onboards during track walk and giving me all the information that I can have to be able to really optimise this test.”
Alice Powell suffered a battery issue in her Envision Jaguar on Friday afternoon but enjoyed a strong test in Sebastien Buemi’s car. Powell has a role as a development driver with the Silverstone based team and has driven its unique two seater Formula E car on several occasions.
Formula E Operations continues to have a diverse presence in the paddock and its Hammersmith, London offices with several key positions in Formula E occupied by women.
These include executives Hayley Mann (HR), Julia Palle (Sustainability), Tiziana di Gioia (Commercial) and Ellie Norman (Marketing). Additionally, Cara Pelchen (Teams and Manufacturers), Beth Paretta (VP Sporting), Margot McMillen (Host Cities Director), Claudia Denni (Sorting Director), Charlotte Sefton (Media) and Catherine McCarten (Fan Growth) hold senior positions.
Teams also have many women in senior positions including, at Nissan, Francesca Valdani (team manager) and Maria de Juana (Global Communications Manager) – pictured below; at Jaguar, Sara Morrow (Head of Motorsport Business Operations); at Porsche, Anna Schwaiger, lead systems engineer and Shanine Johnson (marketing manager); Lola’s entire communications department is channelled through communications director, Laura Simpson. Dozens of other talented women are also dedicated members of the paddock season in and season-out.
Last year, Jaguar partnership activations manager Charlie Burden spoke to Formula E about her role and her career journey in motorsport. Read her story HERE.
Last year Formula E Notebook’s Sam Smith spoke to one of the original women drivers in Formula E, Michaela Cerruti about her experience and where female talents are heading in the all-electric series. You can read the article HERE.
Formula E is continuing its partnership with the FIA and the FIA Girls on Track initiative and had a group of young females at Valencia last week.
Motorsport is one of the few sports where men and women can compete as equals. Yet today, women make up just 3% of licensed competitors worldwide. Formula E’s FIA Girls on Track programme is helping to change that. The FIA and FEO is inviting young women aged 12 to 18 to explore the world of motorsport – for free – through hands-on activities, workshops, and exclusive behind-the-scenes access. Delivered at every Formula E race, the programme aims to inspire and empower the next generation of motorsport talent
FEN is proud to continue supporting Formula E’s push to help nurture female talent in the series and itself continues to promote female talent in the paddock. Georgia Williams and Alice Holloway have been integral to its progress since its formation in November 2023 and will continue to contribute to content throughout 2026.
