Women worldwide are using their online influence to Accelerate Action for gender equality in motorsport

On the track, motorsports is still a male-dominated world, with men making up the majority behind the wheel. However, behind the screens, hugely influential women are harnessing the power of social media to help Accelerate Action for a more accessible and inclusive future.

These women are making their mark in motorsports as content creators, influencers, presenters, and broadcasters. Through their channels, they are amassing a huge global following, creating engaging and innovative content that brings both new and existing fans closer to the sport. 

By bringing their fresh and diverse perspectives, these content creators are elevating the visibility of women both on and off the track, while driving an exciting new era of motorsports. 

Meet these leading women in motorsports, follow their journeys, and engage with their brilliant content.

F1 Academy is making a fabulous difference

Since its launch in 2023, F1 Academy continues to champion driving change in motorsport by providing a platform to inspire and support young girls and women to embark on their own motorsport journeys. 

By breaking down barriers to entry on track in the F1 Academy Racing Series and through grassroots initiatives such as F1 Academy Discover Your Drive, F1 Academy hopes to make motorsport more diverse, inclusive and accessible.

F1 Academy Discover Your Drive is a global initiative aiming to promote and increase female participation in motorsport both on and off the track. With activities ranging from a grassroots level and community initiatives to professional programmes, F1 Academy's goal is to inspire girls and young women to explore a future in motorsport.

Paddock Project is creating a loyal community

Hosted by Tiggy Valen, Paddock Project is bringing a fresh, female perspective to F1 and motorsport. A podcast and social media platform reaching over 200K women, Paddock Project has built a loyal community who tune in to weekly episodes, chat daily in Discord, and engage with educational content surrounding motorsport, business, technology, sustainability, diversity and inclusion, and more.

Females in Motorsport share important F1 stories

Females in Motorsport is a volunteer-run online platform run by a group of motorsport fans which aims to share as many stories as possible from those working and competing in the industry - from global racing talents and TV presenters to mechanics and wind tunnel technicians.

Run by Founder & Editor-in-Chief Helena Hicks, Females in Motorsport reaches over 20 million people across articles and social media platforms. Alongside interviews and blog posts, Females in Motorsports strives to showcase up-and-coming drivers who are taking their first steps on the motorsport ladder. Females in Motorsports is also committed to bringing updates from the motorsport paddock and providing a platform for readers to check series results via our social media channels. 

Fan Behavior provides a safe space for all F1 fans

Fan Behavior: A F1 Podcast is hosted by Zoe and Hannah, who dive into the crazy world of F1 every week and discuss everything happening both on-track and off-track. Whether it’s Ferrari’s race strategy, Pierre Gasly’s latest photo dump, Martin Brundle's grid walk, or Harry Styles declaring his love for a certain F1 driver, Zoe and Hannah cover it all. 

As new fans who got into the sport through Drive to Survive, Zoe and Hannah's goal is to learn, have fun, and provide a safe space for any and all F1 fans. Whether you’ve watched Formula 1 for decades or you’re just now getting into the sport, this show is for you.

Meet Maggie França (Formula Maggie)

Maggie França is the founder of motorsport blog Formula Maggie. Passionate fan of motorsport, more specifically Formula 1, Maggie is also become interested in and fond of other categories within motorsport.

Maggie is from the island of Madeira, one of the islands of Portugal, where it is typical to have car races in the summer, such as the Rally, so she grew up in this world of adrenaline. Maggie's ambition is to one day work for a broadcaster, where she can talk more about this passion.

Meet Charlotte Phelps (Race With Charlotte)

Based in the UK, Charlotte Phelps travels the world in her career as a Race Engineer at MP Motorsport, documenting her journey online to inspire other women. Charlotte started out as a placement student at the Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS Formula 1 Team, before becoming a graduate engineer and then subsequently a strategy engineer. Since then, Charlotte was part of the squad that helped win six World Championship titles.

Charlotte is also the owner of Vivace Motorsport, which provides motorsport development solutions and trackside support. Driven by a passion to help others succeed, through Vivace Motorsport, Charlotte specializes in making data easy to understand, whether that be at track, post event, or preparation for the next race.

Meet Becky Evans (QueenB)

Becky Evans, known as 'QueenB' online, is an automotive lifestyle creator who mixes fashion and car culture with an eye on car modification, shared via her hugely popular Instagram and YouTube platforms. 

Thanks to her ever-growing following, Becky works with leading broadcasters and brands, such as Red Bull, where she featured in her own TV series, and the BBC, where she presented Gassed Up and a new Top Gear digital series.

Meet Lissie Mackintosh (Going Purple)

From posting her first TikTok video in 2021, Lissie Mackintosh is now an F1 presenter, content creator and host of the Going Purple podcast who shares accessible and fun insights into race analysis, team news, and rumours with her online community. 

Considered a rising star in broadcasting, Lissie often shares behind-the-scenes content into the daily life and work of an F1 presenter to help make the industry more relatable. 

Regularly collaborating with leading global brands, in 2023, Lissie was the face of the Reiss x McLaren Formula 1 Team Collection alongside drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri.

Lissie is a strong champion for women in motorsports, and actively encourages people of all ages to take pride in their passions.

Meet Izzy Hammond (F1 Fan in Training)

As the daughter of former Top Gear presenter and motoring journalist Richard Hammond, Izzy Hammond has grown up in the motorsports world. Now, through her platform F1 Fan in Training, Izzy Hammond has made a name for herself by creating a home for new Formula 1 fans. 

Izzy's newsletter shares the F1 basics, such as season schedules, updated driver and constructor standings, easy-to-read race reports, and track previews. Subscribers can also access an every-growing glossary that explains the industry's more technical terms. 

Izzy is also a presenter on DriveTribe, which creates regular automotive content for a community car enthusiasts.

Meet Lee McKenzie

Lee McKenzie is a highly respected broadcast journalist and presenter who has covered some of the biggest news and sports events of recent times. She is best known for her work in Formula One, presenting and interviewing the drivers for Channel 4 and previously for BBC. 

Lee's life as a broadcaster sees her travel the world as part of Channel 4's exciting Formula 1 coverage where Lee presents and reports across the weekend's action. Lee is also a natural writer and highly regarded journalist having written features and comment pieces for almost all national newspapers as well as magazines and many websites.

Lee has made history by becoming the first female recipient of the Jim Clark memorial award, which acknowledges achievements within the world of motorsport and the motoring industry.

Meet Toni Cowan-Brown (Sunday Fangirls - The Untapped Billion)

A San Francisco-based tech and Formula 1 commentator, Toni Cowan-Brown examines the crossovers with tech, politics, F1 and internet culture. Toni's forté is combining academic rigour and facts with the right amount of personal stories and humour, and a good dose of cultural relevance.

Building a cultural platform that kick-starts important discussions for both new and existing F1 fans, Toni creates educational and entertaining content in a variety of different formats - written, audio and audio-visual, short-form and long-form, scripted and unscripted, live and recorded. 

Toni is a regular F1 commentator with ESPN, Skysports and Motorsport.com and the founder of Sunday Fangirls - The Untapped Billion, a project that aims to reclaim the word ‘fangirls’ - a term too often used against young women to ridicule and belittle them - and highlight both the relevancy and economic power these fans bring to the sports they love.  

In collaboration with ESSES magazine, Toni has also created an F1 Academy cheat sheet, the ultimate Guide to F1 when watching races - the drivers, teams, circuits, race weekend schedules, flags and the F1 lexicon. 

Meet Ashley Eleanor

Ashley Eleanor is an F1 and motorsport influencer, content creator and presenter. Ashley has worked alongside companies and drivers such as McLaren, Bristol Street Motors Click2Drive W Series, Michelin, Aston Martin, and more, creating fun informative content to help promote these brands and raise awareness about their products, campaigns or ethos. 

Ashley is growing an impressive presence across motorsport social media, broadcasting and presenting, while expanding into areas such as F1 esports, sim racing, and gaming.

Meet Alex Hirschi (Supercar Blondie)

Alex Hirschi, who goes by the online moniker of 'Supercar Blondie', is an Australian social media celebrity, presenter, journalist, and vlogger based in Dubai, UAE. She is best known for her automotive videos, which she posts on a regular basis on Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.

Alex owns the world's biggest automotive entertainment brand that, alongside a team of producers, editors, and social media executives, produces future-facing content featured on all social media platforms to an audience over 100 million. Through her network, Alex finds and covers the coolest cars, tech, luxury, design, and gaming in the world. 

Meet Tonya Hampton (Apex Takeover podcast)

A driving force in content creation and media, Tonya Hampton empowers women in motorsports while changing the narrative to create a more inclusive tomorrow.

As the founder of motorsport podcast Apex Takeover and Artemis Sky Media LLC, Tonya has made significant contributions to the media landscape. Her dedication to community formation and outreach reflects a passion that goes beyond her professional endeavors. 

Tonya champions the representation of media curated by African-American women as the standard in sports broadcasting and content creation, and firmly believes that such initiatives will not only strengthen the community but also influence younger, culturally diverse generations through increased engagement and opportunity.

Above all else, Tonya treasures her role as a mother to two sons, considering them her greatest accomplishments. 

Meet Sophia Upton

Sophia Upton is an up-and-coming F1 and lifestyle content creator based in the UK amassing her followers on Instagram and TikTok.

Sophia has worked with leading brands such as DriveCrate, DRM helmets, Fueler Store, and Fifth Gear Garms. 

Are you a motorsport content creator?

Want to showcase your channel, work, and influence. 

Get in touch and let us know how you are helping to Accelerate Action for gender equality in motorsport.