F1 Academy driver Ella Stevens was awarded the FIA Karting Award at the British Grand Prix ahead of the championship’s first race event at Silverstone.
The FIA Karting Award is given to the highest-placed female racer in UK karting. Ella received the award from McLaren’s F1 Business Operations Director, Stephanie Carlin, who runs the operation’s Driver Development Programme of which Ella is a member.
Receiving the award, Ella reflected on her experience as a female racer: “I started when I was six, and there weren’t really any females in the sport, so just growing up around boys I never saw myself as a boy or a girl, I just saw myself as a fellow competitor.
“I just kind of got on with it. The boys want to be rude, they could be rude, you know? I’m just there to beat them all.
“With F1 Academy, as soon as I heard about it, I was like; oh, that’s an amazing achievement, because I don’t think I would have ever been able to financially afford to even get into cars. So just the opportunity with McLaren itself and the Academy.”
Stephanie added: “I think it’s fantastic, we’re so proud that Ella’s been awarded this for everything that she’s done in karting. All of the traits that she demonstrated, her bravery, her racecraft, and her application; she’s brought with her into F1 Academy. Awards like this can help raise a profile, what girls can do in karting. That’s so important, because it is absolutely the foundation from where drivers are learning about racecraft and resilience and building that competitive edge. Even things like how to deal with grip they take through into their single seater and junior categories. So, it’s just fab that Ella has been able to accept this award today, and she’s continuing her journey and F1 Academy with McLaren.”
Speaking about the career ladder for female drivers Stephanie commented: “A driver has to be a good driver first and foremost; male or female. I think what we’re seeing at the moment is more role models and more visibility for females to understand that karting and motorsport is an option for them. It’s that level of visibility that’s the really important thing, they need to see that it’s an option for them. If we consider the progression of drivers through motorsport and up the ladder, it’s a maths equation. So if there are more girls going in at karting level, there’s a higher chance of girls making it up the ladder as well. As Ella’s proving, there are no boundaries or limits to that whatsoever.”
Ella was also keen to give advice to any girls looking to get involved in motorsport: “I think just go for it, really. I grew up surrounded by so many boys, and I never really saw that as a barrier, so I think just keep going and keep pushing. And eventually, you’ll get there.”
Click here for more information on Girls on Track UK, here for Girls Karting Academy and here for the Motorsport UK Academy.