Examining the Evolution of Formula One with The World's First Emirati Woman Driver In Formula 3
Formula One is an exhilarating sport. From the moment you see those 20 cars crouched on the grid, you know you’re in for a wild ride. Packed with the most advanced automotive technology in the world, Formula1 has explored and expanded the pinnacle of motorsports for decades.
It is only in recent years, however, that Formula1 popularity has started seeping into the mainstream. Since Liberty Media acquired Formula One in 2017, we’ve seen a greater focus being placed on content, with the famous film ‘Drive to Survive’ drawing in thousands, if not millions, of new fans into the Formula One.
However, as someone who grew up watching Senna and Schumacher duke it out for the chicane, I can’t help but wonder if, in its exploding popularity, Formula1 hasn't lost that spark that made it special. To investigate this further, I’ve invited a unique guest who, although quite apart from the world of financial services and fintech, I’m hoping will provide me with a fresh perspective into the inner mechanics of motorsport.
Amna Al Qubaisi, The UAE’s First Woman Racer in F3
Only 22 years young, Amna has blazed a trail for young women across the UAE and the Middle East. Having raced in a variety of different competitions from karting to Formula 4 and Formula 3, Amna has defied expectations and shattered stereotypes to become one of the most successful woman racers from the Middle East.
However, Amna admits that this has not been an easy journey for her. As a young girl, Amna was one of few of her gender who had both the interest and opportunity to participate in racing carts with the distant dream of one day racing cars. She largely attributes the privilege she’s enjoyed in this regard to her father, Khaled Al Qubaisi, famous in his own right as a legendary UAE driver and major real estate developer.
Amna recalls how she barely noticed the cultural perceptions around being a female race car driver because Khaled was so open-minded and even supportive of her. However, she also mentions how once she started competing outside of the Middle East she was often confronted with stereotypes as people asked her whether women were even allowed to drive in the UAE.
While statements and questions like these are easy to brush off, Amna also shares how the male-dominated world of race cars has posed some unique challenges to her as a woman, some of which directly relate to the way Formula 1 has evolved in recent years.
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How Formula One Technology Has Changed The World
More than any other racing series like Nascar or even the Indy500, Formula One places specific emphasis on technological advancement and engineering excellence. This is an element of Formula One many fans love but is starting to fall under question as races become more predictable.
Technological advancements in Formula One often trickle down to road cars with fantastic effects to efficiency and reliability. Paddle shifters and steering wheel buttons originated on Formula One cars as a way of allowing drivers to control more of their cars’ functions without needing to take their hands off the wheel. Today, these same technologies are employed on virtually every new road car to allow them to change the music they’re listening to or cruise down the highway with even greater convenience.
Even more serious aspects of Formula One have been adopted by road cars such as double overhead camshafts. This innovation was developed specifically by Renault that debuted in the 1912 French Grand Prix, and today can be seen on virtually every internal combustion engine vehicle in the world.
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How Technology Has Changed Formula One
However, in recent years we have seen more advanced technologies enter the world of Formula One than ever. Many fans have begun wondering if they are truly watching a race between drivers or a battle between engineers, and it’s not hard to see why.
Since the hybrid era began in 2014, only 2 racing teams have had the honour of winning a championship. Despite some concerted efforts from other teams, that trend shows no indications of slowing down any time soon.
This observation has led a growing population of fans to believe that in the modern Formula One era, the car makes a bigger difference than the driver. This difference can be even more apparent when the driver is a woman, as Amna explains.
Challenges Unique to Women in Formula One
Developing a race car takes a lot of work and a lot of money, especially for Formula One. The most successful F1 teams have hundreds of people working to extract every millisecond of speed they can from the cars they develop.
However, many of the cars developed in Formula One and other, lower categories are often designed with the assumption that a man will be driving them. As Amna reports, this blindspot can lead to more than a few challenges for her as a woman.
Believe it or not, race car driving fully counts as a physical sport and drivers need to train for it. As Amna reports, she can spend up to an hour and a half everyday simply getting in shape to withstand the incredible g-forces drivers are subjected to as they enter a corner at hundreds of kilometres an hour. Race cars also require a lot of brute force simply as a matter of operation.
The steering wheel can be heavy and hard to turn. The brakes can take hundreds of pounds of force to fully depress. The seats are often too wide and do not offer a comfortable position for shorter, leaner women. The list goes on. Modern race cars are often not designed with women in mind and this may lead to a critical disadvantage in a sport where your vehicle matters so much.
The Future of Formula One
As Formula One marches ahead, I’m sure it will continue to receive more views as more people become aware of this exciting sport. However, as it does so there are a few areas which classical F1 fans like myself would like to see improvement in.
The first is in the area of competitiveness. Although Formula One has already taken some steps towards this with the spending cap introduced in 2021, many fans who watched Verstappen pull away from all competitors in the 10th lap last year may feel this is not enough. We want to see real, high-stakes racing without any obvious winners from the get-go.
The second way is by greatly improving female representation. As Amna mentioned, Formula One is already working towards this with a W series aimed specifically at hopefully giving more women a chance of breaking into F1. But, from Amna’s observations, the sport can only do so much on its own. Without adequate sponsorship to develop a car customised to her requirements as a woman specifically, it may be a tall order to expect women like Amna to make it onto the starting grid any time soon.
Would you like to learn more about Formula One, how technology has changed the sport, and why there aren’t more women in the sport? You can listen to the full discussion with Amna on your favourite podcast streaming platform, or watch it on YouTube.