Having recently become the first female driver to enrol on McLaren’s Driver Development programme, Bianca Bustamante spoke exclusively to Feeder Series ahead of F1 Academy’s title showdown in Austin. The Filipina outlined her racing career so far, the importance of F1 Academy in providing valuable support and track time for female drivers, and her preparations ahead of the final round.

By Nida Anis

Having grown up with motorsport, it was no surprise that Bustamante’s journey into racing began remarkably early on in her life. “I was very fortunate enough to get into motor racing at a very young age. I was actually introduced into the sport at about the age of one!”

“I already had my first racing suit, I was already watching Formula 1 with my dad, with my family, and by the time I was two, I was already driving this electric kart,” she said. “I was very fortunate that my parents, they had so much passion for it that they introduced me when I was fairly young to it, and I think that passion carried on.

“I instantly picked it up, and it was just what I knew to do ever since I was young.”

A season of learning and progress

In her first full season in cars in 2022, Bustamante competed in W Series, where she placed 14th, along with selected races in USF Juniors. 2023 saw the Filipina compete in F4 UAE with Prema Racing, before racing in F1 Academy with the same team. She also returned to USF Juniors for the Circuit of the Americas round, gaining valuable experience ahead of F1 Academy’s season finale.

Speaking to Feeder Series about her season so far, Bustamante said, “I think I was very lucky to get the support and funding this year, especially thanks to Lance East Exotics (LEE). They’re really the support of this season, and because of that, we were able to do all the various championships and really just gain the most track time we can get.

“And that’s really what kind of sets me apart from everyone else, is I would say I was rather quite inexperienced. Coming into this year, I’d never really had any experience in a single-seater. I’ve done close to five testing days last year, and of course, W Series, as well, which didn’t really give a lot of time for practice. We had 30 minutes before every race,” she continued.

“I was coming up against most of the top female racing drivers, very experienced, a bit older than I am, and because of this, I knew we needed to get the seat time in, we needed to put in the effort to test, to do all the races, just to catch up even. And because of this, we were able to be somewhat dominant or competitive in F1 Academy with the help of Prema Racing, who put on a really good programme for this year.”

Bustamante’s F4 UAE campaign saw her achieve two top-ten finishes in grids of over thirty drivers. “I think that was really the first time where I raced so competitively, to be honest. Close to thirty drivers, mostly men, I was teammates with the best F4 drivers as of right now, and I think that gave me sort of a benchmark — this is where I am to be this, how fast do I need to be in order to make it.

“And I think scoring those top-ten finishes really meant a lot, to show that there’s something in there, we just need the right people and the right programme to really nourish that.”

F1 Academy “an amazing initiative“

Bustamante remained with Prema Racing for F1 Academy’s debut season. “I think it’s an amazing initiative,” she said. “It’s definitely something we’ve been needing for the past few years, a series that really nourishes and prioritises track time. We get 15 days of testing before the season and during the season, and because of this, for most of the girls who can’t even afford to test, they’re able to do it with the support and backing of F1 themselves.

“And because of this, we eliminate the challenge of having to get the funding, as well as giving us the opportunity to work with the top teams. We are working with such amazing teams like Prema, ART, MP [Motorsport], teams that manage F3, F2 drivers,” she continued. “Prema have developed numerous drivers who are now in Formula 1. And because of this, they have so much knowledge to share, and we’re able to harness all of that knowledge from them.”

“F1 Academy, it’s done a great job to get us the highlights, the sponsorships, the platform we need to be seen and be heard.”

Bustamante has achieved two race wins and four podiums throughout the F1 Academy season and is currently seventh in the drivers’ standings. What are the Filipina’s targets as a racing driver? “I think F1 Academy has done a great job to really give a stepping stone to higher categories in racing, but that is my target, that is my goal, is to really go up the ladder in Formula 3, in Formula 2.

“With the help of F1 Academy, it’s done a great job to get us the highlights, the sponsorships, the platform we need to be seen and be heard. And because of this, it’s given us so much attraction from sponsorships,” she continued. “Really, that’s the nature of racing, unfortunately. When we’re not racing, we’re probably doing business deals and trying to secure sponsors for next year.

“It’s been a good year, and of course, still a big margin to look for, still a bigger margin to find. And next year I want to keep developing – I’m only going to be 19, and I think next year will be a really good year to keep learning even more. I think we’ve done so good this year to progress nearly every race and to better ourselves. Our plan next year is to keep at it.”

Training in 321 Perform’s “really good environment“

Bustamante also spoke to Feeder Series about her physical and mental preparation at 321 Perform, a training centre in France dedicated to the development of racing drivers. “I’m very fortunate to have the chance to work with 321 Perform in France. It’s a training centre filled with a lot of other drivers from different disciplines in motorsport, such as rally, Formula 1, karting. I was even fortunate to train with Esteban Ocon and really learn from the best.

“I was given a really good environment this year. I had a good coach, Xavier Feuillee, and he’s known to be coaches and trainers to many other racing drivers who were very successful. And because of this, I was able to work on the physical side, I was able to train a lot, do training in 321 for the neck, for the core and do certain specific workouts to really target the muscles we need to withstand the G-force and to just drive the car better.”

The Filipina expanded upon the specific physical challenges that female drivers face, both on the racetrack and in training. “Being a woman, it’s quite more physically challenging to drive a car. Genetically and scientifically, we are weaker, we have less muscles,” she said. “This is something already proven whenever we train. Often, guys can always lift heavier than I can, unfortunately.

“Whether I train every day or not, regardless of this, I need to be able to push as hard as I can, to really get myself to lift. That’s what we’ve been doing this year. I’ve been training every day, even when I’m travelling, on track, off track, I try to train as much as I can.”

She added, “We work so much mentally, on the mental aspect of motorsport, where it’s so mentally demanding. You have to train your reaction as well as your decision-making on track. Everything just happens so fast that you always have to think on your feet.”

Hailing from the Philippines, Bustamante’s racing career has seen her travel across Europe, America, and Asia, an aspect of her career that has been “quite tough” at times. “Not many people realise that because I am from the Philippines it’s actually difficult to travel, and because of this I’m forced to travel by myself. I’m not accompanied by my parents, or by anyone. 

“So it really makes the journey even more interesting, discovering everything for the first time. And really, it requires so much fighting spirit and being so fearless.”

Racing in Austin with USF Juniors

Ahead of this week’s season finale in F1 Academy, Bustamante raced at the Circuit of the Americas round in USF Juniors, where she achieved two top-ten finishes. “Austin is a big track! I was not expecting it – you watch the onboard, and then you get there and you’re like, lost. It’s massive!”

Feeder Series asked how this experience helped her prepare for the upcoming F1 Academy round, with it being the championship’s first weekend in the F1 paddock as well as its first weekend being broadcast globally. “Motorsport is such a journey that requires so much confidence because the more confident you are in the car, the better you perform,” she said.

“Knowing now that I’ve driven there, and I’ve performed quite decently… I think I’m going to be up there with a good start.”

“Having that mentality that ‘I’m here, I know the track, I’m here to fight’, it sets the pace for the whole weekend so differently. And knowing now that I’ve driven there, and I’ve performed quite decently in USF Juniors with a double P9, I think I’m going to be up there with a good start. So that’s a good mentality heading into the weekend.

“And I think, really, just being able to race again in a gender-neutral championship, racing with the boys is also quite good because really, I was challenged to get my elbows out and fight with the guys,” she continued. “And obviously it’s going to be so much more competitive, I really had to work to close down the gap, but in the end, we were fighting within the top 10, in the top 7, in the top 8, so I think that was quite good.”

Joining the McLaren Driver Development programme

Yesterday, Bustamante became the first ever female driver to join the McLaren Driver Development programme in a move that will see her return to F1 Academy in 2024 with ART Grand Prix. Backed by Cisco – an Official Primary Partner of the McLaren F1 Academy programme – she will take to the track in McLaren colours in next year’s seven-race season.

“This is such an unreal moment in my career, to sign with McLaren and ART Grand Prix is way beyond anything I could’ve ever imagined growing up racing karts in the Philippines,” Bustamante said in a McLaren Racing press release. “I still have a hard time seeing my name next to McLaren without getting emotional, as the history and the heritage linked to this team leaves me truly speechless.

“I’m so grateful for this opportunity as I believe I now have the best possible development structure around me to take the next step up in my career, and for this I am so thankful. 2023 was all about improving my speed which I demonstrated across several races this year, but in 2024 my aim is to establish consistency and improve my mental strength in order to make a title challenge in the coming F1 Academy season.”

While Bustamante remains focused on achieving a strong finish to her 2023 campaign, she is looking forward to representing McLaren in the 2024 F1 Academy season. “A big thanks goes to Susie Wolff and the team at F1 Academy for fighting so hard for us girls and to give us this opportunity to be the best we can be.

“Additional thanks go to Zak Brown, Andrea Stella, Emanuele Pirro, Sebastian Philippe, my sponsors, and all my supporters for believing in me and making this all possible. I am full of gratitude, and I promise to give it my all.”

F1 Academy’s first-ever season finale will take place this weekend at the Circuit of the Americas. The championship will join the F1 paddock for the first time, and will also be broadcast globally.

Header photo credit: McLaren Racing