F1 Academy: Is it just pink-washing, or are the critics just missing the point?

Every time an all-female racing series starts up, the same argument kicks off. Is it actually helping women move up in motorsport, or is it just another flashy initiative that looks good but doesn’t change much? F1 Academy is the latest to take the heat. Some people, like former F3 driver, Sophia Flörsch, have outright called it pinkwashing, saying it’s all for the benefit of the Formula 1® franchise, not actual progress in women’s motorsport.

But you have to look at what’s actually happening. Girls who may have had to stop racing because of funding – they’re still on track. More female drivers are getting into big-name academies. And brands that have never touched motorsport before are throwing their weight behind women in racing. Sure, F1 Academy is not some golden ticket to Formula 1, but neither is F3 or even F2 nowadays, so can we really say it’s pointless?

Let’s get into it.

Is it just a PR move?

Not everyone’s convinced that F1 Academy is the game-changer it claims to be. Some see it as nothing more than a marketing move, a way for Formula 1® to pat itself on the back for “supporting women” without actually changing the system that keeps female drivers from progressing in the first place.

Sophia Flörsch has been especially vocal, calling it pinkwashing and arguing that visibility alone won’t close the performance gap. At the end of the day, racing is about results, not just getting noticed. And she’s not wrong. Just putting a spotlight on female drivers doesn’t automatically make them competitive at higher levels.

On the other hand, there is the segregation argument. Some critics say that creating an all-female category just reinforces the idea that women can’t compete with men. Instead of proving they belong in F3, F2, or even F1, they’re stuck in a separate series that doesn’t feed directly into the main racing ladder.

But motorsport has never been a level playing field. Unfortunately, it’s not just about talent, it’s about money, opportunities, and the right backing at the right time. And that’s where F1 Academy might actually be doing more than its critics give it credit for.

The benefits are in the barriers broken

For all the criticism, there’s one thing that cannot be ignored – without F1 Academy, a lot of these girls wouldn’t be racing. Motorsport is brutally expensive, and for young drivers without the right backing, talent alone isn’t enough to keep them on track. F1 Academy removes a huge financial barrier by covering the costs of racing, something that doesn’t happen in the usual junior categories. For instance, Marta García, the first F1 Academy champion, walked away with a fully funded seat in the Formula Regional European Championship, a step that usually requires serious sponsorship money.

Abbi Pulling, the most recent F1 Academy champion, also sees the series as instrumental in her development. In a recent interview with Reuters, she highlights the financial and structural barriers that have historically hindered female drivers and credits the Academy with providing essential support to overcome these challenges. Pulling believes that with continued investment and support, more women can progress through the racing ranks.

And sponsorship is a huge part of the bigger picture. Visibility isn’t just about getting fans to recognise names; it’s about attracting brands willing to invest in female drivers. In the past, brands wanting to support women in motorsport had limited opportunities. Now, with F1 Academy in the spotlight, companies like Puma, Tommy Hilfiger, and even beauty brands like Charlotte Tilbury are recognising the benefits of backing female drivers. Ultimately, this kind of investment is shifting the landscape, making it easier for women to secure the funding they need to keep racing.

The bigger picture of representation

Climbing the motorsport ladder is tough for anyone, but for female drivers, the numbers have always been stacked against them. Even in F4, where young drivers get their first real taste of single-seater racing, only a small percentage ever make it further to F3, fewer still to F2, and almost none to F1. Now factor in how few women have even made it into F4 over the years, it’s clear why so few have progressed beyond it. It’s not a question of ability; it’s a numbers game.

F1 Academy isn’t pretending to be a direct pipeline to F1 and expecting it to be after just one season is missing the point. It’s a stepping stone. A way to keep female drivers in the sport long enough to actually have a shot at making it further. Because before you can argue whether women can compete at the highest level, you have to make sure they even get the chance to try.

This year’s champion, Abbi Pulling, is proof of that, moving up to Britain’s GB3 series, following the same route that plenty of top junior drivers take after F4. It’s a real step forward, not a side track.

More girls are also being picked up by major driver programs, like Maya Weug being the first female to join the Ferrari Driver Academy. Teams and series are opening their doors a little wider, with Formula E even hosting an all-female test this year, something that would have been unthinkable not long ago. The progress might not be immediate, but the shift is happening.

Defining the value before it is visible

After attending the inaugural International Women in Sport Monaco Conference, and hearing from iconic women in motorsport such as Marta García herself, and the legend Michele Mouton, it became clear that the value of female initiatives in motorsport cannot and should not be measured by the direct turnover into other racing series. It’s easy to ask, “How many F1 Academy drivers have made it to F3?”, and make quick judgements. But that’s not the right question, at least not yet. The series is still in its infancy, and progress in motorsport is slow, shaped by countless external factors, from funding to team decisions often out of a driver’s control. We will only start seeing the real tangible impact of F1 Academy years down the line. For now, what matters is that more female drivers are being given the chance to compete, gain experience, and build careers in the sport.

Yes, Formula 1® benefits from having the F1 Academy, of course it does. More diversity, more engagement, more commercial opportunities. But that doesn’t mean it’s just PR. It’s not a DE&I checkbox or a marketing gimmick, it’s a real initiative that is giving female drivers more opportunities than they had before. And if the first two seasons are anything to go by, those opportunities will only continue to grow.