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Late last year, Formula 1 announced a new all-female driver series coming in 2023 and that time is finally near. F1 Academy has released its 2023 calendar of events and race weekend format.
The series will consist of seven events and 21 races in total. The season finale will be a support event for the U.S. Grand Prix in Austin at the Circuit of The Americas in October.
The F1 Academy calendar is here! ️
— F1 Academy (@f1academy) February 23, 2023
Starting in April, the inaugural season will see us take on 21 races at seven iconic circuits, finishing in Austin where we will support @F1's US Grand Prix ✨#F1Academy pic.twitter.com/DsE24fsp4H
The goal behind F1 Academy is to advance women’s racing skills and help them succeed in further competitive levels by utilizing as many F1 tracks as possible. There will be a total of 15 drivers this season and six slots have already been filled by Alpine junior Abbi Pulling, Sauber Academy’s Lena Buhler, and Jessica Edgar, Bianca Bustamante, Nerea Marti and Carrie Schreiner. Nine more drivers will be announced ahead of the first round of testing at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya on April 11 and 12.
The weekend format will be three races per event. Each round will consist of two 40-minute free practice sessions and afterward, there will be two 15-minute qualifying sessions. You can read the full announcement on F1 Academy here for more information.