F1 Academy champion Marta Garcia earns fully-funded seat in FRECA junior series for 2024 season

Marta Garcia, the first title winner in the F1 Academy, will race with the title-winning Prema team in 2024 in the Formula Regional European Championship by Alpine, which sits between F4 and F3 on the motorsport ladder; Garcia won seven times in the first F1 Academy season

Newly crowned F1 Academy champion Marta Garcia will race in the Formula Regional European Championship by Alpine (FRECA) next season in a fully funded seat as a reward for winning the first all-female series.

Garcia, who won the title in the US last weekend when the F1 Academy was on the Formula 1 support bill for the first time, will drive for the title-winning Prema team in FRECA.

The cost of her seat is jointly financed by F1 Academy, Prema, manufacturer Tatuus and Pirelli, Formula 1’s tire supplier.

FRECA is a series that helps prepare drivers for the step between the various Formula 4 series and Formula 3, which is on F1’s junior programme.

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The all-female F1 Academy series will take place during F1 Grand Prix weekends in 2024, but questions remain over how long it will be before a female driver is seen on the F1 grid

F1 Academy was launched this year for female drivers aged 16 to 25, aiming to support their journey through the motorsport ladder.

As part of the F1 Academy’s initial agreement for Garcia’s seat, FRECA has also agreed to grant its top teams a fourth entry for a season if they sign a driver who finishes first, second or third in the F1 Academy standings .

“I am so excited and thrilled to be racing in FRECA next year,” said Garcia, who also raced for Prema in the F1 Academy.

“Coming from the F1 Academy will be a big step. We know we will have to work a lot with the team to succeed, but I am really determined to do well. I can’t thank the F1 Academy enough.

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Highlights from race one of the seventh round of the F1 Academy series in Austin, where Marta Garcia was crowned champion after holding off Abbi Pulling for the win

“It’s such a fantastic initiative and it’s the right way to do it, trying to bring drivers with the best results to the top level. What a great opportunity, I’m looking forward to it and the work we have forward, inside and outside the track.”

Susie Wolff, chief executive of the F1 Academy, praised the importance of the agreement and also the fact that the series has decided to reduce driver contributions to the race from €150,000 to €100,000 for the 2024 season.

“F1 Academy is all about progression and creating more opportunities for young women in motorsport, so offering a fully funded seat in FRECA for our inaugural champion is a significant moment,” she said.

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Lewis Hamilton was at the track to congratulate newly crowned F1 Academy champion Marta Garcia

“The fact that she will also continue to race with PREMA, with whom she has built a relationship and is currently team champion in this category, will also help her future development.

“I am proud of the progress we have made in our first season, and as we start to build towards our 2024 season, where we will appear on the F1 calendar, this announcement, together with the decision to launch the 2024 F1 Academy to further subsidize driver contributions to €100,000 is a statement of our continued commitment to making motorsport more accessible and breaking down the barriers faced by female drivers.”

F1 heads straight to Mexico for the middle leg of the US triple header. Watch the entire Mexico City Grand Prix weekend live on Sky Sports F1 from Friday, with Sunday’s race at 8pm. Stream F1 on Sky Sports with NOW