In the 75 years of Formula One’s history, only five women have ever had the opportunity to drive 200 mph while battling two times the g-force astronauts experience during takeoff. However, a recent Netflix docuseries called “Formula 1: Drive To Survive” – Season 7 debuts March 7 – has drawn more women to the sport, growing the Formula One female fan base from 8% to 40% in just six years. These fans have called attention to the lack of women behind the wheel.
One driver rising through the ranks is Utah-born racer Lia Block. She won the 2023 two-wheel-drive American Rally Association championship by drifting a Subaru BRZ through forests and off-road tracks. After becoming the youngest winner in ARA history, she promptly threw herself into an entirely new league: the F1 Academy. The academy is an all-female entry-level racing series. It was created in 2023 by Formula One to pioneer a track for young women in motorsports.
In a recent video call with the Monitor, Ms. Block, the daughter of the late 23-time rally winner Ken Block and professional rally racer Lucy Block, shared her journey through the world of racing and how the recent expansion of Formula One has helped diversify the sport. The interview has been lightly edited and condensed.
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A growing number of women are fans of Formula One, thanks to shows like “Formula 1: Drive to Survive.” The Monitor reached out to rising star Lia Block to ask about the direction she, and racing, are headed.
Since you were young watching races and are now on the racetrack as a driver, how do you think the world of motorsports has changed over the past 10 years?
There’s a lot of ways you could answer that question, but I think for me growing up behind the scenes, social media has really changed the way that people view motorsports and how drivers get [chosen by teams] in F1 and all the way down. That’s a big reason why I’m in F1 Academy today, because of the social reach I have in the U.S. market.
I think the younger kids who are watching motorsports find out [about] these people and personalities from TikTok or Instagram. People connect a lot more with the drivers than the motorsport as a whole because they have someone to … watch during the races. Especially with “Drive To Survive” … sucking everybody into motorsports because they see behind the scenes and they see the people’s personalities of who are driving.
How are Formula One fans responding to women drivers in the F1 Academy series?
It’s a bit different for everybody, but so far … [it] has been pretty positive. Sometimes people don’t understand this is an entry-level series and we’re not trying to go and be F1 drivers the next year. But … there’s been so much support, and it’s great to go into a paddock [the garages where teams work on the cars before and during the race] and see young girls coming to the races, which you probably wouldn’t have seen five, 10 years ago. I think F1 Academy is such a great way for a new generation to come in because it shows women in motorsport on a huge stage racing [at the same circuits as] F1 on a race weekend. That is humongous! You get so many more eyes, and maybe there’s a 5-year-old girl watching this [saying], “Oh, that’s what I want to do when I grow up!”
With your mom and dad both being rally car drivers, they probably have had a big influence on how you race. But who else has mentored or influenced you on the track?
Definitely my parents. I mean, they’re the main reason I grew up around motorsport, and the whole reason I’m here today is because of them. Growing up, my idol was [French driver] Michèle Mouton. She really broke down the barriers for females in motorsport.
Going forward being a role model, I hope to show girls the same thing that I was shown from Michèle. I got to spend a couple of days with her and pick her brain about her feelings about racing against men back then [in the 1970s and 1980s]. She said it was really hard for her because nobody wanted her in that space and definitely nobody wanted to get beat by her. But she just kept pursuing and proving everybody wrong. That’s what F1 Academy’s about, and that’s what I hope to do in the future.
How does the F1 Academy support young women?
For me personally, this sport has been great in the way that they spread the love to every driver. They’re supporting young girls in [go-kart racing] championships all over the world, doing these pop-ups trying to find talent, and just trying to get themselves out there in a way to let other young girls know [about opportunities] not just as a driver, but as an engineer, as a mechanic, or a reporter. There are so many jobs in motorsport that are open, but I think it’s just about getting the word out there.
What do you hope to achieve in racing?
Since I started racing I’ve always wanted to go for the top – the world championship, whether that’s World Rally Championship, Formula One, or World Rallycross. I’ve always wanted to race against the boys. I’ve never thought that I couldn’t, so I think F1 Academy is a great way for girls to start and then move up and start racing with everybody because we can obviously do it. I mean I’ve been beating boys my entire life. I want to keep going in that way, and wherever my opportunities take me, I just want to keep climbing up the ladder.
