Iron Dames' Maya Weug and Doriane Pin will get their first outing in a FIA F3 car at Magny Cours, as FIA F3 is set to launch a Diversity programme aimed at creating a bridge with the top projects involved in the development of women in motorsport.
F1's top third tier championship FIA Formula 3 announced a two day test at the former home of the French GP at Circuit Magny-Cours dedicated to female drivers, as part of a Diversity programme in conjunction with Iron Dames and W Series. While W Series Academy drivers Nerea Marti and Irina Sidorkova will hit the track on 9 November, one day later it will be Maya Weug and Doriane Pin's turn to get behind the wheel of the Dalla F3 car for their first time. Maya Weug, 16, has been one of the biggest names in karting before the FIA Women In Motorsport's 'Rising Star' programme brought her to international stardom: the young Dutch-Belgian driver won the inaugural edition of the selections and sealed a Ferrari Driver Academy contract - becoming the first ever woman to do so. Weug is currently racing in the Italian F4 Championship under the banner of Iron Dames / Iron Lynx. At her first season in single seaters, Maya has impressed and scored encouraging results in one of the world's top feeder series - also scoring several rookie class podiums. Doriane Pin, 16, was also among the four finalists in the inaugural Girls on Track - Rising Stars contest. The young Frenchwoman was picked up by Iron Dames as well, and has made her GT3 debut competing in the Michelin Le Mans Cup. Pin partnered Sarah Bovy in the first half of the season and Manuela Gostner in the final races. She scored three second places and four podiums in class. "Diversity is a very important subject for us. Our wish is to ensure that more and more female drivers join our championship." - said FIA F3 and F2 CEO Bruno Michel. "Today, it is still not easy for women to access the FIA single-seater pyramid. We want to help change this." The only women to have competed in FIA Formula 3 have been current Richard Mille Racing's teammates Tatiana Calderon and Sophia Floersch. Calderon raced in the top F3 championship from 2016 to 2018, before moving up to Formula 2 in 2019. She is so far the only woman to have graduated to F1's closest feeder series. Floersch joined Campos Racing in 2020, combining a double program with ELMS. She raced in WEC and DTM in 2021. Alice Powell, Vicky Piria, Carmen Jorda, Samin Gomez and Beitske Visser had entered the GP3 Series, prior to the FIA F3 rebranding. The test is the first step towards a diversity plan currently undertaken by FIA F3 and FIA F2, willing to generate links with programmes promoting women in motorsport. W Series and Iron Dames have so far been confirmed to be part of this project. Launched by Ferrari ambassador and women in motorsport's advocate Deborah Mayer, Iron Dames quickly became an international powerhouse in GT racing. The project hit the track in 2019 with the support of the FIA Women In Motorsport commission, launching an all-female line up in ELMS with Rahel Frey, Michelle Gatting and Manuela Gostner. The team has since then scored three top-10 finishes at the legendary 24 Hours of Le Mans, and extended their presence to the world's top GT series: WEC, ELMS, Le Mans Cup, Italian GT, GT World Challenge Europe, Ferrari Challenge. In 2021, they entered Italian F4. “This is another great milestone for promoting female talent in Motorsport and it represents everything which I set the Iron Dames project up to do – to open doors in motorsport for aspiring women." - said Iron Dames founder and Project Leader Deborah Mayer. “We have decided to offer an F3 test to two drivers from the Iron Dames programme which is supported by both the FIA and the Ferrari Driver Academy." - added Vruno Michel, CEO of FIA F3. "[Deborah] and I talked about this test, and she expressed huge interest in it." “Maya and Doriane are both very young, and while they climb their learning curve in motorsports, it is important for us to give them this opportunity now to help them build towards the future of their careers, which could lead to our Championship." The aim of the test, which will be carried out at Magny Cours on November 10th, is for Weug and Pin to familiarise with the Dallara F3 car and help them with understanding of setup and the series' demands. "These will be the fastest cars they have ever driven until now, and it will help prepare them for climbing to the next stages of their careers.”
