Written by Eleana Cheshire, Edited by Sean McKean
The 2025 F1 Academy calendar has been revealed, but instead of excitement from fans, it was met with criticism. In 2025, the series, intended to support and guide female drivers through junior formulae, will be in its third year of racing. The calendar chosen, however, has faced criticism due to the circuits picked.
Like Formula 2 and Formula 3, F1 Academy is now a support series for Formula 1, meaning the drivers will race on the circuit that the F1 drivers do on the same weekend. Unlike F2 and F3, though, F1 Academy does not race on the tracks that typically occur in junior series and other forms of motorsport.
So what criticisms do fans have of the calendar?
One of the main criticisms is to do with the circuits chosen. Six out of seven circuits on the calendar are tracks that the drivers are likely not going to race on after they are done with F1 Academy and are also tracks that many of the drivers have likely never raced on prior.
This means that they may struggle on track more compared to European circuits, which many have likely raced on before.
Another large criticism in regard to the calendar is due to the nature of some of the tracks chosen. For example the F1 Academy season opener is at the Shanghai International Circuit — a track with high speed corners, long straights, tyre wear and complexity.
The F1 Academy car reaches a top speed of 260 kph (149 mph), and due to the long straights on the track, the lower top speed of the car could present overtaking difficulties and also make it harder to keep up with competitors.
The high speed corners on the track could lead to higher tyre wear and also challenge some of the drivers who may not have experienced a track like Shanghai.
The Shanghai International Circuit is also a complex track and physically demanding, meaning that the drivers will be prone to making mistakes.
However, driving on complex circuits could potentially help the drivers and prepare them for other series where they may race on physically demanding and complex circuits.
On the other hand, the 2025 F1 Academy calendar does not overlap with the Formula 2 and Formula 3 calendar – meaning that there is more exposure for the series and the drivers, which could potentially increase sponsors for drivers and help the series develop.
The calendar also challenges the drivers, especially since a large majority of the grid will be new faces.
It is important to recognise that the series is still in infancy and is still developing, so risks with the calendar and the circuits are important to figure out how to develop the series for future generations of female drivers.
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