Written by Ramiza Donlic, Edited by Vyas Ponnuri
Women have played an influential role throughout the history of motor racing. Many have taken to the wheels of motorsport machines, while numerous figures have worked tirelessly on the sidelines in various roles, shaping the racing world to the present day. Woman Spotlight Wednesday aims to take a look at the tales of these superwomen, who have surpassed various hurdles to reach where they are today.
This week's article highlights the newest addition of this year's F1 Academy line-up - Joanne Ciconte. MP Motorsport has completed its driver line-up for the 2025 season, with Joanne Ciconte set to make her F1 Academy debut with the team.
Ciconte joins fellow Australian Aiva Anagnostiadis, announced last week, as the latest addition to Hitech TGR.
Ciconte began karting at the tender age of nine, where she competed in regional and national championships across Australia. Among her achievements included winning the Pink Plate at the 2023 Australian Karting Championship.
That same year, she was selected as one of the four senior finalists in the FIA Girls on Track — Rising Stars program at the Ferrari Driver Academy in Italy.
Her performance in the same event caught the attention of former Ferrari F1 Driver Giancarlo Fisichella and former GT driver Marco Cioci, the duo impressed by her potential. As a result, they invited her to join their management team, Pro Racing Motorsport, paving the way for Ciconte to receive valuable mentorship.
Under their guidance, she transitioned to single-seaters in 2024, earning points in Australian F4 before gaining further experience in Europe. She competed in the Brno round of the Central European Zone F4 Championship and later took part in two rounds of the highly competitive Spanish F4 Championship.
Most recently, she prepared for the 2025 season with appearances in the Formula Winter series. She completed two races in Jerez and Valencia. For the season opener in Shanghai, Ciconte will race in an F1 ACADEMY livery. She joins Ferrari-backed driver Maya Weug and Tommy Hilfiger driver Alba Larsen at MP Motorsport.
The 16-year-old shared her excitement about taking the next step in her career:
“I’m proud to be moving up into the F1 ACADEMY series with MP Motorsport,” she said. “To be able to race in front of large crowds and the Formula 1 stars during Grand Prix weekends is a dream come true, and to be able to do that with such an experienced team like MP Motorsport is all I could ask for.
“I’m very much looking forward to get going with the first test to further hone the car and our cooperation and can’t wait to start my first race in Shanghai.”
F1 Academy’s 2025 season gets underway in Shanghai on March 21st, with Ciconte and several other names set to take to the track, in a revamped grid for the newest season of the all-women championship.
Kommentare