Lewis Hamilton v Max Verstappen: Why Do the Ex-Rivals Have Opposing Opinions on Susie Wolff Led F1 Academy?

“The only helmet that a woman should use is the hairdresser,” this was said by the then race director to the first woman to race in F1, Maria Teresa de Filippis. The sport in the years following this incident has been exactly like how it was envisioned; a white male-dominated territory. In its seventy-four years of history, the number of women participants in the history of F1 is just 5. In 2022, the F1 Academy initiative was set up to tackle this problem, and the world finally had an all-female academy to nurture talent. Moreover, we have even seen the Susie Wolff-led F1 Academy race on the same weekends as the men. But why does Max Verstappen not agree with this idea?

What is F1 Academy? It is a single-seater open-wheel spec series for women (founded by Formula 1). Founded in 2023, the academy uses a chassis, usually used for Formula 4. And the woman who was most recently the closest to an F1 seat, Susie Wolff, is the managing director of the initiative. And while many still feel women don’t belong in this world of fast cars, I believe this is a very big window for F1 to connect to the untapped world. While Lewis Hamilton has hailed and supported this, Max Verstappen doesn’t agree.

“Really happy to hear of the progress”: Lewis Hamilton on Susie Wolff-led F1 Academy

Wolff stated that Hamilton is always around when there is talk and initiative of diversity and, more often than not, he is usually the only one around. While we did see glimpses of George Russell and Zhou Guanyu as well, Hamilton has been the torchbearer of it all. This year, it was decided that 10 drivers on the grid will be nominated by F1 teams, with each team plastering their livery on one of the cars and the remaining five drivers will receive backing from other partners.

Susie Wolff expressed her gratitude for all the support and said, as quoted by Formula1.com, “First and foremost, I want to thank the Formula 1 team for their support and vision as we embark on this journey together. This landmark moment not only demonstrates the depth of support for F1 Academy from across the F1 community but will inspire a whole generation of young girls to realize the opportunities both on and off track in motorsport. As we join the F1 calendar for next year and host F1 Academy Discover Your Drive events in the lead-up to our races, I am confident that we will have a positive impact across our sport in the long term.”

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The 7x champ, who has been the most vocal supporter of this, said, “Really happy to hear of the progress [F1 Academy’s] made. It’s been great having Susie there, who was a phenomenal driver, so has the perspective from the driver side, but also, she’s been a team owner. She’s really fighting for that inclusivity, so, I think it’s really great the steps we are taking. Really happy to hear that all of Formula 1 is onboard.”

But then why did Max Verstappen not hail the initiative? Instead, he raised questions about it.

“if you ever want to get them into F1…,” Max Verstappen raises pressing questions on the “approach” of Susie Wolff-led F1 Academy

Ex Formula 1 Team Boss, Eddie Jordan, believes Sophie Kumpen, mother of Max Verstappen, is the only female driver he has seen in his career who would have succeeded in Formula 1 on equal terms without previous training. Kumpen, a former kart racer, has competed against ex-F1 champ Jenson Button and some of the other best F1 drivers and even raced against the Red Bull team boss Christian Horner. Kumpen was a prolific kart racer but couldn’t get into Formula 1. There was no setup to promote women racers back then or why else would the sport have only 5 women be a part of the sport which has been in operation for seven decades? But Verstappen, whose own mum didn’t have such opportunities, isn’t very excited by the F1 Academy initiative.

Max Verstappen, talking about the F1 Academy initiative, said, “It is good that Formula 1 now pays extra attention to women in motorsport with F1 Academy. Although, I have questions about how they approach it. The cars they drive are way too slow, if you ever want to get them into F1, it really has to go to a higher level. It’s all very nice having girls sponsored by F1 teams, but what are we actually helping them with? There is no next step for them now.”

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Verstappen has raised a very pertinent question. The car that F1 Academy girls are driving was driven by F1 drivers FOUR STAGES ago. If women racers want to race in F1 as equals, the fairer sex needs to be provided with the same machinery or have a graduating process similar to F4-F3-F2.

Whose opinion do you agree with? Max Verstappen or Lewis Hamilton?