Susie Wolff, the managing director of the all-female F1 Academy, has opened up about the profound isolation and sexism she faced during her own racing career, expressing her relief that the next generation of female drivers will be spared similar struggles.
A Lonely Path Through Karting and Prejudice
Wolff vividly recalls the deep loneliness of her early career, racing against future champions like Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg. "There was a deep loneliness to karting, and then definitely in single-seaters, because no one else was going through the same thing as me," she stated. The environment was hostile, with Wolff noting that the way boys talked about girls in the paddock forced her to be "whiter than white" to survive unscathed.
She contrasts this with the camaraderie in today's F1 Academy, which she has led since 2023. "I'm definitely happy that the next generation will never have to go through that... there's a camaraderie in F1 Academy. These young women have other women they can look up to."
Toughening Up and Fighting Back
Wolff's new book, 'Driven', details how she was forced to develop a toughness that didn't come naturally. In one early karting incident, a boy incensed at being unable to pass her deliberately drove her off the track. Wolff calmly defended herself to the clerk of the course, leading to the boy's disqualification.
This resilience shaped her character. "I can now be very punchy and pragmatic and if I have to fight for something I'll fight," she says. This fighting spirit was tested by the motorsport establishment's stereotypes. Sponsors often pressured her to conform to a girly image, driving a pink car, creating an insecurity about her identity that only eased after meeting her now-husband, Toto Wolff, who advised her to simply "be you".
The 42-year-old also recounts a frightening experience in 2007 when a powerful F1 figure banged on her hotel room door in the early hours. She describes the fear of both assault and the man's capacity to destroy her career. It was years before she told anyone, confiding first in Toto after they got together in 2009.
The F1 Dream and a New Mission
Wolff's own F1 dream was ultimately unfulfilled. In 2015, as a test driver for Williams, she was passed over for a race debut despite Valtteri Bottas's injury. The team opted for the more experienced Adrian Sutil. "It was a moment of absolute clarity," Wolff recalls. "I remember thinking: 'If you're not going to give me the chance now, you never will.'" She retired from driving at the end of that season.
Now, her mission is clear: to create the opportunities she was denied. Through the F1 Academy, she is dedicated to developing female racing talent. She believes a woman will be on the F1 grid within a decade. "I see the talent coming through and there will be a girl good enough to be given the chance," she affirms.
Her work continues amidst a personal legal battle with the FIA, which subjected her and Toto to a brief conflict of interest investigation in December 2023. The case was dropped after 48 hours amid unified support from F1 teams. Wolff confirms her legal action against the governing body is "ongoing."
A Changing Landscape
The proof of progress, for Wolff, is visible at the grassroots. Watching her eight-year-old son, Jack, karting, she overheard boys discussing a female competitor, Greta, as just another potential winner. "Twenty years ago I was 'the girl' and it was embarrassing if you got beaten by me," she says. "Whereas the next generation see these young girls are quick and that it's completely normal."
This shift in mindset fuels her optimism. The ultimate goal is a 50-50 split between boys and girls in the talent pool, a world away from the isolation she once knew, but now firmly within sight.
