F1 Academy is a racing series designed to encourage women's participation in motorsport. It is equivalent to Formula 4 and allows these women to gain more experience needed to progress up to Formula 3 and beyond. Formula One and motorsport in general are not male-only spaces, but they are male-dominated, making it difficult for women to get a fair shot.

In F1 Academy’s first two seasons, there were 5 teams with 15 drivers total. In 2026, a new team joined, therefore expanding the grid to 18 drivers. Another unique aspect of F1 Academy is the sponsors, who support a driver and design their livery.

Each of the 11 F1 teams sponsors a driver and designs a livery to increase team visibility. Along with the F1 teams, sponsors such as Gatorade and Lego support a driver throughout the season.

The F1 Academy season is 7 race weekends with 14 races total. Each race weekend features a qualifying session and two races, the first of which had a reverse grid starting order from qualifying. This season F1 Academy will have races in China, Saudi Arabia, Canada, Silverstone, Zandvoort, Austin, and Las Vegas

Prema Racing has two confirmed drivers, Mathilda Paatz, supported by Aston Martin, and Payton Westcott, supported by Mercedes. Prema’s 3rd driver has yet to be announced. Payton Westcott has big shoes to fill as Mercedes’ Doriane Pin won the championship last season.

MP Motorsport’s drivers are Nina Gademan, supported by Alpine; Alba Larsen, supported by Ferrari; and Esmee Kosterman, supported by Lego.

Rodin Motorsport features two drivers named Ella who are both sponsored by McLaren, Ella Lloyd, supported by McLaren, and Ella Stevens, supported by McLaren Oxagon. Their third driver is Emma Felbermayr, supported by F1 newcomer Audi.

Art Grand Prix has Lisa Billard, supported by Gatorade; Jade Jacquet, supported by Williams; and Kaylee Countryman,  supported by Haas.

Hitech is the new addition to the grid in 2026 and brings Rachel Robertson, supported by Puma and Ava Dobson, supported by American Express. Their third driver is  Wei Shi, supported by Juss Sports, who will race as a Wild Card driver in the opening race.

Campos Racing is the only team that has yet to announce any of their drivers, but announcements should be coming soon.

In 2024, F1 Academy’s second season, the Wild Card entry was introduced to open the talent pool to more regions. This spot is a single event entry designed to showcase an emerging talent in the region in which they are racing

Wei Shi will be the first Wild Card entry for the season. The rest of the Wild Card drivers will be announced closer to the round.