The 2026 F1 Academy championship kicks off this weekend in Shanghai. Get to know the talented rookie drivers aiming to make their mark in this all-female racing series.
Megan Bruce
Megan Bruce joins Campos Racing for 2026, with Tag Heuer support. Her journey started with karting, leading to her professional debut in Caterham Academy in 2023. Bruce made her single-seater debut in the 2024 GB4 Championship with Fox Motorsport, securing four top-ten finishes and an 11th-place overall. In 2025, she raced in GB4 for KMR Sport, finishing 20th, and also competed in the F4 Saudi Arabian Championship, achieving a seventh-place finish in Jeddah. Bruce showed strong performance in her first F1 Academy Rookie test at Circuit de Nevarra in September 2025, placing in the top four. She also made a wildcard appearance in Singapore last year, finishing 12th and 13th in the races.
Mathilda Paatz
Mathilda Paatz will race for Prema Racing in 2026, backed by Aston Martin. The German driver’s career highlights include a 13th-place finish in the 2022 FIA Motorsport Games Junior Karting Sprint Cup. In 2024, she became the first female driver supported by the ADAC junior team, competing in French F4 and securing a 10th-place best finish. 2025 saw her achieve her first F4 CEZ podium at the Red Bull Ring with her father’s team, followed by a wildcard F1 Academy entry in Montreal with Gatorade support.
Payton Westcott
Payton Westcott joins Prema Racing for her full F1 Academy debut in 2026, with Mercedes backing. Starting karting at 12, Westcott primarily raced in the US before making her international debut in 2024 through F1 Academy’s Discover Your Drive initiative. In 2025, she transitioned to single-seaters with Van Amersfoort Racing in the Formula Winter Series. Later that year, racing with Prema Racing in Formula Trophy, she made history by winning race two in Dubai from reverse-grid pole, becoming the series’ first female winner. During her Italian F4 campaign, Westcott excelled at the F1 Academy rookie test in Navarra, finishing third in the morning and first in the afternoon. She concluded the 2025 F1 Academy season as a wildcard in Las Vegas, impressively scoring points with a sixth-place finish on her debut.
Natalia Granada
Natalia Granada will race for Prema Racing, supported by Sephora. A notable talent, she was the first Junior Driver for the renowned all-female racing team, Iron Dames, and has received mentorship from Ferrari factory driver and Le Mans winner Miguel Molina. Granada also delivered an impressive performance during the inaugural F1 Academy test in 2025.
Ella Stevens
Ella Stevens joins Rodin Motorsport for 2026, with McLaren Oxagon support. Her karting career began at age six, culminating in 2025. Stevens quickly rose through karting ranks, winning the BirelART UK Series in 2017, the LGM Series privateer title in 2018, and the TVKC Winter Series in 2020. In KZ2, she secured back-to-back Shenington Kart Racing Club wins in 2024 and 2025, and was runner-up in the 2025 British Kart Championship. In 2025, Stevens notably set the fastest morning time and second-fastest afternoon time at the F1 Academy rookie test in Navarra, later joining the prestigious McLaren Driver Development Programme.
Esmee Kosterman
Esmee Kosterman will compete with MP Motorsport, supported by Lego. The Dutch driver’s karting achievements include finishing runner-up in the 2017 Dutch Karting Championship and representing the Netherlands in the 2018 Karting Academy Trophy. She moved to car racing in 2021 with NXT Racing in the Ford Fiesta Sprint Cup. In 2025, Kosterman raced part-time in the F4 British Championship with JHR Developments and also competed in most rounds of the F4 Saudi Arabian Championship, achieving two sixth-place finishes in Jeddah. She made a significant wildcard appearance in the 2025 F1 Academy season at Zandvoort for Hitech TGR, qualifying ninth and scoring her first points with a seventh-place finish in race two.
Ava Dobson
Ava Dobson will join Hitech TGR full-time for the 2026 F1 Academy season, with American Express support. A recipient of the 2023 Parella Motorsports Holdings Powering Diversity Scholarship, Dobson debuted in car racing in the 2023 Formula 4 United States Championship. Later in 2023, she joined USF Juniors, achieving an 11th-place best finish. Despite plans for a full 2024 USF Juniors season, an accident curtailed her participation. In 2024, she made her GB4 Championship debut and returned for the full 2025 season with Arden Motorsport, where she earned her first podium (third place) and the Top Female Driver prize. Dobson also participated as a wildcard in the 2025 F1 Academy Miami round, securing a 13th-place finish, the best for a wildcard driver that season.
Rachel Robertson
Rachel Robertson will compete for Hitech, supported by Puma. Starting her karting career at fifteen with rental karts, Robertson moved to the British Karting Championship in 2024 (Senior Rotax). In 2025, she joined Radical Racing Rebels for the Radical Cup UK. That August, she tested F4 machinery and later placed fifth in both sessions of the F1 Academy rookie test at Navarra. Her single-seater debut came in October in the F4 Saudi Arabian Championship. Robertson made an impressive F1 Academy debut with Hitech TGR in Las Vegas in late November, securing a fourth-place finish in a wet race one and a 14th in race two.
Kaylee Countryman
American driver Kaylee Countryman will represent the TGR Haas F1 Team in the 2026 F1 Academy series, competing with ART Grand Prix. Countryman began racing karts at age 12, quickly achieving multiple podiums. By 2023, she became a factory driver for CompKart with J3 Competition, transitioning to more powerful two-stroke karts. In the 2025 USF Junior Season, she was one of three female drivers and secured four top-ten finishes, including an eighth-place at Mid-Ohio. Her talent was recognized internationally in September 2025 when she was invited to the F1 Academy Navarra Collective Test in Spain.
Jade Jacquet
Jade Jacquet will compete for ART Grand Prix, representing the Atlassian Williams F1 Team. The French driver has a strong background, having made a significant impression in both the French Junior Karting Championship and French Formula 4. She further demonstrated her potential by securing the seventh-fastest time in the afternoon session of the F1 Academy Rookie Test.
The 2026 F1 Academy season continues this weekend at the Chinese Grand Prix. All 17 full-time drivers, along with wildcard entrant Shi Wei for this round, will hit the Shanghai International Circuit for Free Practice at 9:10 AM local time (1:10 AM GMT).
