PREMA announce that F1 Academy Champion Marta García will be driving for PREMA in the 2024 season.
Marta García, F1 Academy’s inaugural Champion was crowned last weekend in Austin after an impressive season.
Today, F1 Academy has announced that the Spanish driver will receive a fully funded seat with PREMA Racing for the 2024 Formula Regional European Championship by Alpine (FRECA). Financial contributions will be from F1 Academy, PREMA Racing, Tatuus and Pirelli. F1 Academy has also announced that it will work closely with the F1 Academy teams to support its winner in progressing up the motorsport ladder.
Marta García, F1 Academy 2023 Champion and PREMA Racing driver said;
“I’m so thrilled and excited to be racing in FRECA next year. Coming from F1 Academy, it’s going to be a big step. We know we will have to work a lot with the team to succeed but I’m really determined to do well. I can’t thank F1 Academy enough. It is such a fantastic initiative, and it is the right way to do it, trying to take drivers with the best results to the top level. What an amazing opportunity, I’m looking forward to it and to the work that we have ahead, inside and outside the track.”
The Formula Regional European Championship and Formula Renault Eurocup merged to create FRECA in 2021. The series has quickly become a well-established and respected space for young drivers to develop. It has helped with the progression from the F4-level series to the FIA Formula 3 Championship. It was recently announced that PREMA will have Mercedes junior driver Kimi Antonelli as their F2 driver (he will skip F3), following his victory in this year’s FRECA championship.
F1 Academy aims to help develop and prepare young female drivers to progress to higher levels of competition. These include Formula 3, Formula 2 and Formula 1. Marta García’s fully funded FRECA seat is justification that F1 Academy is living up to the expectations initially set.
FRECA has also announced that it will also allow its top teams a season-long fourth entry if they sign a driver who finishes P1, P2 or P3 in the F1 Academy standings.
Bruno Famin, VP of Alpine Motorsports said;
“We are happy to welcome the F1 Academy winners within FRECA, creating another entry point for young talent and supporting them in their journey towards the top.”
2024 F1 Academy Changes
Drivers had to pay €150,000 to compete in the series for its inaugural season. F1 Academy has confirmed that they have reduced the driver contribution from €150,000 to €100,000 for the 2024 season. This aligns with the series’ aim to make it more accessible for young women drivers to compete in feeder series.
Susie Wolff, Managing Director of F1 Academy said;
I am proud of the progress we have made in our first season, and as we begin to build for our 2024 season where we will join the F1 calendar, this announcement, alongside the decision to further subsidize the 2024 F1 Academy driver contribution to €100,000, is a statement of our continued commitment to make motorsport more accessible and break down the barriers faced by female drivers.”
