Photo by Irena Mesa
By Irena Mesa
In 2025, IndyCar saw a 72% increase in viewership of women aged 18 to 24. When James Hinchcliffe, an IndyCar commentator and former IndyCar driver, cited these statistics on his “Off Track with Hinch and Rossi” podcast, his co-host Alexander Rossi, a current IndyCar driver, chimed in to say his thanks to one driver, Pato O’Ward.
Hinchcliffe echoed the statement, suggesting that O’Ward and his popularity amongst women was the reason for the ratings boost. Many female fans of the series are often told that they are only there for the attractive drivers, even though the drivers are covered head-to-toe in protective gear for the entirety of the races.
According to a Crow’s Nest poll of 23 students, 82.6% of female F1 and IndyCar fans said they have heard derogatory speech about their gender and status as a fan. A common thread among the examples provided by the respondents was women being perceived as unable to enjoy or understand the sport due to their gender.
A few explained that they were told that because they are women, they only like F1 because of “Drive to Survive,” or just because they find the drivers attractive.
“You always will be made aware that you are not the default,” one respondent said. “There’s so many comments here and there that make you realize that you are in an entirely different category from the 50-year-old men that are allowed to just be fans.”
The women working in Formula 1 are not spared from this kind of rhetoric either. In January 2025, Laura Mueller became the first female race engineer, the person in charge of analyzing data to give her driver the best possible results, for Haas driver Esteban Ocon.
“Her hiring was a big point of contention in F1 because some people thought that she was deserving, and then some other people thought that she only got the position because [Haas] was trying to be progressive,” Skye Smith, a senior psychology major at the University of South Florida St. Petersburg, said.
“F1: The Movie,” further reinforces negative stereotypes about women in motorsports. One woman in the movie was a mechanic who made multiple mistakes during pitstops for the drivers of APX GP, the fictional 11th F1 team of the movie.
Over the course of the movie, she improves and gains confidence, but many movie viewers were quick to point out the implications of making that character female. Kate McKenna is another important female character in the film. She serves as the race engineer to the movie’s main protagonist, Sonny Hayes.
The choice to make McKenna the love interest for Hayes was also heavily scrutinized by viewers.
“I think it was a huge cop out, and kind of like a slap in the face,” Smith said. “The one time you’re actually showing representation of a female race engineer in the movie and it’s because she’s just the love interest.”
Formula 1 and IndyCar’s dated fan culture doesn’t stop progress from being made within motorsport, such as the creation of F1 Academy, an all-female feeder series with hopes of bringing the next female driver into F1. It also can’t stop all female fans from making the most of their experience.
“I love being a female motorsport fan,” another respondent said, “I’m thankful that all of the interactions I’ve had in the fanbase have been supportive!”
Smith, and many fans alike believe that anyone’s reason to follow a sport is valid, even if it may be stereotypical.
“I got into F1 because a girl told me about it. And then I realized, ‘Wow, this is super interesting,’” Smith said. “And even if I got into it in a different way, it should not matter.”
