W Series will be joining together with F1 in North America this year with races taking place on the Saturday of the Grand Prix events in USA and Mexico.
Last year W Series was a support class in the German DTM series with six rounds and now after a successful year, they will be having six race weekends in Europe alongside DTM before heading to North America for the two-last rounds.
“We at W Series are absolutely delighted that, in only our second season, our championship has been welcomed by Formula 1, and we’re utterly thrilled that the final two races of the 2020 W Series season will, therefore, take place as part of the Formula 1 platform.” Catherine Bond Muir, Cheif Executive Officer at W Series said.
“Our two all-new races will follow six races on the DTM platform, making a very varied, extremely exciting and truly international eight-race championship, in eight countries across the globe. I’m particularly pleased that W Series will now stage races outside Europe, and the USA and Mexico are of course both very important new territories for us.“
“Interest in and enthusiasm for W Series was enormous in our first season, 2019, among media and fans alike, and the addition of two all-new W Series races on the Formula 1 platform will inevitably increase that enthusiasm and interest,” Muir added.
“Commercially, too, following the successful recent announcement of W Series’ new multi-year sponsor-partnership with ROKiT Phones, the fact that W Series will be even bigger and even better in 2020 than it was in 2019 will make the return on investment for our future sponsor-partners better and bigger, too.”
“A lot of work has gone into stitching the W Series / Formula 1 deal together, but above all, I want to thank W Series’drivers, the brave and talented young women who captured the imagination of the sporting world last summer. Mark my words: they’ll do so again this year, from May to October, all over the world.”
“The Circuit of the Americas is a superb racetrack. Sector one is particularly spectacular, featuring an extremely steep uphill run into Turn One, and I’m sure that the W Series drivers will find it exciting yet challenging.” Dave Ryan, Racing Director at W Series said.
“Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez is also a fantastic circuit, older than the Circuit of the Americas of course but impressively updated, having hosted the Mexican Grand Prix since the race was reintroduced to the Formula 1 calendar in 2015 but having previously been the venue for Mexican Grands Prix as long ago as 1963.”
“That first Formula 1 World Championship Mexican Grand Prix was won by the great Jim Clark, in a Lotus, and two of my fondest memories are the consecutive victories of Alain Prost in 1988 and Ayrton Senna in 1989, both in McLarens, during which time I was a senior member of the McLaren race team.”
“Finally, it’s worth remembering that the Chairman of DTM, our good friend Gerhard Berger, won the Mexican Grand Prix at Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez in 1986, in a Benetton,” Ryan added.
“We are delighted to welcome W Series to two such spectacular events of the 2020 FIA Formula 1 World Championship such as those in Austin and Mexico City.” Ross Brown, Managing Director at F1 said.
“In just one year, W Series has contributed significantly to increasing interest in the topic of diversity and inclusion in motorsport.”
“We are convinced that our sport must offer equal opportunities for men and women to compete together – it is no coincidence that improving the diversity of the F1 grid by supporting and promoting driver talent from under-represented backgrounds is one of our strategic objectives.”
“The ability for the great crowds who traditionally attend the Austin and Mexico City Grands Prix to see these talented female drivers up close will definitely further raise the awareness of the importance of inclusion and diversity in motorsport,” Brown added.
The 2020 race calendar now includes eight race weekends, with new events at St Petersburg, Anderstorp, Monza, Texas and Mexico City.
2020 W Series calendar:
- St Petersburg, Russia, 30 May
- Anderstorp, Sweden, 13 June
- Monza, Italy, 27 June
- Norisring, Germany, 11 July
- Brands Hatch, United Kingdom, 23 August
- Assen, The Netherlands, 5 September
- Austin, Texas, United States of America, 24 October
- Mexico City, Mexico, 31 October
