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2022 W Series

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Jamie Chadwick claimed her third consecutive Drivers' Championship.

The 2022 W Series was the third and final season of the W Series motor racing championship. The championship was exclusively open to female racing drivers as a Formula Regional-level racing series in support of the 2022 Formula One World Championship.[1]

Jamie Chadwick became a three time champion following the cancellation of the remainder of the season on 10 October 2022.[2]

Entries

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The following drivers and teams competed in the 2022 W Series season. All teams used Hankook tyres, and ran two mechanically-identical Tatuus F3 T-318-Alfa Romeo cars with two drivers. The rounds at Barcelona and Singapore used Tatuus FT-60-Toyota cars loaned by Toyota Racing Series organiser Toyota Gazoo Racing New Zealand.[3]

All cars were operated by Fine Moments, and 'teams' were purely for sponsorship and identification purposes.[4]

Team No. Drivers Rounds
Sirin Racing 4 Netherlands Emely de Heus[5] All
95 Netherlands Beitske Visser[6] All
CortDAO W Series Team[7] 5 Switzerland Fabienne Wohlwend[a][7] All
19 Spain Marta García[9] All
Puma W Series Team[10] 7 Finland Emma Kimiläinen[10] All
17 Norway Ayla Ågren[11] 7
63 Czech Republic Tereza Bábíčková[12] 1–6
Jenner Racing[13] 8 United States Chloe Chambers[14] All
55 United Kingdom Jamie Chadwick[15] All
W Series Academy 9 Philippines Bianca Bustamante[16] All
10 Denmark Juju Noda[b][16] All
Click2Drive Bristol Street Motors Racing[17] 21 United Kingdom Jessica Hawkins[18] All
27 United Kingdom Alice Powell[17] All
Quantfury W Series Team[19] 22 Spain Belén García[20] All
32 Spain Nerea Martí[20] All
Scuderia W 26 United Kingdom Sarah Moore[21] All
44 United Kingdom Abbie Eaton[22] All
Racing X 49 United Kingdom Abbi Pulling[23] All
97 Brazil Bruna Tomaselli[24] All
Reserve drivers
No. Drivers
17 Norway Ayla Ågren[22]

Driver selection

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The top eight finishers from the 2021 championship, as well as the two W Series Academy drivers Nerea Martí and Irina Sidorkova, were guaranteed a place in the 2022 season.[25] Sidorkova was later confirmed to not be competing as a result of the restrictions on the participation of Russian drivers following the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine.[26]

From 31 January to 4 February, a five-day test with a Crawford F4-16 car for 15 prospective drivers was conducted at Inde Motorsports Ranch in Arizona, United States.[27] The following drivers took part:

A second pre-season test took place at Barcelona on 2–4 March, with the nine automatic qualifiers from 2021 joined by 12 potential drivers — of which five had previous W Series experience and six were present at the Arizona test; Juju Noda, the only driver to receive a free pass:[28][29]

The full driver line-up was revealed on 22 March 2022.[26] On 22 April 2022, Abbie Eaton was confirmed as the final driver, with Ayla Ågren announced as reserve driver.[22]

Mid-season changes

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Tereza Bábíčková did not take part in the Singapore round due to a spinal injury sustained in an incident in a Formula Regional European Championship event at the Red Bull Ring in early September. She was replaced with reserve driver Ayla Ågren.[30]

Championship changes

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Though there were initial plans to introduce FIA-registered standings for formal teams for the season,[31] the championship remained fully centrally-run for a third consecutive year, with 'teams' continuing to be purely for sponsorship and identification purposes.[32] The first of these teams to be announced was Jenner Racing, owned by media personality, Olympic champion and former racing driver Caitlyn Jenner.[13] Three further entries joined the championship: Click2Drive Bristol Street Motors Racing and the cryptocurrency-backed Quantfury and CortDAO teams.[17][19][7]

Calendar and results

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The provisional calendar was announced on 27 January 2022. W Series continued its partnership with Formula One, so all ten events were part of Grand Prix weekends.[33] An updated calendar was announced on 30 March 2022, with the first and last rounds at Miami and Mexico City confirmed to be double-headers.[3] On 27 July 2022, it was announced that the Marina Bay Street Circuit would replace the Suzuka Circuit due to operational challenges.[34] On 10 October 2022 it was announced the final rounds in United States and Mexico had been cancelled for monetary reasons. This crowned points leader Jamie Chadwick series champion for a third time, as the number of races held exceeded the minimum of six required under the series' rules for a championship to be decided.[35]

Round Circuit Date Pole Position Fastest Lap Race Winner Winning Team Report
1 United States Miami International Autodrome 7 May Spain Nerea Martí Finland Emma Kimiläinen United Kingdom Jamie Chadwick Jenner Racing Report
2 8 May United Kingdom Jamie Chadwick United Kingdom Abbi Pulling United Kingdom Jamie Chadwick Jenner Racing
3 Spain Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya 21 May United Kingdom Jamie Chadwick United Kingdom Jamie Chadwick United Kingdom Jamie Chadwick Jenner Racing Report
4 United Kingdom Silverstone Circuit 2 July United Kingdom Jamie Chadwick United Kingdom Abbi Pulling United Kingdom Jamie Chadwick Jenner Racing Report
5 France Circuit Paul Ricard 23 July Netherlands Beitske Visser[c] United Kingdom Jamie Chadwick United Kingdom Jamie Chadwick Jenner Racing Report
6 Hungary Hungaroring 30 July United Kingdom Alice Powell United Kingdom Jamie Chadwick United Kingdom Alice Powell Click2Drive Bristol Street Motors Racing Report
7 Singapore Marina Bay Street Circuit 2 October Spain Marta García United Kingdom Alice Powell Netherlands Beitske Visser Sirin Racing Report
Rounds cancelled due to financial reasons
– United States Circuit of the Americas 22 October Rounds not replaced
– Mexico Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez 29 October
– 30 October
Source:[37][3][38]

Season summary

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The third season of the championship started with its debut event around the Miami International Autodrome. Nerea Martí scored her maiden pole position, but stalled at the start. This allowed Jamie Chadwick and Emma Kimiläinen through, wo started battling for the lead until Alice Powell hit the wall, causing a lengthy safety car and eventually a stoppage. Chadwick led the restart and remained ahead of Kimiläinen. The top pair gapped the field while battling, before a late-race safety car was called for a collision between Fabienne Wohlwend and Abbie Eaton. In a single lap shootout to the chequered flag, Marta García attempted a move on Kimiläinen for second but made contact with the Finn and spun her. Chadwick won the race ahead of García, but a time penalty for the CortDAO driver promoted Jessica Hawkins to second and Beitske Visser to third.[39]

Chadwick had pole for the second Miami race, and kept her lead ahead of Martí and Kimiläinen. The latter pair battled for the first part of the race, with Martí eventually coming out in front. By then however, Chadwick had a comfortable gap on them, which she kept until the end. Behind the pair, Kimiläinen struggled to keep Powell and Belén García behind. On the penultimate lap Kimiläinen half-spun and Powell collided with her; the Brit sustaining front wing damage but held on to finish third. A penalty demoted Martí behind Powell for an illegal defensive move.[40]

The Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya played host to the third round of the season, with Chadwick taking pole. Behind her, Abbi Pulling disposed of her mentor Powell at the start to move into second place and began closing up to the leader. The gaps between the top trio remained steady all through the race, and Chadwick was able to manage her tyres the best of the three. No one could muster a serious attack on her lead, even though Pulling came close to it at various points during the race and was within half a second of Chadwick on the last lap. A third win cemented Chadwick's championship advantage, now at 37 points, and Pulling's second place moved her up to second in the standings. Chloe Chambers spun into the gravel on the last lap.[41]

Chadwick continued where she left off at Silverstone, taking her third pole position in a row. Powell, who qualified third, stalled on the formation lap and failed to re-take her grid position fast enough on the formation lap, netting her a stop-go penalty. This promoted Kimiläinen to second, four seconds behind Chadwick at that point. Pulling rose up from fifth to third and collided with Kimiläinen when trying to overtake her on the penultimate lap. The pair just managed to stay second and third ahead of Wohlwend, having both sustained damage. As a result of the incident, Chadwick won the race by almost twenty seconds, bolstering her championship lead to 47 points.[42]

Jamie Chadwick (pictured in 2019) won her third championship.

The next round at Paul Ricard initially saw Chadwick on pole again, before a grid penalty promoted Visser to first. A safety car was called after a tumultuous start in the mid-pack saw Eaton's car launched up in the air and ending her race, but not before Chadwick rounded up both Visser and second-placed Martí within the first three corners. Chadwick's lead was only threatened once during the race when Visser briefly re-passed her on the safety car restart, but Chadwick assumed authority not long after with Visser dropping back to fourth behind Belén García and Martí. Another safety car was later called for a collision between Chambers and Emely de Heus. In the last half of the race, the CortDAO team-mates fought a titanic battle over seventh which was ultimately resolved in favour of Marta García. Chadwick won again and her championship lead now stood at 70 points.[43]

When the series visited the Hungaroring, Chadwick could only manage fifth in qualifying as Powell took pole. The race began in damp conditions and Martí was caught out, dropping back from third and allowing Chadwick through before making contact with team-mate Belén García. Chadwick then moved up into third by passing Marta García. Further behind, Kimiläinen tagged Hawkins into a spin – the Puma driver later retiring from the race due to the damage incurred. Chadwick continued to improve her position, passing Visser for second shortly before the safety car was called for Bianca Bustamante – who had spun, damaged her car and stopped in the pit lane entry. After a four-minute dash to the end, Powell held on to end Chadwick's win streak and move into second in the standings; Chadwick maintaining a 75-point lead.[44]

Originally planned to be held at Suzuka, the next round was moved to the Marina Bay Street Circuit in Singapore. Ahead of the event, Tereza Bábíčková broke her back in a Formula Regional European Championship race and was replaced with Ayla Ågren. Marta García took pole in a qualifying session disrupted by torrential tropical storms, but Chadwick could only manage eighth on the grid. Visser took the lead at the start from Marta García, who struggled to hold on to the Dutchwoman's pace. García was soon overtaken by Powell, who then set after Visser. Chadwick meanwhile was stuck behind Hawkins having made her way to sixth, and after multiple laps she attempted an overtake but outbraked herself and crashed at turn seven. One lap remained after the safety car, with Visser holding on to win her first race since Zolder 2019.[45]

Doubts arose over the financial health of the championship in the days leading up to the Singapore event. The series organisers set a deadline to determine whether to hold the last three races for the week after the Singapore round. The final races of the season were ultimately cancelled for monetary reasons on 10 October 2022. The series CEO, Catherine Bond Muir, stated that there was "great optimism" when looking at being able to hold the 2023 season and the longer-term future of the series, but the Singapore event ultimately proved to be the series' last.[46] Jamie Chadwick was crowned champion, defending her title once again and remaining the only W Series champion to date.[47]

Championship standings

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Scoring system

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Points were awarded to the top ten classified finishers as follows:[48]

Race Position  1st   2nd   3rd   4th   5th   6th   7th   8th   9th   10th 
Points 25 18 15 12 10 8 6 4 2 1

Drivers' Championship

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Pos. Driver MIA1
United States 		MIA2
United States 		CAT
Spain 		SIL
United Kingdom 		LEC
France 		HUN
Hungary 		SIN
Singapore 		Points
1 United Kingdom Jamie Chadwick 1 1 1 1 1 2 Ret 143
2 Netherlands Beitske Visser 3 7 5 5 4 3 1 93
3 United Kingdom Alice Powell Ret 2 3 14 5 1 2 86
4 United Kingdom Abbi Pulling 4 6 2 3 9 5 6 73
5 Spain Belén García 7 4 7 8 2 13 4 58
6 Spain Marta García 11 9 6 18 6 4 3 45
7 Spain Nerea Martí 6 3 8 9 3 12 12 44
8 Finland Emma Kimiläinen 15 5 4 2 12 Ret 9 42
9 United Kingdom Jessica Hawkins 2 Ret 11 6 10 14 5 37
10 Switzerland Fabienne Wohlwend Ret 11 9 4 7 6 8 32
11 United Kingdom Sarah Moore 8 8 10 10 8 7 7 26
12 Brazil Bruna Tomaselli 5 17 12 11 11 10 14 11
13 United Kingdom Abbie Eaton Ret 13 16 7 Ret 8 10 11
14 Denmark Juju Noda 12 15 13 16 13 9 Ret 2
15 Philippines Bianca Bustamante 9 14 15 17 15 Ret 15 2
16 United States Chloe Chambers 14 10 Ret 13 Ret 11 11 1
17 Netherlands Emely de Heus 10 12 14 15 16 16 13 1
18 Czech Republic Tereza Bábíčková 13 16 17 12 14 15 0
19 Norway Ayla Ågren 16 0
Pos. Driver MIA1
United States 		MIA2
United States 		CAT
Spain 		SIL
United Kingdom 		LEC
France 		HUN
Hungary 		SIN
Singapore 		Points
Source:[48]
Colour Result
Gold Winner
Silver Second place
Bronze Third place
Green Points finish
Blue Non-points finish
Non-classified finish (NC)
Purple Retired (Ret)
Red Did not qualify (DNQ)
Did not pre-qualify (DNPQ)
Black Disqualified (DSQ)
White Did not start (DNS)
Withdrew (WD)
Race cancelled (C)
Blank Did not practice (DNP)
Did not arrive (DNA)
Excluded (EX)

Bold – Pole

Italics – Fastest Lap

† — Did not finish, but classified

Notes

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  1. ^ Wohlwend is a Liechtenstein driver racing under a Swiss licence.[8]
  2. ^ Noda is a Japanese driver racing under a Danish licence.[8]
  3. ^ Jamie Chadwick set the fastest time in qualifying, but received a two-place grid penalty for crossing the white line at pit exit.[36] Beitske Visser was promoted to pole position in her place.

References

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  1. ^ "All-female motor racing series offers potential F1 pathway". CNN. Retrieved 24 October 2018.
  2. ^ Scout, Formula (10 October 2022). "W Series season cut short, Chadwick declared champion". Formula Scout. Retrieved 11 October 2022.
  3. ^ a b c Edwards, Jordan (30 March 2022). "W Series announces Miami double-header and use of TRS cars". Formula Scout. Retrieved 20 March 2022.
  4. ^ "@WSeriesRacing on Twitter". Twitter. W Series. 23 February 2022. Retrieved 1 March 2022.
  5. ^ "Sirin Racing | W Series". W Series. Archived from the original on 26 March 2022. Retrieved 26 March 2022.
  6. ^ "Beitske Visser on Twitter". Twitter. 4 March 2022. Retrieved 4 March 2022.
  7. ^ a b c Forbes, Gonzalo (4 March 2022). "W Series – CortDAO, dernière équipe à rejoindre la grille". AutoHebdo (in French). Retrieved 5 March 2022.
  8. ^ a b "Qualifying Session Final Classification" (PDF). W Series. 7 May 2022. Retrieved 8 May 2022.
  9. ^ "CortDAO | W Series". W Series. Archived from the original on 24 March 2022. Retrieved 24 March 2022.
  10. ^ a b "PUMA extends W Series Partnership and Signs Emma Kimilainen". W Series. 1 March 2022. Retrieved 1 March 2022.
  11. ^ "DRIVER ANNOUNCEMENT | Ayla Ågren replaces the injured Tereza Bábíčková for the W Series round at Singapore". Twitter. F1 Feeder Series. 26 September 2022. Retrieved 26 September 2022.
  12. ^ "PUMA W Series Team | W Series". W Series. Archived from the original on 25 March 2022. Retrieved 25 March 2022.
  13. ^ a b White, Megan (8 February 2022). "Caitlyn Jenner buys W Series team for 2022 season". Autosport. Retrieved 5 March 2022.
  14. ^ "Chloe Chambers joins Chadwick at Jenner Racing". Racers - Behind the Helmet. 22 March 2022. Retrieved 22 March 2022.
  15. ^ Whitfield, Steve (22 February 2022). "Chadwick to defend W Series title as Jenner Racing driver". Formula Scout. Retrieved 22 February 2022.
  16. ^ a b "Bianca Bustamante and Juju Noda selected for Academy Team". W Series. 28 March 2022. Retrieved 28 March 2022.
  17. ^ a b c Gascoigne, Roger (28 February 2022). "Alice Powell latest to confirm W Series return". Formula Scout. Retrieved 5 March 2022.
  18. ^ "Click2Drive Bristol Street Motors Racing W Series Team | W Series". W Series. Archived from the original on 25 March 2022. Retrieved 25 March 2022.
  19. ^ a b "Quantfury team to compete in 2022 W Series season". W Series. 3 March 2022. Retrieved 3 March 2022.
  20. ^ a b "Nerea Marti and Belen Garcia to Race for QuantFury Team". W Series. 23 March 2022. Archived from the original on 25 March 2022. Retrieved 23 March 2022.
  21. ^ "@WSeriesRacing on Twitter". Twitter. W Series. 5 March 2022. Retrieved 5 March 2022.
  22. ^ a b c "Abbie Eaton completes 2022 grid". W Series. 22 April 2022. Retrieved 22 April 2022.
  23. ^ "@WSeriesRacing on Twitter". Twitter. W Series. 5 March 2022. Retrieved 5 March 2022.
  24. ^ "Racing X | W Series". W Series. Archived from the original on 26 March 2022. Retrieved 26 March 2022.
  25. ^ "W Series' Top Eight Go Through To 2022". W Series. 15 October 2021. Archived from the original on 22 October 2021. Retrieved 15 January 2022.
  26. ^ a b Allen, Peter (22 March 2022). "Five new drivers chosen to race in W Series in 2022". Formula Scout. Retrieved 22 March 2022.
  27. ^ Wood, Ida (13 January 2022). "W Series' first 2022 test to take place in USA using F4 cars". Formula Scout. Retrieved 15 January 2022.
  28. ^ "W Series Stars Set For Spanish Test". W Series. 23 February 2022. Retrieved 23 February 2022.
  29. ^ "@WSeriesRacing on Twitter". Twitter. W Series. 3 March 2022. Retrieved 3 March 2022.
  30. ^ "Teresa Babickova Out Of Singapore Race Due To Injury". W Series. 13 September 2022. Retrieved 13 September 2022.
  31. ^ "W Series pivots towards new 'Team' structure". W Series. 24 June 2021. Archived from the original on 24 June 2021. Retrieved 24 October 2021.
  32. ^ "Ida Wood on Twitter". Twitter. 23 February 2022. Retrieved 23 February 2022.
  33. ^ "W Series To Break New Ground At Eight F1 Weekends In 2022". W Series. 27 January 2022. Retrieved 27 January 2022.
  34. ^ "W Series to race in Singapore as 2022 calendar changes". W Series. 27 July 2022. Archived from the original on 27 July 2022. Retrieved 27 July 2022.
  35. ^ "W Series cancels rest of 2022 season, aims for 2023 revival". The Race. 10 October 2022. Retrieved 10 October 2022.
  36. ^ "Chadwick signed report". W Series. 22 July 2022.
  37. ^ White, Megan (27 January 2022). "W Series adds Suzuka round to eight-race 2022 calendar". Motorsport.com. Retrieved 27 January 2022.
  38. ^ "W Series: Rest of 2022 season cancelled with focus on securing investment for 2023 as Jamie Chadwick is crowned champion". Sky Sports. Retrieved 10 October 2022.
  39. ^ Edwards, Jordan (7 May 2022). "Chadwick wins Miami W Series opener in last-lap shootout". Formula Scout. Retrieved 11 October 2022.
  40. ^ Edwards, Jordan (8 May 2022). "Chadwick completes W Series double in Miami". Formula Scout. Retrieved 11 October 2022.
  41. ^ Edwards, Jordan (21 May 2022). "Chadwick resists Pulling in race of management at hot Barcelona". Formula Scout. Retrieved 11 October 2022.
  42. ^ Whitfield, Steve (2 July 2022). "Chadwick takes dominant W Series win at Silverstone". Formula Scout. Retrieved 11 October 2022.
  43. ^ Waring, Bethonie (23 July 2022). "Chadwick recovers from grid penalty to win again in France". Formula Scout. Retrieved 11 October 2022.
  44. ^ Lopez, Alejandro Alonso (30 July 2022). "Powell claims her first W Series win of 2022 to end Chadwick run". Formula Scout. Retrieved 11 October 2022.
  45. ^ Lopez, Alejandro Alonso (2 October 2022). "Visser wins, Chadwick crashes out in W Series's Singapore race". Formula Scout. Retrieved 11 October 2022.
  46. ^ "No way back for W Series as administrator aims for September sale". Formula Scout. 14 August 2023.
  47. ^ Scout, Formula (10 October 2022). "W Series season cut short, Chadwick declared champion". Formula Scout. Retrieved 11 October 2022.
  48. ^ a b "2022 season". W Series. Archived from the original on 8 February 2023. Retrieved 8 October 2023.
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