2020 W Series
The 2020 W Series was a planned motor racing championship that was scheduled to be the second W Series season. The championship was to be exclusively open to female racing drivers as a Formula 3-level racing series.[1]
On 4 June, the championship was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[2] A 10-event eSports championship was held on iRacing in its place, won by Beitske Visser.[3]
Driver selection
The top twelve finishers from the 2019 championship were automatically eligible to compete in the 2020 season,[4] leaving eight vacancies in the driver line up.[5] Forty new drivers applied to take part in the season;[5] however, only fourteen of those took part in the first test which took place between 16 and 18 September 2019 at the Circuito de Almería, Spain.[6][7]
Applications
The following eight drivers competed in the 2019 W Series but did not automatically qualify for 2020:
The following eight drivers attempted to qualify for the 2020 W Series, having not competed in 2019 but were unsuccessful or elected not to race in W Series:[8]
Courtney Crone
Michelle Gatting- Hannah Grisham
Chelsea Herbert
Anna Inotsume
Gabriela Jílková
Katherine Legge- Abbie Munro
Qualified drivers
| No. | Drivers | |
|---|---|---|
| 5 |  Fabienne Wohlwend
| |
| 7 |  Emma Kimiläinen
| |
| 11 |  Vicky Piria
| |
| 17 |  Ayla Ågren
| |
| 19 |  Marta García
| |
| 21 |  Jessica Hawkins
| |
| 22 | Belén García
| |
| 26 | Sarah Moore
| |
| 27 | Alice Powell
| |
| 31 |  Tasmin Pepper
| |
| 32 | Nerea Martí
| |
| 37 |  Sabré Cook
| |
| 44 | Abbie Eaton
| |
| 51 |  Irina Sidorkova
| |
| 55 | Jamie Chadwick
| |
| 85 |  Miki Koyama
| |
| 95 |  Beitske Visser
| |
| 97 |  Bruna Tomaselli
| |
| Source:[9] | ||
Calendar
The series was scheduled to continue support 2020 Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters for most races.[10][11] Races at Hockenheimring, Circuit Zolder and Misano World Circuit will be replaced by races at Igora Drive, Anderstorp Raceway and Autodromo Nazionale di Monza. On 16 January 2020 the series announced it would stage races in the Americas, operating as a support category for the United States and Mexico City Grands Prix.[12]
| Round | Circuit | Date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Igora Drive
|
30 May |
| 2 |  Anderstorp Raceway
|
13 June |
| 3 | Autodromo Nazionale di Monza
|
27 June |
| 4 |  Norisring
|
11 July |
| 5 | Brands Hatch
|
23 August |
| 6 | TT Circuit Assen
|
5 September |
| 7 | Circuit of the Americas
|
24 October |
| 8 |  Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez
|
31 October |
References
- ^ "All-female motor racing series offers potential F1 pathway". CNN. Retrieved 24 October 2018.
- ^ "W Series cancels 2020 season but reveals plans for F1 support races in 2021 | Formula 1®".
- ^ "All-new Esports League launched". W Series. 7 May 2020.
- ^ "Legge, Eaton, Agren among 2020 W Series applicants". www.motorsport.com. Retrieved 18 September 2019.
- ^ a b "W Series to limit 2020 new driver test to less than 20 drivers". Highway F1. Retrieved 18 September 2019.
- ^ "W Series 2020 selection to start in September". www.motorsport.com. Retrieved 18 September 2019.
- ^ "W Series completes first day of 2020 driver selection test". Highway F1. Retrieved 18 September 2019.
- ^ "FIA rules to prevent 2020 W Series champion from defending title". formulascout. 29 October 2019. Retrieved 29 October 2019.
- ^ "W SERIES: AS 18 ESCOLHIDAS PARA A SEGUNDA ÉPOCA" (in Portuguese). autosport.pt. Retrieved 21 October 2019.
- ^ "W Series to race in Russia and Sweden in 2020". wseries.com. W Series. 31 October 2019. Retrieved 31 October 2019.
- ^ Errington, Tom (30 October 2019). "W Series' 2020 champion can't defend her title in '21". Autosport. Motorsport Network. Retrieved 31 October 2019.
The W Series will confirm its 2020 calendar in "due course", according to Ryan, adding: "We'll still race alongside our great partners DTM, for the majority or perhaps even the totality of our race fixtures".
- ^ "W Series to stage all-new races alongside Formula 1 in USA and Mexico in 2020". W Series. 16 January 2020.