A new initiative in Stock Car allows women of all ages to get to know the tracks and the backstage.
When you go to the racetrack on Thursdays for a weekend of Stock Car, you will probably see a lot of yellow vests walking around the paddock. This is part of the Girls Like Racing (GLR) program. The GLR happens on weekends of the Stock Car Pro Series, the biggest national category of car races around the racetracks in the whole country.
Girls Like Racing is a project that brings women, of all niches to experience a day at the racetrack getting to know how everything works. They learn about the functions in the car, the organization of the teams, and how it is to be a woman inside this world dominated by men.
Where does this idea come from?
Years ago it was not common to see girls around the racetrack, it would be a really small percentage and they would get that “you shouldn’t be here” look by men. However, through the years, each time more girls have started to watch categories of motorsport. They also are combining to go to races together, as a community of women who love this sport, which was the main goal when Girls Like Racing was created.
The idea, firstly, came from Erika Prado, performance engineer of the Cavaleiro Sports team in Formula 4 Brazil and the “mother” of the GLR. It all started in 2018 in the Brazilian Grand Prix of Formula 1, when she needed to walk the whole bleachers in the sector so she could talk to her friends. Then, the idea snapped in her head, that the women needed to get together, “When we started to realize our space and our fight, we started to grow and me, as a founder, started to see that the purpose was so much bigger.” said Erika.
After a week, Erika and her friend who also liked the sport, decided to create a group on WhatsApp to unite girls, to not only talk about the drivers, races, and cars but to become friends, in a way that they could find support in each other. The group that started with 56 women, now is not only a project but also a community of more than 7,7k followers on Instagram.”The Girls Like Racing isn’t just a project now. It turned into a community for girls in motorsport, where we speak about women, we are women, and we do it for all, in a way that we become a showcase for all the women in motorsport.”, explained Erika.
How did it get out of WhatsApp?
Erika was not the only engineer who wanted to unite girls in motorsport. Rachel Loh, a mechanic engineer for the team AMattheis Motorsport of Stock Car Pro Series, was one of the women who helped the idea get out of the paper. “In the pandemic, I had this snap of really feeling a necessity to increase the feminine representativity”, commented Rachel.
Because of the few women at the track, it was easy for Rachel and Erika to share their interest in making a project to get girls to come to races, and visit the boxes. When Formula 4 and Stock Car started to race on the same weekend in 2022, the initiative turned more real each time. Since then, they have worked together in bringing these women to the paddocks around Brazil.”Therefore, through the project Girls Like Racing we were able to welcome a niche of a lot of other women, not only engineers, but for girls of any age” Rachel pointed out.
The program of receiving girls in the racetrack started a partnership with TOYOTA GAZOO Racing, and the goal is to bring at least 30 girls to every round of the Stock Car season. The GLR has a partnership with Vicar, sponsor of Stock Car, as well, which allows the women to visit the boxes, learn background information of the sport, do a fast lap with the Ipiranga drivers, Thiago Camilo and Cesar Ramos and, one of the most special moments, do the track walk, where they can explore the whole track.
The importance of it in motorsport
To every woman who wants the chance to work in motorsport or only go to the races, it is discouraging seeing only men in the paddock, so, having the opportunity to see other girls on the track, looking for them as their role models is a way that they can see that in somehow, they can be welcome in that place. “For me, seeing more women coming to the racetrack means relief. The feeling of loneliness is real, and when more women come, the heart gets stronger.” shared Erika.
The feeling of loneliness mentioned by Erika is a real thing in motorsport, and that is because women normally have fewer opportunities in this field. Although the feminine presence in the track has already developed a lot, there still are a lot of prejudice and preferences when it comes to girls in this sport; as the categories, since the beginning, were dominated by men, the people inside motorsport will prefer to continue in the same atmosphere, and that is, excluding women.
Girls Like Racing is an opportunity to show, not only to the people who work there, like engineers and even, driver but to the public, that girls should be able to be there and feel comfortable showing up to the races without experiencing any situation of sexism, racism, transphobia or any kind of discrimination. “I needed to do more stuff, actions to bring more women, find out why they do not come to the racetrack; and most of the time was because they are afraid or a lack of opportunity” said Rachel.
What did it change until now?
Going to the track now, most of the women probably won’t have an uncomfortable situation to talk about, of course, there still are men who believe that motorsport is a male sport. However, Stefano Domenicali, current CEO of Formula 1, said in November of 2022 that around 40% of F1 fans are female, up 8% from 2017, this shows that not only women are becoming part of this sport, but that they are having more opportunities to get inside this world, with the Girls Like Racing Project or becoming drivers, engineers, and journalists.
“I have already seen a lot of changes, even in other categories, it has the female team in the Porsche Cup, which has extreme importance, there is Antonella Bassani with the engineer Janaína, the mechanic Gabriela and all the fixed and hired women in the category as well.” explicit Rachel.
Although motorsport has already made many changes in including the female public in this sport, when compared to the percentage of men working, it is really smaller. Rachel and Erika, are two women who are daily fighting for girls to have more space and voice in this world. The GLR has already contributed to encouraging the female audience to show up to all the events. “I hope that in the mid-term future, we will really see at least 10% of women’s forums at the racetracks” wants Rachel
Perspectives for the future
The project of getting girls into the racetrack is in its first year and has already conquered a huge space into motorsport. So, the idea is to become bigger and bigger throughout the years. Until now, there are no details of anything new besides the last GLR call to the Stock Car final round in Interlagos on December 17th, but they are making new actions and projects for next year!
“I can just say one thing: IT IS COMING! We have so many amazing things foreseen, but for now, it needs to be a surprise”, commented Erika about the new projects.
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The article above was edited by Julia Tortoriello.
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