Female Drivers making the starting grid?

[Sebp]

It depends on the importancy of strenght and corpulence. Can you imagine a woman defending Lebron James?

Maybe:

[hollus]

I always think that the reason there are less women in many top things is a) less of them trying and b) many more quitting between age 20-30 due to changed life focus. In science we are starting to see more and more top flight women. But the ones that make it that far all have a common trait, they are fierce and relentless. I guess that the ones that are not simply quit the rat race at some point.

But I have to throw a spanner in the works: Women tend to be shorter and lighter.The lesser strenght shouldn't be a huge problem with power steering, brake by wire, paddle shifts etc. But can they endure constant repetitions of 4-5g for 90 minutes?
Honestly asking here. For male fighter pilots I understand that the limit is 7g sustained (meaning a few seconds a few times) and something like 10g transient. Are there any studies on whether the limits are the same for women? A NASA study maybe?
Otherwise we might have a situation where they are perfectly fit for all forms of motor racing... except F1!

[SectorOne]

Women from what i´ve heard tend to do better then men when it comes to G-forces. I assume it has to do with the distance from the heart to the brain.

[tanmay324]

I am from India and there was no motorsports pedegree till our generation. But now children are starting carting and dirt racing from a very young age. And yes many of them are girls. So maybe evening India we will see woman champions in national series.
As of strength is concerned, there is a significant percentage of women space travellers and fighter pilots too. There were two girls competing in moto3 last year and if am not wrong this year too. Motorcycle racing definitely needs more muscle power than f1. Still they were competative on similar machines. Thus from physical point of view there should not be a problem to drive an f1 car.

[krisfx]

Alice Powell is now a BRDC rising star, she's currently racing in F3, has won the Formula Renault 3.5 championship

Psst, Renault 2.0 not 3.5

I´d say Simona de Silvestro seems closest to an actual racing seat. Wolff is too old now in my opinion.

Ah yeah, my bad!

[Roland Ehnström]

can they endure constant repetitions of 4-5g for 90 minutes?

There are a number of female drivers in the IndyCar series that do this on a weekly basis. Formula 1 is not the only motorsport where 4 G is common - try running an IndyCar at 220 mph around the 24-degree banking of Texas Motor Speedway!

[mep]

Guys, we should not forget that there have been woman driving in F1 already. One already back in the 60s.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_fe ... ne_drivers

No matter what Susi Wolf would do everything has been done by other woman before. She is a sympathetic person but it is very annoying that she constantly tries to use the media to talk herself into a F1 cockpit. She has been in DTM for 6 years and never won anything or finished on the podium. Why should she get a chance to compete in an F1 race?
Even DTM championship winners have to fight for F1 cockpits. Being a woman is actually an advantage for her because no other man with that less success would manage to stay a media topic for so long.

I don’t really think that the physical strength is stopping woman from becoming a F1 driver these days. I would not be surprised when the steering forces got reduced by power steering compared to the days when there were actually female drivers in F1. Not to forget that some young F1 drivers are real kids. These days it is important to bring lots of sponsorship money to get a F1 cockpit. Maybe the companies have less trust in female drivers but then again Ms. Wolf never showed that she can be successful. Even with her husband as team owner the team simply cannot afford to kick out one of their pay drivers. Even as a female driver attract the attention of the media. I don’t know much about US motorsport but I know Danica Patrick.

[idfx]

Ana Carrasco (Moto3) started early (15 years). Programs for new riders should have a special focus to women. The FIA ​​could develop something special

[idfx]

Indy had:
Bia Figueiredo - Br
danica patrick - EUA
simona silvestro-
mika duno - VNZ
sarah fisher -

[Sebp]

Ana Carrasco (Moto3) started early (15 years). Programs for new riders should have a special focus to women. The FIA ​​could develop something special

It reflects poorly upon our society that women need special help to rise through the ranks, don't you think?
But I guess there's still not enough parents out there who take their little daughter to a motor race and buy them a horse instead.

[langwadt]

Women from what i´ve heard tend to do better then men when it comes to G-forces. I assume it has to do with the distance from the heart to the brain.

I've heard the same, presumably women have a shorter upper body. That would be an advantage for fighter pilots where g-forces I'd assume is mostly vertical, not so sure it is the same for F1 pilots

[mnmracer]

With the rise of Female sports it seems that people are happy to see them kept apart.

Most people that are 'happy' to keep them apart are the women who know that they don't stand a chance in most sports. Had the Olympics been mixed gender, you only need to look at the comparative scoreboards to see how little it would have done for female athletes.

[mnmracer]

Ana Carrasco (Moto3) started early (15 years). Programs for new riders should have a special focus to women. The FIA ​​could develop something special

It reflects poorly upon our society that women need special help to rise through the ranks, don't you think?
But I guess there's still not enough parents out there who take their little daughter to a motor race and buy them a horse instead.

In stead of blaming society and everyone else, why not accept differences and let everyone do what they like best? Instead of forcing someone to like something they don't, just let them be do what makes them happy.

[mnmracer]

About G-forces btw, I read something from a pilot, who wrote: "It depends on the person's physical condition, what and when they had their
last meal, their mental state, and many other factors." He then explained how he pulled 10G's as a pilot himself, staying concious, while an unexpected 4G pull as an instructor nearly blacked him out.

[Cold Fussion]

With the rise of Female sports it seems that people are happy to see them kept apart.

Most people that are 'happy' to keep them apart are the women who know that they don't stand a chance in most sports. Had the Olympics been mixed gender, you only need to look at the comparative scoreboards to see how little it would have done for female athletes.

That would be true for a lot of the physical sports, but looking at some of the Olympic sports, archery, shooting etc, I don't see any reason why they should be segregated.