A teenage girl is set to be Australia's first woman F1 racer

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The first driving experiences for many Australians involve a shiny set of L plates and a panicked parent in the front seat.

But for Joanne Ciconte, it was very different.

The 16-year-old started driving go-karts when she was nine and now controls a racing car at speeds of 245km/h down a straight track and 160-170km/h on a circuit, all before she has driven a car on the road.

Ciconte is one of the newest admissions to the F1 Academy — a female-only racing series aiming to increase accessibility to motorsports by making it more inclusive and diverse.

A teenage girl wearing a white racing suit sits on the front left wheel of a race car outside

Joanne Ciconte says her interest in racing came from growing up in a motorsport-loving family. Credit: Pro Racing Motorsport Academy

“To get the news, it is so sudden and sort of unexpected,” she said. “I can’t explain how many emotions came over to me.

“I’m just so happy to be in the grid of F1 Academy and have the Australian flag next to my name.”

Ciconte is back in Melbourne to support this weekend’s Formula One Grand Prix.

“It’s very special as an Aussie to come down and support the other Aussies racing,” she said.

Ciconte enters the 18-driver academy alongside fellow Australian, 17-year-old Aiva Anagnostiadis.

“I think that me and Aiva, definitely, we’re both incredibly proud to represent Australia and F1 Academy,” she said.

“I think that this year’s field is pretty competitive and I think that we all want the same thing.

“Hopefully I can get there.”

The two Australian teenagers will compete in an international seven-race series starting in China next weekend. The drivers will race Formula 4-level cars.

Motorsport-loving family

Ciconte says her entry into the sport grew from her motorsports-loving family and spending time supporting her younger brother at the go-kart track.

“If it wasn’t for him, I wouldn’t be where I am now,” Ciconte said.

“I was obviously so inspired by what he was doing and seeing him smile and have so much fun,” she added. “I was really eager to have a drive.

“Eventually I got that opportunity and I kept going from there.”

A young girl high fives a woman sitting in a go-kart.

Joanne Ciconte taking part as a coach in the Australian Grand Prix Celebrity Go-Kart Challenge in 2020. Source: Getty / Mackenzie Sweetnam

Ciconte raced for more than five years in national level go-karting before moving into Formula Four, after being one of four finalists chosen from 116 international senior applicants for the 2023 Ferrari Driver Academy’s Girls on Track program.

“When I used to go-kart … it was always more boys than girls,” she said.

“And as I went higher in the ranks and travelled more for Motorsport, I was starting to see more and more females.”

How many men and women have competed in a Formula 1 Grand Prix?

Ciconte says she looks up to Susie Wolff, former racing driver and managing director of the F1 Academy, for the opportunities she is creating for young female drivers.

“It gives us so much hope and it’s made me more inspired than ever,” she said.

‘It’s something I’ve always dreamed about’

She credits her family’s support for getting her this far.

“As a teenage girl, it’s hard to transition to online school and not seeing my teachers and friends as often, and living overseas, not spending as much time with my family as I want,” she said.

“But I believe that with all the determination that I have and hard work that I put in, it will hopefully play out in the end.”