A teenage Mexican girl is racing against men and dreaming of reaching Formula 1

MEXICO CITY — Ivanna Richards hopes to one day crack the Formula 1 boys club.

The 16-year-old Mexican driver is off to a good start.

Richards, one of just two female drivers racing in the top categories in Mexico, is wrapping up her first season on the track where she competes against men — including her father.

With one more race to go, Richards is 15th in the standings among 24 drivers. Homero Richards is 19th.

Talk about bragging rights.

“Whenever he tries to correct me about things that I do on the track I tell him, ‘you can’t tell me nothing, I am beating you,’” she says with a laugh.

Richards and her father race for the Zapata team in the Super Copa series in the Gran Turismo Mexico division, where 500-horsepower cars reach top speeds of 250 kph (155 mph).

Richards' love for speed started at an early age. Homero Richards has been racing in Mexico for the past two decades and Ivanna was always around the tracks.

She began driving go-karts at age 8.

“I love Formula cars, I would love to get an invite to race in one of their categories because I’m trying to find my way to Formula 1,” she told The Associated Press. “But If cannot make it there, then I would like to try in NASCAR or IndyCar Series.”

Five female drivers have entered Formula 1 grand prix races, but none since Giovanna Amati in 1992, and only two have qualified and raced. Other female drivers have been involved in F1 testing since Amati's bid to qualify. The last woman to start an F1 race was Lella Lombardi in 1976.

“Sometimes the question is when is a woman going to arrive in Formula 1, but I think the real question is when is the Formula 1 is going to be ready to have a woman,” Richards said. “But I’m going to try it, if you fight for your dreams, you can make it.”

Earlier this year, Ivanna became the first Mexican woman to be invited to drive in the F1 Academy — a racing series for female drivers — where she tested a Formula 4 car in Jerez de la Frontera, Spain.

“We are thrilled with her development, and the progress that she is having for such an early age,” Homero Richards told the AP. “She is really doing well driving a difficult car as the GTM. She has a long way to go, but she is having a nice process.”

The governing body FIA has been trying to increase the number of women competing in motorsport with a program called “Girls on Track” that offers opportunities to talented young drivers around the world.

Richards participated in that program as a junior driver three years ago.

After this season, the plan is for her to drive Formula cars either in Europe or the United States, but Richards needs to find sponsorship and a seat.

When she raced go-karts, one of Richards' main sponsors was Telmex, the telecommunications company owned by billionaire Carlos Slim, who has been Sergio Perez's main sponsor through his Formula 1 career.

“I watched Checo’s path to the Formula 1 and it makes me think if he could do it, then I could do it,” Richards said. “He is like an inspiration for me.”

The other woman racing in the top categories in Mexico is Regina Sirvent, who competes in the NASCAR Mexico Truck series. Before them, Alexandra Mohnhaupt raced in Formula 3 in Europe, but after an accident at Spa-Francorchamps she retired in 2018.

Richards won three nationals titles racing go-karts in Mexico — MicroSwitf (2018), MiniSwift (2019-20) and the KZ2 (2022). A year ago, she drove in the Super Copa as a special guest for the Formula 1 race in Mexico and then decided to try the full season this year.

In the Gran Turismo she’s the only female driver.

“In go-karts it was mixed, but it was mostly against men — and now it’s just men. The truth is that issue has never affected me. Since I started (racing), it was basically the same, and there's no complications,” Richards said.

From their Mexico City home base, Richards is able to balance school and weekend racing.

Though she races at high speeds, she technically isn't old enough to drive out in public. She can get her driver's license at age 18, but on occasion her parents let her take the car for short errands.

“That’s a funny part, in the track I can go over 200 kilometers per hour, but in the real world I still don’t have a driver’s license, and I have to ask for my parents' car to go out and drive to the supermarket,” Richards said. “I don’t know if my mother gets more nervous when I’m in the track or riding outside of it.”

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AP auto racing: https://apnews.com/hub/auto-racing