INDIANAPOLIS — Haas F1 will field an American racer for the first time in team history — a woman in Formula One's Academy Series.
The Kannapolis-based team said Wednesday that 19-year-old Chloe Chambers will represent Haas while competing with Campos Racing. The native of Fort Wayne, Indiana, will be supported by Haas, the only American-owned F1 team, as the academy series format changes so that it races in companion with select F1 races this coming season.
Chambers will have a Haas-designed car and firesuit and be fully integrated with the F1 team.
“Having the backing of Haas is going to open many doors for new experiences and it’s going to be a place where I can learn," Chambers sad. "It’s my first season in F1 Academy, so I’m looking forward to getting good results and developing as a driver. I did some testing over the winter with Campos Racing, and the team and I work very well together.”
Chambers began her career in karting and won multiple regional and national championships. She competed in her first single-seater series in 2021 in the F4 United States Championship and scored her first point at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course.
Chambers competed in the 2022 W Series and the 2023 Porsche Sprint Challenge North America last season. She also participated in the 2023 Castrol Toyota Formula Regional Oceania Championship in New Zealand, where she was was the first woman to win a pole and a race and was named “Most Improved Driver” by the series.
Chambers also holds the Guinness World Record for fastest vehicle slalom, set in 2020 when she was 16 and drove a Porsche 718 Spyder in 47.45 seconds.
Haas has not fielded an American driver since its 2016 debut and will field F1 cars for a second consecutive season for Kevin Magnussen, who is Danish, and Nico Hülkenberg, who is German. Her hiring was applauded by Ayao Komatsu, who last week replaced Guenther Steiner as team principal at Haas.
“As a father to two karting enthusiasts myself, I know the importance of representation in encouraging the next generation to take that leap and follow their dreams,” Komatsu said. “It was great to meet Chloe and see her enthusiasm for the season ahead, and the team thoroughly enjoyed getting to know her at the factory – from speaking with our engineers, participating in pit stop practice and undertaking her first media obligations."
He added that Haas "fully supports Formula 1 and F1 Academy in its objectives, and we’re committed to increasing the talent pool of young girls and women entering the sport, utilizing our resources.”
The 2024 F1 Academy series is set to compete across seven locations, with two races taking place throughout a weekend. The season begins at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix in March.