Aurelia Nobels is the winner of the third edition of the FIA Girls on Track – Rising Stars programme, the initiative promoted by the FIA Women in Motorsport Commission in collaboration with the Ferrari Driver Academy and the Iron Dames, with the aim of supporting female motor racing and support the most promising talents between the ages of 12 and 16.
After an intense evaluation and selection process which involved 146 national automotive bodies from every continent, 16 girls were chosen for the first phase of the competition on the track which took place at Paul Ricard and which brought to light the four most promising of them: the Australian Alice Buckley, the British Chloe Chong and Chloe Grant and the Belgian Aurelia Nobels. The four youngsters were therefore invited to Maranello for the final phase of the program at the beginning of last November.
At the Scuderia Ferrari headquarters and on the historic Fiorano track, the four youngsters underwent a series of tests which allowed FDA experts to collect a lot of important data on the psychophysical abilities of each of them, as well as to evaluate their driving skills in the simulation of an entire competitive weekend, with free practice, qualifying and race at the wheel of a Formula 4 car equipped with Pirelli tires identical in all respects to those used in the Italian championship.
Aurelia has been busy on several fronts this season since it raced in two Formula 4 championships, the Danish and the Spanish. You have also competed in the Brazilian series and stood out on more than one occasion. As a student of the Ferrari Driver Academy, you will now be awaited by the most competitive series ever, the Italian F4 championship, in which up to forty single-seaters take to the track at each race. She doesn’t seem worried: she says she has prepared herself well for this moment and that she will face it with a lot of grit, a quality that always distinguishes her.
The name of the very young driver who will be supported by the Ferrari Driver Academy in the next karting season with the Tony Kart team, historical partner of the FDA, has also been decided. The best of the Junior Girls on Track – Rising Stars, a selection reserved for girls born between 2008 and 2012, was the Romanian Zoe Florescu Potolea who beat the competition of the French Lisa Billard, the Japanese Sara Matsui and the German Mathilda Paatz. These budding drivers were also hosted in Maranello and then moved to the Tony Kart headquarters, where the seat was prepared in view of the two days on the track organized at the Franciacorta Karting Track in Lombardy.
However, for the three Seniors and three Juniors who were not selected, the experience with Ferrari does not end here. Over the next year, the six young girls will be invited to Maranello for a day at the Academy which will remain a beautiful memory at the end of their adventure in FIA Girls on Track – Rising Stars.
Mohammed Ben Sulayem, FIA President: “I extend my sincere congratulations to Aurelia Nobels and Zoe Florescu Potoela on winning the FIA Girls on Track – Rising Stars 2022 programme. With this success they now have a fantastic opportunity to develop a career in motor sport. We look forward to seeing the progress of these two exciting young female drivers, and I take this opportunity to thank the Ferrari Driver Academy and Iron Dames for their partnership in the success of this initiative. The fact that young female talents around the world are being recognized and supported is a very positive sign. The FIA is at the forefront of change when it comes to diversity and initiatives such as Girls on Track – Rising Stars are an important part of our aim to massively grow motorsport participation over the next few years by encouraging and supporting groups’ presence less represented in our disciplines”.
Laurent MekiesScuderia Ferrari Racing Director: “We are very happy to welcome Aurelia to the Ferrari Driver Academy, who fully deserved to win the third edition of FIA Girls on Track – Rising Stars. Her entry into our youth program is confirmation of how much Scuderia Ferrari shares with the FIA the vision of a motorsport open to all, without any distinction of gender, territorial origin and limiting the impact that can derive from economic condition. We wish Aurelia to be able to follow the same path as Maya Weug, the first winner of this initiative, who in two years has grown to regularly reach the points in the Italian Formula 4 series and is ready to represent the FDA in the superior category, the Formula Regional European Championship. Congratulations also to Zoe who, during the days spent in Franciacorta, stood out as the most promising in the Junior category and will compete in a kart supported by us with the colors of the Tony Kart team, one of the historical partners of the Academy. As Ferrari we put the maximum effort into promoting FIA Girls on Track – Rising Stars because we consider it an integral part of our global scouting program which allows us to select the best talents from all over the world every year thanks to the collaboration with our partners. We can’t wait to open the doors of the Academy to Aurelia and we wish it all the best from now on”.
Deborah Mayer, President of the FIA Women in Motorsport Commission: “I extend my heartfelt congratulations to Aurelia and Zoe for this important achievement. They both impressed us with their talent, determination and ability to progress during this exciting final stage. They are proud that our program offers them the opportunity to pursue their dream of a career in motor sport.As part of the Ferrari Driver Academy, and with the support of the Iron Dames, Aurelia is best placed to reach the top level of our sport and the same goes for Zoe who will be able to count on the support of the FDA and on all the experience of Tony Kart. I would also like to greet the other girls who have taken part in this adventure. I hope that the experience gained in recent months will inspire them to continue I feel like saying to them: keep your passion close and always give your best, you will have new opportunities ahead of you”.
Marco Matassa, Head of Ferrari Driver Academy: “Aurelia immediately stood out for her ability to manage the various phases of the program she had to face in this edition of FIA Girls on Track – Rising Stars, confirming her already demonstrated in the physical and aptitude tests phase. She beat the competition from three other highly prepared girls, showing that she has what it takes to immediately try her hand at Formula 4, a fundamental category in the life of a driver. Academy we are ready to support you and prepare you in the best possible way for the Italian series which constitutes a unique testing ground for the most promising talents. Welcome to the Academy, Aurelia, we are ready to have fun together. Congratulations also to Zoe who we will continue to observe in her competitive season which will see her engaged with the colors of our partner Tony Kart”.
Aurelia Nobels, Ferrari Driver Academy driver: “I have no words to describe what I am feeling right now. I am delighted to be able to join the Ferrari Driver Academy and I thank everyone in Maranello as well as in Iron Dames for this incredible opportunity. I have Learned a lot so far and can’t wait to start next season as a member of the FDA.”
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