Racing Ahead: Meet the Youngest F1 Academy Driver Joanne Ciconte

At just 16-years-old, teen sensation Joanne Ciconte is Australia’s rising star in the Formula One Academy. Recently named a member of the MP Motorsports Team for the 2025 F1 Academy season, Joanne will race in the season’s opening event next week in Shanghai, China. Daisy Ward Reports.

Formula One is the burgeoning, high-octane sport of today, tomorrow and the future… think 750 million fans worldwide just for starters with huge growth in the female viewership.

But where do young female drivers fit into a sport that is so male dominated?

One woman who is redefining the sport is 16-year-old Joanne Ciconte, the youngest and latest driver announced for this year’s Formula One Academy. She believes there is an advantage of having youth on her side whilst living life in the fast lane and competing on the world stage.

“Being younger in this sport is an advantage in the long run,” Joanne told Women Love Tech in an exclusive interview during her time in Australia. “I believe that diamonds are made with pressure and having this sort of pressure, being this young, will benefit me in the future.

“Being the youngest participant makes me even more motivated because I’m racing in a field of drivers who by the very nature of being older, have more experience.”

The Impact of the F1 Academy

When former Scottish racing car driver, Susie Wolff MBE, kickstarted the F1 Academy to support young girls in motorsports including Joanne from Melbourne, Australia, her aim was to provide a pathway for talented female drivers and reduce the massive gender gap in the sport.

True to its mission, Joanne is proud to be part of such a game changing initiative as the Academy.

“The F1 Academy has provided a huge opportunity for women to race in the world’s best series for females,” she adds. “I think the F1 Academy has done a great job of inspiring the next generation and I feel privileged to race in the F1 Academy and represent Australia on the grid”.

Joanne began karting at age nine as “something fun to try.” She soon started racing at the Victorian State level in Australia and then nationally, achieving strong results. Before long, Joanne was hooked to the sport, and her ambition to succeed spiralled.

“I wanted to progress even more, and I started to dream big,” she admits.

Joanne’s dazzling rise in the sport has not gone unnoticed. She was scouted by the famous Italian racing academy, Pro-Racing, led by Marco Cioci and Giancarlo Fisichella in 2023. Her first major victory soon followed in 2023 at the Australian Ladies Pink Plate Championship.

“It was my first time racing solely against females,” she said. “Racing against Australia’s best female drivers and coming out on top gave me confidence to represent Australia in the F1 Academy.”

In doing so, she became one of two Australians to join the Formula One Academy, alongside 17-year-old Aiva Anagnostiadis.

Joanne continues to add to her impressive track record. From being selected to participate in the 2024 Ferrari Driver Academy Girls on Track Competition in Maranello, Italy, to participating in the CEZ F4 and securing Top Rookie and Top Female and 4th Overall, (CEZ) F4 Championship in the Czech Republic.

In what was a big year for the talented youngster, she moved to one of the most highly regarded and competitive championships in the world, the Spanish F4. This culminated in the biggest transition to date – signing up with MP Motorsport in November 2024 as an official F1 Academy driver which was announced in February 2025.

Joanne credits her mentorship from renowned racing champions Giancarlo and Marco as pivotal to her development as a driver.

“Working with such renowned drivers has helped me progress and learn so much in such a short period of time,” she says. “As my managers, they have facilitated my participation in the most competitive European competitions and my results in these ultimately led to my selection for the F1 Academy.

“This year I’m the youngest driver in the field and my main focus is to improve and progress from each race at the different circuits. Being guided by such a successful team like MP Motorsport and my incredible managers gives me confidence to develop quickly.”

So where does she see herself in the next five years within the world of motorsport? “It’s a bit hard for me to guess where I’m going to be in the next 5 years, but I do continue to dream big,” she replied.

“I am mainly focused at ensuring that I maximise my development from participating in such a prestigious Academy, as is the case with the F1 Academy. I look forward to meeting and being guided by Susie Wolff who is a huge idol of mine. In the next five years, there will likely be increased opportunities for females, and I aspire to come up the ranks and drive in an F3 and get closer to my ultimate goal of driving a Formula 1.”

Technology and Innovation

Joanne describes how she leverages technology to enhance her performance on the track. “As a modern-day driver, I think that it’s a huge privilege and advantage to have the advanced technology we have today,” she says. “Having interpreted data from such an early age has also helped enhance my performance. When reviewing the data, I can easily see where I can improve my performance and visualise what I can achieve.

“I think technological advances will continue to evolve at a very fast pace into the future. I believe it will only continue to fast track driver development as well as continue to push vehicle enhancements in ways we probably can’t even imagine today.

Personal Insights

Joanne spends her spare time much like any other teenager, enjoying her valuable moments away from the track with friends and family and playing a range of other sports.

“Outside of racing, I love staying active with simulation training and time in the gym,” she says. “I also really enjoy playing other sports like tennis and volleyball. When I’m not training, I spend time with friends and family, and I’m often watching other races to keep learning and stay inspired.

To keep herself motivated and continue to push forward in her career, Joanne says:  “As a driver, there have been and there will always continue to be many challenges, but something I’ve always told myself is to ‘acknowledge, learn and move forward’.”

Given there is no anatomical reason preventing women from beating men when driving a car round a track, there should be nothing stopping a woman from winning the World Championship like Belgian -Dutch driver Max Verstappen.

Yet no female driver has even competed in Formula 1 since 1992 when Giovanna Amati from Italy took part.

A big reason why female participation is extremely low in the sport is due to the lack of female role models. While Joanne and other upcoming female racing drivers carry a lot on their shoulders as they pave the way for the future generation of girls to follow in their tracks, her outlook remains positive.

Her advice to those young women is to “dream big, be prepared for challenges and if you’re determined, the outcome will come!”

Recently named a member of the MP Motorsports Team for the 2025 F1 Academy season, Joanne will race in the season’s opening event next week in Shanghai, China.