Lady Tuesday - the first Female F1 driver

Following the death of Maria de Villota a year after her horrendous crash in a Marussia F1 car in 2012, the future of F1 for ladies looks decidedly bleak. Then news broke recently that Susie Wolff test drove the Williams F1 car during the practice. Mrs. Wolff is expected to race in the 2015 F1 season. So the million-dollar question is: would we see her racing next year?

So who was the first female driver in the history of F1?

Her name is Maria Teresa de Filippis. It all started with a bet with her brothers that she could not drive fast. She started her career at the age of 22 racing Fiat 500s. In 1954, she joined the Italian Sports Car Championship and finished second. Based on that result Maserati took her on as a works driver.

Maria had to prove her worth by racing in various motor events, including hill climbing and endurance racing, before Maserati gave her the chance to drive in Formula One. In 1958, Maria drove Juan Manuel Fangio’s championship winning car at the Monaco GP but couldn’t set a fast enough time to qualify for the race. Maria’s official debut in F1 race was in the 1958 Belgian GP, she qualified and finished last.

Maria received very little prejudice from her fellow drivers. Juan Manuel Fangio himself gave her plenty of advice for her first season. She fondly recalled Fangio telling her “You go too fast, you take too many risks.”

Unfortunately she could not escape the prejudice entirely unscathed. In 1958, she was barred from entering the French GP. She later claimed that a race official told her that “The only helmet a woman should be wearing is the one at the hairdresser’s”.

Maria took part in 4 races in 1958. As a result she was offered to drive for Jean Behra’s Porsche team for the 1959 F1 season. That same year Behra died in a racing accident. She left F1 after Behra’s death led her to reconsider her career in F1.

Although Maria had only recorded one race finish in her career she is still held in esteem by drivers of this era for her courage to overcome the gender perception, male and female alike. She joined the International Club of Former F1 Grand Prix Drivers in 1979 and became the vice president in 1997. She was also appointed the President of Maserati Club.