The fastest Filipina
Bianca Bustamante
Many Filipinos continue to hope for a day when a Filipino driver will waive the country’s flag in the Pinnacle of Motorsport, Formula 1. That day may soon come thanks to Bianca Bustamante, a Filipino racecar driver who was recently signed to the McLaren Driver Development Program. The 19-year-old first began waving the country’s flag in 2022 as one of the competitors of the all-female W series, which serves as a support race for Formula 1. In 2023, she joined the all-female F1 Academy racing series and secured two victories and multiple podiums during the season.
Bustamante is the first female driver signed to the McLaren Driver Development Program and with some luck and our support, may be one of Formula 1’s first female drivers. A spot in the driver development program is not a guarantee of a Formula 1 seat, however it certainly brings her close to the coveted big leagues.
Her rise hasn’t been without controversy, after it was discovered she had liked several hurtful tweets aimed at a current Formula One driver that called him derogatory names. Nonetheless, the nation continues to hold hopes high that Bianca may finally be the country’s first Formula 1 driver.
