Scottish Teen Rachel Robertson Awaits F1 Academy Shot After Gabby Logan Grant

Rachel Robertson, an 18-year-old Scottish driver, is awaiting a phone call that could determine whether she earns a testing spot with the F1 Academy, a programme aimed at preparing young female drivers for higher levels of competition. Robertson has received a £15,000 grant from broadcaster Gabby Logan to fund two Formula 4 testing days that she said were essential to her chances of selection.

The F1 Academy, led by former driver Susie Wolff, was created to develop female talent with the long-term objective of progressing drivers toward the top tiers of single-seater racing. No woman has yet reached Formula 1 via that route.

Robertson said she began karting at a small indoor track near Edinburgh and has been singularly focused on a career in single-seaters since taking the sport up in 2022. "I've been writing about becoming a Formula 1 driver since I was eight years old," she told reporters. With no family background in motorsport, she progressed from rental karts to owning her own kart, joining a Scottish team and moving into national competition by the end of that year.

She moved into senior-category karting in 2024 and was the only female competitor in the senior class of the British Kart Championship that season. A scholarship then led to a seat in the Radical Cup series, where she has been an ambassador for Radical Motorsport and Wera Tools and, after five of six rounds, sits third in the championship.

Robertson described the jump from the Radical car to a Formula 4 machine as transformative. "The Formula 4 car really moves underneath you. It's such a great car to drive," she said, adding that a test in Italy left her 0.35 seconds off the top driver's times and drew surprise from the team.

The testing funded by Logan's grant cost Robertson about £7,000 per day, a figure she and others in the sport repeatedly cited as a barrier to progression. Drivers in the F1 Academy faced an even larger financial threshold last year, with competing entrants required to find around £100,000 to take part. Robertson acknowledged the disparity in preparation between drivers with deep financial backing and those without: "The more money you have, the more track time you get, the more you're going to get better."

Logan said she established a yearly "Gabby Grant" after being approached by organiser Alan Graham following a celebration of female sports stars. "I was asked if I would like to donate a sum of money every year to a young sports woman who hasn't made it yet, but who could use the money on coaching or expenses to further their chances of success," Logan said. She added that meeting Robertson and seeing the F1 Academy's programme convinced her that Robertson was a worthy first recipient. "Rachel struck me as determined, talented, humble, and hard-working," Logan said, and she expressed optimism that a female driver could reach Formula 1 within a decade.

Robertson said the grant paid for two crucial Formula 4 testing days that provided direct comparison with other rookie drivers. She is in the final year of a motorsport engineering course in Wiltshire and described testing as both education and audition. "If I get the phone call saying I've been selected [for the Formula One rookie test], then that means I can get a chance to prove myself against the other rookie drivers selected," she said.

Competition for Academy places is intense, she noted, with some candidates arriving with years of prior testing and dozens of days in identical machinery. Robertson said her shorter track history has been a challenge but hoped that strong results in limited testing, plus support from backers, would create opportunities. She credited Logan and her husband, Kenny, for tangible support and encouragement.

Robertson also spoke about the personal impact of motorsport. She said it had helped her overcome social anxiety and shaped her daily focus. Recalling an early meeting with multiple world champion Max Verstappen at an indoor kart track, she said she adopted his mindset of relentlessly thinking about ways to improve.

The next steps for Robertson hinge on selection for the rookie test and potential acceptance into the F1 Academy. If chosen, she would join a programme designed to increase seat time and development opportunities for women in single-seater racing. For now, Robertson's progress — from indoor karts outside Edinburgh to national competition and an international Formula 4 test — illustrates both the rapid rise of an individual driver and the broader economic hurdles that remain in transitioning talent into top-level motorsport.