Love and Rivalry {Female F1 driver}

Welcome to F2!

"Come on, Carter! We don't want to be late for the first practice, do we?" I heard my dad yell after having just gotten out of the car, and now already on the way towards the track. I took a deep breath to collect myself before getting out of the car as well, making my way towards the paddock. 

I had recently been signed to Hitech Pulse-Eight, and was now on my way to the very first practice with them of the year 2023. This would be my first appearance as an F2 driver, and I was more than excited about it. I had always dreamt of making my way to F1 one day, this was just another step in the right direction, so hopefully, I wouldn't mess it up. 

It was only my third time meeting the staff, and the first two times had been very formal, as it was about my contract and signing it all, then getting a tour and officially meeting everyone. This would be the first time we would get together and actually work. 

The Principal, Oliver, and the team Manager, Clive, were the first ones to greet me and my dad. I smiled widely as we exchanged pleasantries, and they told me to go and get changed so that we could get right to it. 

The first race was amazing, everything went smoothly, and we quickly connected and had good conversations about what we needed to do, moving forward. The team was great, and the other driver, Isack, who was only a few years younger than me, and I, seemed to be getting on quite well.

All in all, the first two months of practice went by quickly, and it was finally time to put it all to the test and get to racing. The first race of the year was Bahrain. We had gotten there on a Wednesday, and we had to participate in a few events, getting to know the other drivers a bit, as well as doing some interviews. 

It all sounded so great before I had gotten there, and I was genuinely excited to participate in it all, but as we were going by it one by one, I felt a huge lack of interest from the reporters and some of the other drivers. I was met with a lot of cold stares and overheard quite a few comments, mostly about whether I could actually drive or not, given that I was a girl. This all seemed to put down my mood a bit, but I had decided to keep my head up high, and hopefully let my results speak for themselves.

As I was walking around the paddock, just getting a bit of fresh air, whilst getting ready for the race. I had already done the free practice and qualifying, and it went much better than expected. The track felt great to race in, and even if I didn't make the podium the last two days, something in me felt as if I was going to today. 

I was very deep in thought when I felt a tap on my shoulder, making me jump a bit. I turned around and there was Isack, as well as Arthur Leclerc, a driver for DAMS. "Sorry Cart, we didn't mean to scare you!" Isack said, laughing a bit with Arthur. I shook my head, laughing a bit with them. "No, you're all good. What's up?"

"We were wondering if you wanted to go and play a game to kill the last hour before we have to race?" Arthur spoke up, smiling kindly at me. These two were some of the few guys who were actually talking to me. "Sure, I would love to," I said and followed them in to play a game and have a chat before the race.

I  wouldn't say I knew any of them that well. Even Isack and I never talked much more than about racing, so I guess they were more colleagues than friends, but either way, it was nice to have someone to talk to while being here. After the hour had passed, we all wished each other good luck and got down on the grid.

I had done alright in the qualifications, but I was starting at p12. It wasn't ideal, but it sure was better than all the way in the back. Apparently, my gut feeling about ending up on the podium was right, and I managed to push past nine of the other drivers, resulting in p3 and a podium in the very first f2 race. I could hear the crew going wild through the headset, and I felt ecstatic. Isack came in at p7, and the race was overall a big success for all of us. 

After the race, the media was circling around me and the guys who made p1 and p2. Or so I thought. They weren't really interested in me or my accomplishments, they solely wanted to speak with the guys, not paying me any attention whatsoever, besides a few reporters, asking me stupid and sexist questions. I got that they weren't so used to a girl driving in the F2, but a little respect or approval would've been great for my first podium. 

Hitech didn't forget about me though, quite the opposite. They were celebrating me with wide smiles and didn't hold back with the congratulations and praises. It was nice to finally be recognized for my achievements, as it was something I wasn't really used to, but hoped would happen one day. 

From this day on, I got to prove myself time after time on the track, showing everyone, that I was just as worthy of being there, as everyone else. In the next five races, I had two more podiums, a p4, and two p6s. We kept on approving from every race to the next, and more and more of the drivers warmed up to me and accepted me as part of the group.