Courtney Crone takes F1 Academy wildcard in Miami

The second wildcard entry for the 2024 F1 Academy season has been taken by Courtney Crone, who makes her return to single-seater racing after nearly four years in sportscars. 

F1 Academy's wildcard entries have been introduced to provide local drivers with an opportunity to compete on a global stage, further promoting female talent to a broader motorsport audience.

The 23-year-old American, who began racing karts at the age of three, will fill the 16th car on the grid in Miami this weekend, racing with the Prema team in a QVC-branded car. She'll race with number 77.

Crone has been hard at work preparing herself for this opportunity. She got behind the wheel of an F1 Academy car two weeks ago for a two-day test at Zandvoort in a bid to get up to speed after spending most of the past four years behind the wheel of sportscars, most recently in Lamborghini Super Trofeo.

She's clearly under no illusions as to the challenge that awaits, aside from the transition back to open-wheel racing, Miami also represents Crone's first time racing on a street circuit.

“I think probably the biggest transition coming from this year, where I’m racing in the Lamborghini Super Trofeo, is the power to weight differences are astronomically different,” she said.

“From a heavy, really fast car to a lower horsepower, lightweight formula car has been a bit of a change. 

“Getting used to those differences has taken some time, but I always enjoy my time in formula cars, so I’m just really excited to be back in them.”

As a wildcard, Crone will be eligible to score championship points this weekend, but more important than that will be the opportunity to showcase her talent alongside an established grid of drivers, ten of whom are directly representing a Formula 1 team in 2024.

“It’s a huge opportunity that F1 Academy is giving drivers through wildcard entries, especially in America.” Crone continued. “It can be difficult for young girls from outside Europe to know how to get into international series like this, and the support that I’ve been given by F1 Academy, and the Prema Racing team, has been hugely positive for me.

“This is an amazing opportunity to grow both this series and the sport.”

Crone is the second wildcard driver of the 2024 F1 Academy season after Reema Juffali took the seat in her home country of Saudi Arabia back in March. She achieved a best finish of 11th place in race one before retiring from race two.

Round two of the 2024 F1 Academy gets underway this weekend alongside the F1 Miami Grand Prix. Courtney Crone will be in action for the first time on Friday when the field heads out for their first practice session.