The Women’s World Car of the Year (WWCOTY) panel has voted for racer Simona De Silvestro as the winner of this year’s Woman of Worth award. With years of racing experience under her belt, the Swiss-Italian driver has built an impressive motorsport portfolio covering IndyCar, Formula E and even F1.
- De Silvestro made her IndyCar return earlier this year
- First full-time female driver in Australian Supercars Championship
Simona De Silvestro: racing career
After her initial success in the European single-seater scene, De Silvestro started racing in the USA with outings in Formula BMW and Formula Toyota Atlantic. She then graduated to IndyCar and was crowned Rookie of the Year at the 2010 Indy 500. A serious accident during practice for the 2011 Indy 500 left her with burns on both hands. But she still managed to qualify for the race using her backup car, earning her the nickname ‘Iron Maiden’.
In 2014, Sauber signed De Silvestro as an affiliated driver with multiple test outings, however, the deal was called off following a contractual dispute. She then moved to Formula E, driving for Andretti Autosport in the 2015-2016 season.
De Silvestro joined the Australian Supercars Championship in 2017, becoming the first full-time female driver in the series. She’s also one of just 31 women to have competed in the Bathurst 1000. In 2019, she became a Porsche works GT driver and earlier this year, the 34-year-old returned to IndyCar for a three-race outing with Ed Carpenter Racing.
WWCOTY awards
The Women's World Car of the Year is the only car awards group in the world composed exclusively of women automotive journalists. The jury includes Autocar India’s very own Renuka Kirpalani (Executive Editor – Video).
Earlier this year, the Peugeot 308 was named the 2022 Women’s World Car of the Year. Along with awarding the best cars, WWCOTY organisers say their goal is also “to give visibility to women in the automotive world, to contribute to making women's voices heard on all continents because mobility for a woman means access to many personal and professional possibilities.”
Dipan Sur
