Saudi Businesswoman Aseel Al-Hamad Drives An F1 Car As The Country Lifts Ban On Female Drivers

Female entrepreneur and board member of the Saudi Arabian Motorsport Federation, Aseel Al-Hamad became the first female member of the Saudi Arabian Motorsport Federation, to drive a Renault Sport Formula One Team E20 car on the Le Castellet circuit, France, as part of the Renault 'Passion Parade' just hours before the start of the first French GP in ten years. It is the very same car former F1 world champion Kimi Raikkonen drove to victory in the 2012 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. Renault and F1 helped Aseel pursue her passion for motorsport that she has cultivated over the years and the timing couldn't have been better. The lap of Le Castellet's Paul Ricard track, in the race-winning 2012 Lotus Renault E20, came on the day a ban ended on female drivers getting behind the wheel on the Gulf kingdom's roads.

Aseel got her first experience of Formula 1 power at a Renault training day on June 5 at Le Castellet. She was then trained by the Renault Sport Formula One Team engineers and technicians who helped Aseel in getting accustomed to the demanding circuit in a Renault road car before switching to a Formula Renault car and the E20 Formula 1 car in the later part of the day.

Aseel Al-Hamad drove the the race-winning 2012 Lotus Renault E20

However, this is not the first time she's driven around the race track. She is the first woman to import a Ferrari into Saudi Arabia, has taken her 458 Spider to racetracks around the world to take part in track days, workshops and professional racing courses.

Aseel said, "I have loved racing and motorsport from a very young age and to drive a Formula 1 car goes even beyond my dreams and what I thought was possible. It is a genuine honour to drive the Renault Sport Formula One Team E20 car in front of the crowds at its home Grand Prix in France. I hope doing so on the day when women can drive on the roads in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia shows what you can do if you have the passion and spirit to dream."

Jerome Stoll, President of Renault Sport Racing said, "Renault has always embraced pioneers and demonstrated a pioneering spirit. Equally Renault has a long-held passion for motorsport and loves to share it through every type of competition with as many people as possible. We're pleased to see Aseel's passion for racing and her enthusiasm for demonstrating the accessibility of motorsport to more people around the world."