Emma Felbermayr: "With passion and dedication nothing is truly impossible"

For most teenagers, life is a mix of school assignments, weekend plans, and figuring out what

comes next. But for Emma Felbermayr, an Austrian driver in F1 Academy for Kick Sauber, the

world has always been a little different. While her classmates were poring over textbooks or

planning graduation parties, Emma has been racing on the track, juggling international travel,

and living her dream.

Emma is a third-generation driver - both her father and grandfather raced at the legendary 24

Hours of Le Mans. But what’s special is that Emma wasn’t pushed into motorsport; her family

allowed her to take her own path.

“So it was always more like a hobby for me,” she tells Females In Motorsport. “Now, I just

cannot imagine a life without motorsports.”

As she stepped out of karting and into single-seaters, Emma noticed how much motorsport was

evolving, not just in technology and competitiveness, but also in its inclusivity. She has also

witnessed how much the sport has changed since her grandfather's days of racing,

“The level across every category is intense now karting, Formula 4, 3, 2 it’s all so close,” she

says. “You have to be on top of your game all the time because there’s always someone new

coming in, pushing the limits.

“And it’s really nice to see more women out there too, not just a few, but a strong group. It feels

like we’re finally being seen, and I’m proud to be part of that.”

She’s especially proud to be part of F1 Academy - an initiative that now has the global spotlight

now.

“The call from Kick Sauber was really spontaneous at very short notice,” she says. “But I’m

loving every bit of it.”

She's been on reverse grid race pole and fought at the sharp end of the field

In just the first few races, Emma found herself on the race pole on reverse grid and fought her

sharp end of the field.

“It was a bit overwhelming at first,” she says. “A lot of the girls I’m racing against have three

or four years of experience in these kinds of cars. It was definitely tough in the beginning - but

race by race, I’m adapting.

“It’s just something else when you compare that car to a Formula 4 car.” “You have to train

different parts of your body in very different ways from karting training.”

On top of that, Emma was finishing her final year of school, which made the balancing act even

harder.

“Managing everything, travel, racing, school was really stressful,” she says. “I’d be studying on

the plane. But now that school is finally over, I can fully focus on driving, and that feels

amazing.”

As the F1 Academy Netflix series prepares to launch, Emma is eager for the world to see what

it’s really like.

“People can finally see the real struggles of a woman driver and how intense racing can get,”

she says. “I am just so excited.”

Every driver has their inspiration, and for Emma, it was none other than Sebastian Vettel.

“I’ve always been a huge fan of Vettel,” she says. “When he was racing in Formula 1, it was

just something special. I always looked up to him. He was one of the reasons I pursued

motorsports.”

It’s no surprise, then, that Emma’s racing number is five.

Juggling school and a career in racing is no easy feat. Between traveling for races, intense

training, and managing schoolwork, it requires an immense amount of discipline and time

management. Many young drivers find themselves studying on flights or in between races,

constantly balancing their dreams with their education. It's a tough road, but one that many are

willing to walk, knowing that the sacrifices are necessary for their future success.

While fans watch drivers race on the grid, they often don’t see the immense behind-the-scenes

effort that goes into it. Emma’s journey shows that with enough passion and dedication,

nothing is truly impossible. Motorsport has evolved, and if you’re determined enough, you can

make it to wherever you dream to be.