Carlie on track to be named the next female motor racing champion in 2022 GT Cup Championships

Carlie Frith will put her skills, fitness and reactions to the test as part of Formula Woman, which aims to find “the next female motor racing champion”.

As part of the competition, she will undergo online theory tutorials and on-track assessments in the coming months.

At the end of the year, organisers will choose 16 finalists to take part in a final competition, the six winners of which will be trained and coached in fully sponsored Formula Woman McLaren GT4 race cars in the 2022 GT Cup Championship.

For Carlie, entering the competition was a no-brainer. Though she has spent more time working with horses than cars in recent years, she describes herself as a lifelong “petrolhead”.

She said: “It’s a really good opportunity. It’s only open to people who’ve never raced before.

“My whole family are slight petrolheads. My dad and brother used to do banger racing, so I’ve kind of grown up around cars.

“I was a bit of a tomboy growing up. I was more into cars than anything else.

“As a family we are frequently on the go kart track all day trying to beat each other. There’s not too many men that can actually beat me on a go kart track.

“So when this came up my cousin said you absolutely have to do this.”

Although she estimates she is up against thousands of people in the global contest, Carlie says she is not worried, and is simply working on performing her best in each round of assessments.

She is now working with a personal trainer from FX Fox Boxing Gym in Featherstone to help her prepare for the physical assessments.

She said: “I had a baby 18 months ago so I’m not in peak fitness. There is a stamina and fitness element to it. It can take it out of you. You’ve got to be mentally fit as well as strong.”