Chadwick joins elite group of British women to drive F1 car after test
· Yahoo Sports
Jamie Chadwick has joined an elite group of British women to drive a Formula One car after she took part in a test for Williams - a day the 28-year-old hailed as the "best of my life".
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Chadwick, a three-time W Series champion and one of the biggest female names in motor racing, drove last season's car at Portimao in Portugal earlier this week.
Chadwick becomes only the second British woman to drive for the Oxfordshire team after Susie Wolff - now the boss of the all-female F1 Academy - in 2015. She completed 32 laps at the Algarve venue which will return to the F1 calendar next year.
"It was a phenomenal day and an incredible experience," said Chadwick. "Few things can prepare you for driving a Formula One car at speed around a track like Portimao, but it was everything I imagined and 10 times more.
"I'm incredibly grateful to Williams for this opportunity. I remember being young and watching Susie Wolff step into a Williams F1 car and how much that inspired my own journey.
"I'd love to be able to do the same for the next generation, and the experience I gained will make a real difference both to my own racing and to what I can pass on to the drivers coming through. I'm so grateful and incredibly happy with how the day went.
"It's an experience I'll remember for a very long time. I'd go as far as saying it's been the best day of my life so far."
It has been 50 years since a female competitor - the Italian Lella Lombardi - took part in an F1 race and 11 years since Wolff drove for Williams during a grand prix weekend.
Williams team principal James Vowles said: "Jamie Chadwick is an inspiration for millions of women and girls who has broken records at every level, and she has thoroughly earned this F1 test opportunity with Williams.
"Jamie gathered important data for the team as F1 prepares to return to Portimao next year, and her feedback and performance were impressive, as we knew they would be.
"This clearly shows there is a path for women to compete at the top level, and I look forward to seeing how Jamie uses this experience to advance her own driving and advise our young drivers on what it takes to drive an F1 car."