Though the driver roster is yet to be confirmed, Jenner Racing is the first team to be named for the team championship in 2022, and Jenner will be at the helm as team principal.
“As a believer in fair competition, a lover of motor racing, and a supporter of all women in sport from the grassroots to elite level, W Series ticks every box for me and is a fusion of the different aspects of my career,” Jenner said. “As the series continues its rapid expansion with a truly international cast of drivers and races, this was the perfect time to come on board… As has always been the case, I’m in it to win it.”
Last season Veloce Racing – represented by two-time champion Jamie Chadwick – took the inaugural team championship crown, and Jenner’s involvement this time around will no doubt draw new attention.
W Series drew bigger audiences than ever in 2021 by serving as a support series to Formula 1 at eight Grand Prix weekends. It will continue in a similar vein in 2022 by partnering with F1 for eight races again, including two in the United States – in Miami and Texas – and expanding to Asia for the first time with a race in Japan.
Jenner’s involvement is the latest savvy move for growing W Series
Jenner’s involvement in W Series marks another savvy move by the all-female championship to continue to grow its audience.
Her name permeates beyond motorsport and sport more generally, as many of her millions of followers will know her best from popular culture, particularly her reality television career as part of one of the world’s most famous families.
Additionally, when she announced that she was trans in 2015 – on the cover of Vanity Fair magazine – she was lauded for using her huge platform to spark conversations around trans rights.
However she also splits opinion, as many LGBTQ+ rights groups condemned Jenner’s comments around trans children’s inclusion in sport at school and others have accused her of flip-flopping on the issue.
W Series has served as a leader in women’s sport when it comes to LGBTQ+ representation, with Sarah Moore last year becoming the first openly gay driver to score a podium on a Formula 1 grand prix weekend.
British transgender driver Charlie Martin, who has not raced in W Series before, has already supported Jenner’s involvement though. “Having someone like Caitlyn Jenner come into motorsport can only be a positive thing,” Martin told the BBC.
“It’d be amazing if she had a trans driver in the team – to see a trans driver competing in a series going out across the world. It’ll be a very positive story; it’ll give hope to a lot of people.”
