Williams signs a French driver for its F1 Academy

Frenchwoman Jade Jacquet will represent the team Williams for the 2026 season of the F1 Academy, racing with ART Grand Prix. The French driver, who celebrated her 16th birthday this Monday, December 1st, will also join the Williams Racing Driver Academy, the Grove team's young talent program.

The winner of the Women's Trophy at the Dijon-Prenois circuit will thus be supported by Williams to grow throughout the F1 Academy season.

“I am very excited to be joining the Williams Racing Driver Academy and the F1 Academy for the 2026 season, confides Jade Jacquet. The team has given me a very warm welcome and I'm looking forward to working with them to learn as much as possible throughout my first season. Thank you to Williams Racing for believing in me, I can't wait to get on track.

Since 2024, Williams had been supporting Lia Block, but as F1 Academy drivers are limited to two seasons in the series to provide more opportunities for emerging female talent, the team parted ways with her after the final race in Las Vegas. It was in this context that Jade Jacquet secured her seat.

“We are proud to welcome Jade to our team as a Williams driver in the F1 Academy, adds Sven Smeets, the structure's sporting director. Jade has made rapid progress in her motorsport career and shows great potential for the future, already demonstrating her ability to learn and adapt in her transition to single-seaters. As a member of the Williams Racing Driver Academy, we will work closely with her to support her development both on and off the track. As a team, we continue to support the shared mission of Formula 1 and the F1 Academy to promote the representation of women in motorsport and we look forward to seeing Jade begin her 2026 campaign.

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