Jamie Chadwick completes first Formula 1 test with Williams

Jamie Chadwick completed her first Formula 1 test in a Williams at Portimão, driving 32 laps and describing the experience as possibly the best day of her life so far.

GPBeat · Newsroom26 Sept 2026, 10:50 · 1 min

Chadwick drove Williams’s FW47, its 2025 Formula 1 car, at the Autódromo Internacional do Algarve on 21 September. Williams said its team ambassador and F1 Academy adviser completed 32 laps, becoming the second woman to test one of its cars after Susie Wolff in 2015.

In comments published by Formula 1 on 24 September, Chadwick said driving the car at speed around Portimão was ‘everything I imagined and 10 times more’. She added: ‘I’d go as far as saying it’s been the best day of my life so far.’

Williams team principal James Vowles praised her feedback and said she had gathered useful data ahead of Formula 1’s planned return to Portimão next year.

Chadwick said she hoped the experience would help her own racing and give her something valuable to pass on to younger drivers.

Source context

Formula 1 published Chadwick’s comments on 24 September; Williams published the test details and its team principal’s assessment.

Claims and supporting evidence 6

Williams reported on September 24, 2026, that its team ambassador and F1 Academy adviser Jamie Chadwick completed 32 laps at the Autódromo Internacional do Algarve in Portimão during a team test on Monday, September 21.

This source finding must be read within the stated scope and source context. The test event September 21, 2026; reported September 24, 2026 The date and lap count come from the team conducting the test; Formula 1 also reports the 32-lap count.

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Chadwick drove Williams's FW47, its 2025 Formula 1 car, in the Portimão test.

This source finding must be read within the stated scope and source context. Car used September 2026 test; 2025 car Neither retrieved account supplies lap times or a comparative performance result.

[1]

In Formula 1's September 24 account, Chadwick called driving the car at Portimão an extraordinary experience and said it may have been the best day of her life so far. This is her assessment, not a measured outcome.

This source finding must be read within the stated scope and source context. Chadwick's reaction Reaction reported September 24, 2026, after the September 21 test The retrieved accounts do not support the BBC feed headline's specific “top of bucket list” wording.

[1]

Chadwick told Formula 1 in its September 24 account that she hoped to inspire a next generation of drivers and expected the experience to benefit both her racing and what she could pass on to them.

This source finding must be read within the stated scope and source context. Chadwick's hopes for the experience Statement reported September 24, 2026 The anticipated benefits and influence are Chadwick's expectations, not established effects.

[1]

Williams identifies Chadwick as the second woman to test one of its cars, after Susie Wolff in 2015. This is a Williams-specific comparison, not a claim that no woman has driven any modern Formula 1 car since 2015.

This source finding must be read within the stated scope and source context. Williams precedent 2015 to September 2026 The same Williams account says a British woman drove a modern Formula 1 car in 2023; the two comparisons have different scopes.

[2]

Williams team principal James Vowles said in the team's September 24 account that Chadwick gathered useful data and that her feedback and performance impressed him. He interpreted the test as showing a path for women to compete at the top level.

This source finding must be read within the stated scope and source context. Team principal's assessment Assessment published September 24, 2026 These are Vowles's assessments and interpretation, not independently measured performance findings or proof of a future career outcome.

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This article was produced with AI assistance. Source references make its supporting evidence traceable.