Jade Jaquet opened up about her hopes for the British Grand Prix weekend, with Williams’ support behind her as she finds her feet in her rookie year.
Jaquet only made her karting debut in 2023; the sixteen-year-old quickly climbed through the ranks of the French Junior Karting Championship. Before making the move to single-seaters.
In French F4, she took 12 top-20 results and had a best-place finish of P11. Including claiming the Female Trophy.
Following these results, she was selected for the F1 ACADEMY rookie test, finishing seventh and catching the eye of the Williams Racing Driver Academy. She was selected for the 2026 F1 ACADEMY season and for a place within the Williams Academy.
F1 ACADEMY brings new challenges for Jaquet. Forcing the Frenchwoman to learn quickly to stay on track with the rest of the grid.
The opening rounds have been a steep learning curve, but coming into the series’ first weekend in Silverstone, Jaquet was looking forward to having fun.
She spoke exclusively to Motorsport Week about what she’s learnt in her rookie year, how important the support from Williams has been on this journey, and her expectations for the weekend ahead.
“It’s very different compared to F4. There is a lot of speed, a lot more pressure.” She admitted when asked about the learning curve in the opening rounds, “You’re at the same time on the F1. So, everything is bigger.
“You also have less track time. So, you need to be ready when you’re on track, and you need to optimise everything and be really precise, consistent and quick when you drive and adapt a lot.”
Consistency always rears its head in support series, with the close racing meaning that it isn’t always the driver who wins the most races that takes the title. Instead, it’s a battle of fortitude every race weekend, fighting to stay within the points. Which is easier said than done within the chaos of F1 ACADEMY.
For Jaquet, being consistent around Silverstone means minimising any big mistakes and trying to end the session with a good lap.
“If in FP I’m happy with my lap, and if I can manage to put in a good lap in quali with no big mistakes and keep every lap consistent, I think that can make a difference compared to the other drivers.
“Because if you do a good lap, but after that you’re bad in the other lap in the race, it’s very important to be consistent.”
Williams’ support
F1 ACADEMY is unique with its close ties to Formula 1. Each team lends its support to one of the drivers on the grid, offering mentoring and simulator time to help prepare the girls for their progression in motorsport.
For Jaquet, she sits as part of the Williams Racing Driver Academy, receiving their support throughout her rookie year. This takes the form of psychologists and physical trainers.
Jaquet opened up about the importance of this partnership in her rookie year and the expectations Williams has for her.
“They helped me a lot during this season. We do a lot of prep on the physical side. We do a lot of simulators also in Grove, and they gave me a lot of advice.
“They have a psychologist who helps me a lot. We work together before the weekend and during the weekend to manage my mental side.
“I have Sasha with me every time, so that’s very helpful because she’s always with me. She helps me a lot. In terms of the mental side, it’s better because you always have someone you can confide in.”
“For this year, there is no real goal. The goal is to progress every weekend. Obviously, we want to score points this week because I can’t really score points. There is no position where I need to finish.”
Representing a team can come with pressure, but Jaquet admitted that more than anything, she wants to ‘make them proud’ with her track performance.
“You want to make them proud. So it’s a bit of pressure, of course.” She said, “But no, I’m super proud to be with them. That’s really motivating.”
Hopes for the weekend
Silverstone carries an unspoken air, and its iconic circuit naturally puts pressure on drivers throughout the weekend. When you race on the same weekend as Formula 1, that is a heightened feeling.
Jaquet told Motorsport Week that she was trying to ‘just drive and enjoy’ this weekend. After putting pressure on herself in the first two rounds, which wasn’t fruitful.
“This weekend I need to not have any pressure. Just drive and enjoy. Because in Shanghai and Montreal, more in Shanghai, that was hard because F1 Academy is a championship where the pressure is high.
“I just need to manage that. I can’t drive fast; I just need to relax. Just focus on my reference points.”
Unfortunately, the results didn’t reflect Jaquet’s attitude. With 18th place in the reverse-grid race and 13th in the Feature Race.
Even though she wasn’t on track to be where she hoped to be, the excitement of driving around the circuit was still evident.
Silverstone is complete with some of the most iconic corners on the F1 circuit. From Maggots and Becketts to Copse and Stowe. Jaquet has raced at Silverstone before in other categories. However, not with the F1 crowds cheering from the grandstands.
“I think the Maggots and Beckett’s corners.” Jaquet said when asked which corners she was looking forward to most, “Those corners are so cool because they’re so fast corners.
“When you drive it, it’s so fun. I think that’s the corner that I look forward to.”
Unlike Formula 1, the F1 ACADEMY cars are tightly knit throughout the races, featuring fierce battles and plenty of opportunities for overtakes. This is comforting for the drivers, as even a poor qualifying result can be turned around come race day.
Jaquet emphasised, ‘it’s not about one lap’ but rather every lap and the opportunities that unfold.
“It’s going to be fun. The start will be important, but after that you can fight during the race. It’s not about one lap, one first lap. You can battle. You can fight and bring out the rest. That’s really important.”
At only 16 years old, Jaquet is one of the youngest drivers on the F1 ACADEMY grid this year. Just three rounds in, she’s adapting to the challenges thrown at her. Taking every setback or difficult result in stride.
She’s only been a few points off the lead in previous rounds with a handful of 12th- and 13th-place finishes. It is only a matter of time before the Frenchwoman collects her first points in the series.
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