A new racing team owned by former Olympic gold medal winner and reality star, Caitlyn Jenner, will compete in the 2022 W Series. The new team, Jenner Racing, is set to take the W Series by storm, hitting the tracks in just six weeks when W Series 2022 takes centre stage at F1 Miami Grand Prix.
Jenner Racing
The woman behind the team, Caitlyn Jenner. Caitlyn was hailed as ‘the world’s greatest athlete’ by Time magazine after winning gold in the decathlon at the 1976 Olympic Games in Montreal, Canada.
In 1979, she competed in her first motorsports competition. A celebrity race at the Long Beach Grand Prix, California, USA. Less than a year later, Jenner drove in the 24 Hours of Daytona race, before going on to compete professionally in the IMSA Camel GT Championship. Her first victory came in the 1986 12 Hours of Sebring. Fast forward to present day, she has set her sights on further success with Jenner Racing. Not behind the wheel this time, but as team principal.
Caitlyn Jenner: “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”
The 2022 W Series Race Calendar
The W Series consists of Formula 1 support races at eight Grand Prix weekends and will start in Miami in May.
| Date | Location |
|---|---|
| May 6-8 | Miami, USA |
| May 20-22 | Barcelona, Spain |
| July 1-3 | Silverstone, UK |
| July 22-24 | Le Castellet, France |
| July 29-31 | Budapest, Hungary |
| October 7-9 | Suzuka, Japan |
| October 21-23 | Austin, USA* |
| October 28-30 | Mexico City, Mexico |
| *Subject to contract |
Taking W Series to the next level
Outside of Jenner’s sports career, many will know her as a reality star. Being part of one of the most famous families in the world, Jenner is known for her appearances on Keeping Up with the Kardashians alongside daughters Kylie and Kendall Jenner. It’s fair to say that a lot of people know who Caitlyn Jenner is. The show saw a viewership of many millions across its 20 seasons, and individually, the reality star has a following of over 16 million across her Twitter and Instagram. Now whilst this seems completely irrelevant to motorsports, her ‘influential’ status is going to help take the W Series to the next level.
Now let me just note that this isn’t to discredit any past or present team owners, sponsors, partners, investors, etc. Everyone involved has played an important part to get the W Series to where it is today, and will continue to do that moving forward. However, to take the W Series to the next level, W Series are continuously rethinking motorsports. Despite the decision splitting opinions online, bringing Caitlyn on board as a team owner is the perfect move and here’s why.
1. Awareness
The publicity created by Jenner Racing will generate increased awareness towards the series and already you can see it working. Just an example, if you search ‘Jenner Racing W Series’ into Google, there’s over 7,300,000 results. That’s a lot of people talking about the W Series. Whereas if you search another team ‘Racing X W Series’ into Google, there’s just over 3,000,000 results. Again I just want to reiterate that the aim is not to discredit the hard-work of other Teams in the Series. They are all vital to the success of W Series, and I completely understand that searching these terms into google is not a true measurement of the amount of publicity generated by each team. However, it highlights the fact that people are talking about Jenner Racing and the W Series. Media around the world are creating a conversation around Caitlyn Jenner, and W Series is right in the middle of it.
CEO Catherine Bond Muir: “We are determined to give females a platform and a pathway to succeed in our sport. When I first met Caitlyn Jenner, it was clear that she is as committed to that mission as all of us at W Series are.”
*statistics taken from the date of publish.
2. Viewership
As a high profile name, the addition of Jenner’s team could boost interest in the W Series beyond traditional motorsport fans and grow the series’ global broadcast reach. In 2021 when W Series began its partnership with F1, the series had a global reach of more than half-a-billion viewers. 2022 will no doubt bring in an increased viewership for the series, and the partnership with Formula1 and Jenner Racing will play a huge role in that.
Caitlyn Jenner: “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.”
3. Investment
Investment is vital to the day-to-day operation and growth of the W Series. Jenner is effectively a vector for new sponsorship, using her brand power as a star of Keeping Up With the Kardashians to generate interest and bring new partners to the sport. In her interviews, Caitlyn has highlighted that she is going to acquire sponsors that align with her and W Series’ joint missions. Being a well-known star, brands around the world are going to jump at the opportunity to market their brand alongside her and Jenner Racing, and I completely understand why. These brands are going to become part of the conversation surrounding Caitlyn Jenner, Jenner Racing, and the W Series, and ultimately, they will reap in the benefits of the partnership.
The W Series dream team
The Jenner Racing team has been announced and drivers Jamie Chadwick and Chloe Chambers will be taking to the tracks to compete. In her role as team principal, Jenner will oversee the day-to-day running of her Jenner Racing team. Driver line-up, car livery, and the acquisition of sponsors who are aligned with her mission of promoting women in sport and creating a platform for them in motorsport, will be first on her agenda.
Team Jenner!!! @WSeriesRacing Jenner Racing kickoff at @f1miami @JamieChadwick and Chloe Chambers!! pic.twitter.com/AjNeNGPvG4
— Caitlyn Jenner (@Caitlyn_Jenner) March 25, 2022
It is clear that Jenner has one main goal for her team. And that is to win. For those who have been watching the past seasons of W Series, you will know that Jamie Chadwick is a 2x W Series winner who is looking for her third consecutive win. To top it off, Chloe Chambers is one of the most promising female-racing talents and comes into the Series as the Guinness World Record for the fastest vehicle slalom. It’s fair to say that a win for Jenner Racing this 2022 series is already looking promising.
It is clear that Jenner Racing is going to take the W Series by storm, on and off the track. Now all we need to do is count down the days until Jenner Racing take on Miami.
Written by Jess Blissett
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