Jamie Chadwick described her maiden Formula 1 test with Williams as “surreal” as she reflected on the experience, revealing her appreciation for the championship has now “gone through the roof”.
The 28-year-old Briton, who became the first woman in over a decade to test a Williams F1 car, took to the track at Portimao in the Grove outfit’s 2025 challenger and completed 32 laps as part of F1’s Testing of Previous Cars (TPC) regulations.
“Very surreal. It all went far too quick, honestly,” Chadwick told Sky Sports F1. “It was a day or half a day that just went by so fast, but I’m so glad, because you dream of things like this, and you dream of days like this.
“Often with things like that, you never know how you’re going to feel on the day, or how it’s actually going to be, and the reality of it was what I expected times ten.”
The Williams ambassador added: “Now my appreciation for this sport, and for Formula 1 in particular, has gone through the roof. The car is phenomenal. The circuit was also phenomenal. I’m very, very grateful to Williams for the opportunity.”
The last woman to test a Williams F1 car was F1 Academy managing director Susie Wolff over a decade ago.
“I mention it in the feature, but I really clearly remember the day Susie did her day,” Chadwick continued. “It feels quite surreal, 11 years later, to be hopping inside a car like that, and having the privilege to drive it. So, very grateful to everyone that’s part of it.”
Other women to have tested modern F1 machinery include 2025 F1 Academy champion Doriane Pin, who drove the Mercedes W12 at Silverstone in April 2026, and Aston Martin ambassador Jessica Hawkins, who drove the Silverstone outfit’s 2021 car in 2023.
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