Bianca Bustamante hails McLaren as life-changer

MANILA, Philippines – Bianca Bustamante found her biggest supporter in England-based racing team McLaren as she pursues her dream of racing in Formula 1 as she is currently part of their Driver Development Programme.

Competing mainly at F1 Academy, Bustamante moved her entire life to London to take the next step in chasing a highly elusive seat at the F1 grid.

Even as her life was turned upside down since her shift to Formula machinery some years ago, the 19-year-old said she’s been holding steady with the help of McLaren.

“They’ve really been my pillar. They’ve allowed me to find home and to find solitude. Obviously, moving to London, it’s a new place, a new country, but they’ve made it very fluid for me,” said Bustamante during the Race to Inspire event supported by GoTyme Bank and beIN Sports. 

“I feel like that’s what you need to be a champion, you need to find support on track and off track. It’s been very good,” she added.

Under McLaren’s care, Bustamante has shown brilliance and consistency on the track. Halfway through the F1 Academy season, she has scored in every race so far, which placed her firmly in the fight in the driver’s championship standings at P5.

But more than the support she’s been receiving on the F1 Academy grid, she’s also been able to get a glimpse of what it’s like to reach her ultimate dream.

For multiple weekends this F1 season, Bustamante has had the pleasure of being at the McLaren garage and seeing how the whole process works. Gaining valuable knowledge from the team, Bustamante has taken the learnings to heart.

“It’s cool, I mean, to be there with McLaren, to represent the colors and yeah, to wear the shirt, to be with the team, even like listening during debrief, listening to the engineers, and Lando [Norris] speaking to the radio,” raved Bustamante, who has also interacted multiple times with McLaren F1 drivers Norris and Oscar Piastri. 

“It’s honestly very cool and to kind of be exactly where I wanna be, and to be working with the people that I wanna be working with. The professionals in the sport. It’s an amazing opportunity, I’m learning so much.”

With still a long way to go for the F1 Academy season, Bustamante will be eager to show her learnings and rake in the results for McLaren. Currently, she has one podium but no wins so far under Team Papaya.

Bustamante has her first chance to break that win drought when the F1 Academy season returns at Zandvoort for Round 4 this weekend.