Reality star Caitlyn Jenner has a new title: W Series Team Principal.
The Olympic-champion-turned-television personality, who appeared on Keeping Up with the Kardashians alongside daughters Kylie and Kendall Jenner, announced Tuesday she will oversee the day-to-day running of an all-new team this season.
The former decathlete, who won gold at the Montreal 1976 Olympics, is estimated to be worth over $100 million (£74m).
Team Jenner will make its debut when the third season of the all-female single seater series launches in support of F1’s Miami Grand Prix in May.
Jenner said: “W Series ticks every box for me and is a fusion of the different aspects of my career, a championship dedicated to inspiring young girls and giving women the chance to succeed in roles throughout what has traditionally been a male-dominated industry.
“W Series is changing the face of motorsport. 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.”
Jenner, 72, also appeared on two seasons of her own docuseries, I am Cait, which chronicled her transition.
The self-described “lover of motorsport” cited the exponential growth of the W Series, which has opened doors and raised the profiles of Brits including back-to-back champion Jamie Chadwick, as the reason she decided to launch her own team.
Jenner is no stranger to the race track, having first won a celebrity F1 race at the Long Beach Grand Prix in 1979, and a year later raced professionally at 24 Hours of Datyona.
She proceeded to make 57 starts in the IMSA Camel GT Championship as a factory driver for the Ford Motor Company and Jack Roush over the following six years.
W Series CEO Catherine Bond Muir added: “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.
“She has performed at the highest level in sport, is a proven winner and a complete petrol-head, and I know that her passion for sport and motorsport will inspire everybody at W Series.”
The 2021 W Series season marked the beginning of an historic partnership with F1, with all eight of its races supporting Grands Prix.
Chadwick’s trophy battle with compatriot Alice Powell came down to the final weekend of a season that attracted more than half a billion viewers worldwide.
And according to a report released Tuesday by the Women’s Sport Trust, 1.5 million Brits watched the W Series without tuning in to a single F1 race.
Just who will be on the grid this season is still unknown. Testing for new talent is still underway, while the top eight from last season, including Chadwick, Powell and fellow Brits Sarah Moore and Abbi Pulling, automatically secured their places should they want them. Irina Sidorkova and Nerea Martí, in the second season as W Series Academy drivers, are also guaranteed seats.
British fans will have the opportunity to see Team Jenner in action when the W Series returns to Silverstone on British Grand Prix weekend, 1-3 July.
