LELLA LOMBARDI Turns 85: F1’s Only Woman To Score Championship Points

March 26, 2026

• LELLA LOMBARDI remains F1’s only woman to score championship points, earning half a point at the 1975 Spanish GP after the race was stopped following a fatal accident involving spectators.
• MARIA TERESA DE FILIPPIS became the first woman to qualify for F1 in 1958, facing intense sexism including a race director suggesting women belonged “at the hairdresser’s” instead of racing.
• LOMBARDI’s broader career included winning the 6 Hours of Pergusa and Vallelunga in 1979, plus 6 Hours of Mugello in 1981, and finishing second in class at 1976 Le Mans.
• Only three women attempted F1 after LOMBARDI: DIVINA GALICA, DESIRE WILSON, and GIOVANNA AMATI, with F1 Academy now building pathways for future female competitors.

formula 1, le mans 24 hours, march engineering