STYLE Edit: How the Richard Mille Racing Team went on a three-year mission to put women in the driver’s seat, and finished ninth in the world championship in 2021 and 2022

Dec 23, 2022

(From left) Charles Milesi, Lilou Wadoux and Paul-Loup Chatin of the Richard Mille Racing Team at the 2022 FIA World Endurance Championship in Bahrain. Photo: Handout

Opportunities for female racers are lacking, so the Richard Mille Racing Team – led by Amanda Mille – set out to change the status quo in motor racing

Starting in 2019 with an all-female trio, the team continued with a mixed line-up of Lilou Wadoux, Charles Milesi, Sébastien Ogier and Paul-Loup Chatin

The Richard Mille Racing Team has just completed three years of around-the-world endurance auto racing, while shattering gender biases within the world of motorsports.

“Our initial aim was to make a strong impact and highlight the lack of opportunities for female drivers,” recalls Amanda Mille, head of the Richard Mille Racing Team project.

Amanda Mille and the Richard Mille Racing Team at 24h of Le Mans, on June 11. Photo: Handout

Initiated in 2019, the Richard Mille Racing Team started with an all-female performant trio in Europe and around the world, then continued with a mixed line-up, including Lilou Wadoux, Charles Milesi, Sébastien Ogier and later on Paul-Loup Chatin. The team aimed to reach the highest level of motor racing, challenging the preconceived notions about female motor racers.

“Gradually, we developed the project by listening to our drivers,” says Mille. “They all told us they would have succeeded in advancing in this world the day men asked to team up with them.”

The team was a top-10 contender in the European Series in 2020 and finished ninth in the world championship in 2021 and 2022. Photo: Handout

The team concluded this year in Bahrain, closing an inspiring chapter in the world of endurance racing. The team was among the top 10 contenders in the European Series in 2020, reaching a new level each year, and eventually finished ninth in the world championship in 2021 and 2022.

“We’ve been lucky to have the support of like-minded people who see the potential of female drivers,” says Mille. She credits Signatech for providing crucial support to the racing team, particularly under the leadership of deputy CEO Giuseppe Bizzoca, as well as Signatech director and Richard Mille Racing Team manager Philippe Sinault.

The Richard Mille Racing Team on the grid during the 8 Hours of Bahrain 2022, 6th round of the 2022 FIA World Endurance Championship on the Bahrain International Circuit. Photo: Handout

It was due to the faith this pair had in the project, giving the opportunity for the best female drivers to shine, that the presence of women in auto racing was able to be normalised.