BIANCA BUSTAMANTE has been at the beating heart of McLaren’s meteoric rise.
A picture of Lando Norris and Bustamante grinning ear to ear at the Miami Grand Prix in May summarises the family feel at McLaren.
Bustamante sealed her first-ever F1 Academy podium, coinciding with Norris securing a maiden race win that weekend.
It was also when the season flipped on its head in round six in Miami where McLaren introduced their first major upgrades and brought the fight to Red Bull.
McLaren are now in the driving seat in the constructors’ championship and can win their first title since 1998 in the season finale in Abu Dhabi this weekend.
19-year-old Busatamante, a McLaren Development Driver who competes in the only all-female championship – F1 Academy, said: “That weekend was a long time coming.
“McLaren was not a dominant team at all, we could barely score points, now fighting for the constructors’ is massive.
“I got my P2 in Miami so it was a really great time for us and I will cherish it for the rest of my career.
“McLaren is such a family oriented team. We all look out for each other, Lando, Oscar Piastri. They are the best teammates to each other.”
Bustamante was born and raised in the Philippines, a country with no recognisable history or heritage of motorsport.
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She was introduced to her first go-kart at age three by her racing-mad dad Raymund and it was love at first sight.
It was also gaming that helped propel Bustamante’s career and is the reason she recently signed as one of the founding talents for EA’s GEN / EA SPORTS program.
The McLaren driver, who has been working alongside the likes of Real Madrid 18-year-old Endrick at EA, said: “I was introduced to sports through gaming and F1 was my very first game.
“GEN / EA allows me to use my platform to get kids closer to their passion.
“The F1 game was so important to me growing up and a main pillar of my childhood. I got to know all the F1 tracks and drivers.”
During her childhood Bustamante says she was a snap-back hat wearing tom-boy who raced against only boys.
She was told countless times not bother with racing and become a nurse or doctor instead.
Now she is the third most influential female driver in the world, with a combined following on Instagram and TikTok of three million.
Bustamante added: “It’s about breaking the norm. Coming from Asia and the Philippines there is a lot of stigma.
“The culture difference is massive. Growing up because you’re a woman you’re only allowed to pursue certain paths.
“In the Philippines they tell you to be a nurse, engineer or a doctor, a career that earns you a lot of money and that’s safe.”
While F1 Academy has been a step in the right direction, opportunities in F1 for female drivers have still been limited
Jess Hawkins did test an Aston Martin at the Hungaroring in 2023, but other than that there has been little progress.
Bustamante believes she is in the right place at McLaren to reach the heady heights of an F1 debut, just like Norris and Oscar Piastri.
She said: “These are drivers that I look up to pretty much my whole life. I mean ive followed Lando’s career ever since I was a young girl.
“I idolise them, I remember Lando winning his F3 Championship.
“He has been with McLaren since day one and they took care of him as part of the development programme and now he’s fought for a driver’s championship. It will come eventually for him.”
Bustamante’s social media content ranges from gruelling workout videos to racing clips but also footage of her putting on her makeup.
The makeup brand Charlotte Tilbury became an official sponsor of F1 academy this season and Bustamante loves that the sport has been sprinkled with a feminine touch.
Bustamante added: “Sha’Carri Richardson has shown in track and field that you can have long hair, nails, lashes and it’s so refreshing to see.
“To be an athlete doesn’t mean you can’t be feminine and do makeup.
“I’ve always raced against the boys, I would always wear a snap back, baggy clothes because I thought I had to do that to fit in with the mold.
“My mum thought I would always be a tom boy but then I realised it had zero effect on your performance.
“The car doesn’t know if you’re a girl or a boy, if you’re wearing makeup or lipstick and I think that’s the beauty of sport.
“I love that Charlotte Tilbury has come and sprinkled a bit of femininity into the sport.”
Bustamante’s idol is Lewis Hamilton, with both of them treading a similar path to becoming stars in the sport.
Seven-time world champ Hamilton’s dad Anthony once held down three jobs to fund his son’s karting exploits.
Meanwhile Bustamante’s father, Raymund, also did similar and once bought a race suit for his daughter when she was just a year old.
She said: “Hamilton is just different. He doesn’t just drive for himself he drives for everyone, he drives for people that are underrepresented, aren’t fortunate, he drives for people – to me he is special.
“I’ve met him a couple times, he’s such a cool guy, so composed, and so emotionally intelligent.
“He has achieved so much but he is still so humble and so hard working still. Every attribute of that is everything I’d aspire to be.”
To learn more about Bianca Bustamante and GEN / EA SPORTS Athlete Engagement Programme, please visit here.
