While most 16-year-olds in Australia are busy learning how to drive a normal car, for Melbourne-born Joanne Ciconte, her eyes are firmly set on finding a highly coveted seat in Formula One.
Despite being on the cusp of entering her debut season in the F1 Academy as the youngest driver in the program’s history, Ciconte’s origin story begins from inheriting her father Robert’s passion for the sport.
“My family’s always been massively into Formula One, especially my dad, who had a passion for cars and as a teenager he used to do go-karting himself,” she tells Drive.
“When he had a family, the first thing he wanted to do was to get his kid into karting. My brother, who’s two years younger than me, started karting, and it was something different at the time.
“I remember being so inspired by him. It was just special to see my brother have so much fun [competing] in a new sport, and I wanted to try and have a drive,” Ciconte added.
From nine years old, Ciconte spent her formative years karting at local tracks fighting for a place – not only on the circuit, but in a predominantly male industry that she said was difficult to be taken seriously “because there was more of a stereotype for females in motorsport compared to now”.
“When I first started go-karting, I can’t even explain how many girls there were. There were probably a handful in the whole event [compared to] hundreds of male drivers,” she explains.
“Growing up, I was seeing more males than females, and it was sort of normalised for me. I thought it wasn’t that big [of a deal], especially because I was so little, I didn’t understand much.
“Especially when I used to beat the boys as well, I had to cop some comments, but it always motivated me to get better.
“But coming up the ranks and experiencing different countries and different perspectives on the industry, I saw more and more women and now the population is crazy. It’s heartwarming to see more females getting more exposed [to the industry] and I think that’s what we really deserve.”
The 16-year-old Melburnian spent six years competing in karting circuits locally and nationally, honing her skills and learning what it takes to reach the upper echelons of the open-wheeler ladder.
“Go-karting has really helped me for the past few years because karting is almost like the baby steps, and it helped me develop driver skills rather than learning how to find the [racing] lines. I had to learn how to do things myself [like] how to overtake,” she says.
While Formula racing is reaching new heights over the past couple of years, the sport wasn’t as prominent during Ciconte’s karting years, adding more challenges in her early career.
“Growing up, especially at school, I didn’t have many people that believed in me, especially when I was karting,” she says.
“No one took it [Formula racing] seriously because motorsport wasn’t so exposed. It was hard because I only had my family that would understand what the sport was like.”
Still, the will to succeed is a common trait among athletes in every sport and Ciconte’s belief in herself is starting to pay off, with the teen dominating the domestic karting circuits – culminating in a win at the 2023 Australian Karting Championship Pink Plate.
Her skillset and potential have not gone unnoticed, with Ciconte touted as the Australian Representative – out of 115 entries – in the FIA Ferrari Girls on Track Program in 2023.
In the process, Ciconte went to Italy and jumped from go-karts to Formula 4 cars for the first time at Ferrari’s headquarters in Maranello and Fiorano Race Circuit.
Her meteoric rise is made more impressive when you consider Ciconte is yet to obtain her learner driver's licence.
When asked what the transition into open-wheelers was like, Ciconte explains, “It was completely different, the speed was twice as fast, so it was definitely more challenging”.
“It required a lot more effort and more techniques that I had to learn, I had to be more physically and mentally trained," she says.
“The way the [F4] car operates was completely different, and I really enjoyed that; it was the first time I drove an F4 car with a top-tier team in the world. It was an amazing experience,” she explains with a big grin on her face.
Despite having competed in many races, it was her first race in an open-wheeler that she attributes as the main catalyst to her story.
“I think the one [race] that really sparked my journey was when I did my first European race in the Czech Republic,” she adds.
“I remember being quite nervous because European motorsport is another level of competition. I did well, I came in fourth overall in the field with many experienced drivers [competing]. I was the best rookie and the best female.
“That experience really helped me move forward.”
Aided by her management team, which includes former Italian F1 and GT drivers Giancarlo Fisichella and Marco Cioci, Ciconte vividly remembers getting the news she was accepted into the F1 Academy – a specific female-only F1 driver program led by Susie Wolff, the wife of Mercedes-AMG F1 CEO and principal Toto Wolff.
“I knew that there was a chance to be accepted. It [the program] was affiliated with my management team. They helped me by managing me into different categories and races around the world,” Ciconte explains.
“I remember sitting in the kitchen with my family, and we had a meeting with [my management team], and my parents already knew, and I didn’t.
“I was just there holding tight, waiting for the news and they told me. I sort of froze because all this stress, relief, excitement and joy, it was just a huge wave of emotions and I’m extremely grateful and excited to represent Australia as well,” she adds.
Besides the support of her family and management team, Ciconte admits her pre-race rituals and superstitions have an unspoken power over her, similar to other drivers and various athletes in different sports.
“I usually pray [before a race], and sometimes it depends on what kind of shoes I wear, but before I jump in the car, I bend down and if I'm wearing velcro shoes, I redo my shoes. Also, the specific way that I do my hair [plays a part],” she states.
But the routine goes beyond the surface level, and according to Ciconte, “Sometimes we are talking about a hundredth of a second that can determine your place from fifth to pole. So as a driver, it's like, 'okay, I did good in this session because I did this'.
“You have so many superstitions and so many rituals because you're just trying to find that small 10th [of a second] in everything.”
Ciconte is the second Australian driver in the F1 Academy, joining other Melbourne teen Aiva Anagnostiadis in trailblazing a path for the future of female Australian drivers throwing their hats in the ring.
It’s no secret Australia has a rich history in F1, with Mark Webber and Daniel Ricciardo previously donning the crown.
But flash-forward to the present, and a young crop of F1 drivers has blossomed, with the likes of Oscar Piastri at McLaren and Jack Doohan at Alpine hailed as the next torch bearers representing the country.
“As a driver, I’m so proud and so happy to be representing Australia and especially being from Melbourne that’s home to a Grand Prix. In 2019, I was a grid kid for Daniel Ricciardo, so growing up he was my major inspiration," Joanne tells us.
“And then seeing more Aussies come through again this year, we have two more, and that’s something that’s keeping me going. I’m more inspired than ever for this season, and I’m super excited to have the Australian flag next to my name.”
While travelling in different countries and competing in various leagues is the dream for any driver trying to break through to F1, the 16-year-old isn't exempt from missing home soil and the relationships that come with it.
“I miss the people. Being surrounded by so many Australian supporters is amazing; it's touching because I have so many fans that are watching me. It never goes unnoticed,” she adds.
However, any athlete wishing to reach the summit of their respective sport must make a sacrifice, and for the 16-year-old, it’s bidding goodbye to a normal teenage experience.
“My family has sacrificed a lot. I’ve had to transition to online school, and that’s been a sacrifice because I don’t see my friends, I don’t see my friends or my teachers,” Ciconte says.
“Constantly doing work by myself on a plane or overseas is quite difficult, and the amount of times I’ve had to miss my friend’s birthday and family events just to go race, it’s been hard. As a teenage girl, it’s been hard to live an average social life [while juggling] a career in sports.”
So, what's next for the 16-year-old Melburnian? In her words, “I'm focusing on being in the top 10 of this field. This year's [drivers] are highly competitive, and most of the girls are in their twenties. So to be the youngest in the grid is something, it's history."
“I'm focusing on having my eyes forward and doing the best that I can. In a few years, it's hard to judge where I'm going to be because last year, I didn't know I was going to be here. Things just change, but hopefully closer to my ultimate goal, which is F1.”
Ethan Cardinal graduated with a Journalism degree in 2020 from La Trobe University and has been working in the fashion industry as a freelance writer prior to joining Drive in 2023. Ethan greatly enjoys investigating and reporting on the cross sections between automotive, lifestyle and culture. Ethan relishes the opportunity to explore how deep cars are intertwined within different industries and how they could affect both casual readers and car enthusiasts.
