Former British race car driver David Coulthard has fired back at Danica Patrick’s comments suggesting that women are not capable of competing in Formula 1. He dismissed Patrick’s remarks as “utter bull****.”
Patrick, a former IndyCar driver and a NASCAR top-10 finisher, made history as a woman in motorsports. However, while working as a pundit for Sky F1, she said, “At the end of the day, I think that the nature of the sport is masculine. It’s aggressive. You have to handle the car—not only just the car because that’s skill, but the mindset that it takes to be really good is something that’s not normal in a feminine mind, a female mind.”
David Coulthard Slams Danica Patrick’s Comments
Coulthard, a 13-time Grand Prix winner, strongly rejected Patrick’s claims and expressed confidence that Formula 1 will see female representation sooner rather than later. Speaking to the Daily Mail, he said, “Of course it will happen. Without question. It’s utter bulls*** that women don’t have the strength to do it. Anyone who doesn’t train doesn’t have what it takes to perform in motor racing—whether you’re a man or a woman.”
David Coulthard hits back at critics who say women aren't strong enough to race in F1 💪
"There’s no physical reason they can’t do it. We know what it takes to be physically strong enough to be a racing driver and all of the data shows that women comfortably fit within that… pic.twitter.com/eDSadhUZg3
— Motorsport.com (@Motorsport) March 5, 2025
He added, “An untrained person doesn’t have the strength to do anything. I’m 53, and I wouldn’t be able to drive an F1 car quickly for more than 10 laps in my physical condition, now that I’m on the other side of my peak fitness. I had to train like an athlete twice a day, with a trainer, for years, to be able to do my job.”
“One of the things I saw with the W Series was that we took the best women available to try and qualify to become part of the championship—and some of them just weren’t fit enough. I looked at them, going, ‘What’s your excuse for not training? You have to present yourself as being serious as a pro, and that means training like an athlete.’
“Therein lies the issue. There’s no physical reason they can’t do it. We know what it takes to be physically strong enough to be a racing driver, and all of the data shows that women comfortably fit within that category of physical performance.”
Coulthard also reflected on his own sister, who competed in karts but was unable to progress in the sport due to a lack of support.
