Skip to main content

Maria Teresa de Filippis, the first-ever female F1 driver, dies at 89

It all started with a bet.

At age 22, Maria Teresa de Filippis settled into the driver’s seat of a Fiat 500 with hopes of proving her brothers wrong. Two of her siblings, Antonio and Giuseppe, had wagered that Maria wasn’t capable of driving fast, so she answered by hammering the small Fiat around the Amalfi Coast at breakneck speeds. Ten years later, she was driving a Maserati in Monaco as the first female Formula 1 driver ever.

Recommended Videos

The Italian legend passed away last week at age 89, Formula1.com reports, but she leaves behind a legacy as a true motorsports pioneer. Despite never winning a major title, de Filippis developed a reputation for her aggressive style and raw talent, so much so that Formula 1 great Juan Manuel Fangio once told her that she “drove too fast” and “took too many risks.” Take that, Antonio and Giuseppe.

Please enable Javascript to view this content

De Filippis’ path to Formula 1 was a long one. Her first event was a 10-kilometer road race in Northern Italy, which she won in her trusted Fiat 500. After that, she earned a spot in the 1954 Italian Sports Car Championship, coming in second. It wasn’t gold, but it was enough to attract the eyes of Maserati, who brought her on as a factory driver for various hill climbs and endurance races throughout the 1950s. Then, in 1958, just ten years after accepting an informal challenge from her brothers, de Filippis entered the qualifying round for the Monaco Grand Prix. Her chariot of choice was the Maserati 250F, one of the most jaw-droppingly beautiful racing cars ever built, but unfortunately she didn’t quality.

Maserati 250 F
The Maserati 250F, de Filippis’ first F1 car Lothar Spurzem/Wikipedia

In terms of F1, de Filippis’ career was largely underwhelming, having scored only three starts and no championship points in her five Grand Prix entrances. Still, her place is history is set. After retiring from competitive racing in 1959 after the deaths of several fellow drivers, it would be another 15 years before another woman, Lella Lombardi, would follow in her footsteps. To this day, de Filippis remains just one of two women to ever start in an F1 Grand Prix race.

Andrew Hard
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Andrew first started writing in middle school and hasn't put the pen down since. Whether it's technology, music, sports, or…
The Lincoln Nautilus gives me hope for legacy automakers’ infotainment systems
Infotainment system in the Lincoln Nautilus

The world of car infotainment systems is in a bit of a sorry state. While the likes of Tesla and Rivian have developed relatively well-designed and easy-to-use systems, legacy automakers are largely struggling. That, of course, is why Apple's CarPlay is so popular, as it essentially allows drivers to bypass their built-in infotainment systems in favor of something actually built by a software company.

After driving the new Lincoln Nautilus for a while, I have some hope. Sure, the Nautilus supports CarPlay, and to be very clear, I largely relied on it during the week. But, it also integrates other aspects of software for an overall system that's actually pretty well-designed.

Read more
Ending EV tax rebate could seriously harm Tesla, Chevrolet, and Volkswagen sales, study finds
A digital image of Elon Musk in front of a stylized background with the Twitter logo repeating.

Many analysts predict that sales of electric vehicles will be hit should the incoming Trump administration carry out its plans to end the $7,500 federal tax incentives on EV purchases and leases.

While predictions vary, with some expecting this would lead to a 27% drop in demand for EVs, research firm J.D. Power took an extra step and asked consumers how rebates had influenced their decision to buy an EV.

Read more
Volkswagen’s new electric Golf will get the Rivian treatment
volkswagens new electric golf will get the rivian treatment 2024 vw facelift

The Golf represents “the heart” of the Volkswagen brand, the automaker said at the start of 2024, as the iconic model celebrated five decades of existence.

A 50th anniversary also seems like the right occasion to fully bring the Golf into the 21st century: While we already knew that VW is reviving an electric version of the model, the German automaker just revealed the next-gen Golf will also benefit from Rivian’s cutting-edge software and electrical systems.

Read more