F1 Academy Driver Chloe Chong Says Makeup and Motorsports Are a Perfect Pair

Get the Full StoryAt just 17 years old, F1 Academy driver Chloe Chong has more drive than most people twice her age - literally and spiritually. Now, the precocious teen has her sights set on a championship, having already made a serious mark on motorsports in her first two seasons, and she's fueling her race for victory with a winning mindset and a bit of a boost from the beauty industry.

Chong, who is from the U.K., is the latest racing prodigy to drive under beauty brand Charlotte Tilbury's sponsorship, and she's ready to use that role to not only speed her way towards an F1 Academy championship but to incite some major change in the sport.

"A lot of what I have done growing up in motorsports has been very tomboy-ish, you know? You get to hang out with the guys, and you kind of get forced into doing that because it's the social norm," she says. "I've always talked about makeup with my friends, but I've never been one to go and give myself a makeover, and being able to be with Charlotte Tilbury and have them show me these different things and passions that I can have, it's been very eye-opening. After that makeover, I have been looking forward to every bit of beauty knowledge that I can get."

Though Chong's beauty education is in its early stages, she has proven herself to be a quick learner, revealing that her own skin-care routine has undergone a dramatic transformation with a little help from Team Tilbury.

"One thing that I use every day is the Magic Cream 100 . There's something about it; it blends right into your skin," she says. "Recently, I've also been using the Magic Hydrator Mist 47 and the SPF 50 55 at the track. It's been really important for me, especially being in hot temperatures during testing, but also with the wear and tear that putting on a helmet several times a day does to your face."

The talented race car driver is the first to admit that most people wouldn't mix makeup and motorsports, noting that her sport has long been seen as a male-dominated field, where beauty routines and skin-care regimens are oft-ignored. Until now.

Despite conceding that she has never been a makeup aficionado, Chong has thrown herself into her new role as a "Team Charlotte Tilbury" driver with gusto, embracing all that it has to offer - from the financial backing that is keeping her racing career alive to the beauty tips that she has learned every time she's worked with the brand's beauty experts.

"It's still a dream to me, being in the office, being on set, and getting a feel for the whole beauty world," she says. "I've never done this sort of thing before but it's always been in the back of my head, especially with my friends who are quite into makeup. I couldn't be prouder to be part of the brand and to be representing their car in F1 Academy."

While beauty is a new passion, racing has been a part of Chong's life since she was three years old, when she first started watching Formula 1 races alongside her dad.

"By the time I was four or five, I was already begging my dad to let me have a go at it, to give me the chance to reach Formula 1," she says. "He had to explain to me that it was a bit more of a process than just getting into a car and racing, but by the time I was six years old, he took me to a go kart track. He said, 'This is how you start off, let's see how good you are and see what we can do to make you move up from there.'"

Just nine years later, Chong made her debut in F1 Academy at age 15, becoming the youngest woman to ever race in the program. During her first two seasons, she says she focused on simply doing "the best she could," but this year has marked a major change in her mindset - one that has prepped her to aim for the top of the podium.

"A very useful piece of advice that I got last year is that if you don't start the race expecting that you can win the race from that place, there's no point in you being there," she says. "So my expectations have changed quite a lot this year, and with the team around me, I've put myself in a winning mindset. I'd honestly say for 2025, the aim is to compete for the championship and know that I can be there, that I do have the power and talent to win."

As for the stereotypes that surround her sport, Chong refuses to pay them any mind, noting that she is determined to continue pushing to be the best - whether that's in F1 Academy or in Formula 1, which has yet to feature a female driver.

"For sure there's barriers facing women in Formula 1," she says. "The stereotype of what motorsport is 'meant' to be in terms of a man's sport, a very physical sport But what we've done to get to the places we've gotten to is to ignore all of those setbacks. We're all there to do the same job. When it gets down to it, if we're racing in Formula 1, we're going to have the exact same job to do as the men , so there shouldn't be anything holding us back."

Charlie Lankston is a freelance beauty, fashion, and lifestyle writer and media strategist based in New York City, having relocated to the US in 2014 from her home in London. Charlie spent 10 years working at DailyMail.com, where she oversaw the website's style, beauty, fashion, and lifestyle content. Charlie also appears as an on-air royal and celebrity correspondent.

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