Meet 13-year-old Japanese race car driver Juju Noda

There has never been a female winner of Formula 1 (F1) racing — the most prestigious category in the motorsport. But 13-year-old Juju Noda wants to change that. At just three years old, Noda — the daughter of former F1, Le Mans, and Super GT driver Hideki Noda — was gifted her first race car, and by nine she was already driving Formula 4 (F4) cars. This season, Juju will compete in the F3 category.

Juju spoke to The FBomb about being fearless on the track and being a young woman in a male-dominated sport.

The FBomb: You started racing at just three years old. How did you make it from that point to where you are now?

Juju Noda: You need to win races and climb up the ladder [and progress to] different cars and races. I have also practiced a lot with my father, and he knows what I need to do to be a competitive driver in the future. I think that I did many different things to others, like training with a big kart instead of a junior cart when I was six, and [being] capable of going up to 180 km/h at eight years old. This [training] made me able to drive an F4 car when I was nine years old, and drive F3 by ten. 

[The sport] is really demanding, and I find motivation from trying very difficult things. When I had a huge accident for the first time in a Formula car — a mechanical failure led to me hitting a wall at around 160km/h — I faced backlash the first time I got back in the car. But I knew that everyone faces [setbacks at some point]. I also enjoyed overcoming this as well.

Your father, Hideki Noda, is a recognized name in motorsports. How has he influenced you and your career?

I think he knows what I need to do to be competitive. I always believed in his advice, and I still do. Many people [in the sport] say many different things, and sometimes you get confused if you listen to all of them. You have to believe in what you decide to do and just do it until you achieve the results you want. Of course, my father has a lot of experience and knows many people in motorsport, and that has helped my career as well.

How have you navigated that environment of being a woman in a male-dominated sport?

It is really hard to achieve good results while competing in a male-dominated sport. It is hard for me to drive while carrying the ballast (a heavy material placed low in the car) to adjust the weight of the car because it carries the weight of not only the whole car, but also my body. The cars of my competitors may be the same weight as mine, but mine feels heavier because I’m smaller. It isn’t fair, to be honest, but carrying ballasts is the regulation for now, unfortunately.

But as I said before, I am motivated by taking on very hard challenges. I think if you don’t challenge yourself, you won’t get results.

What are your main goals as a driver, and how do you plan to achieve them?

It will be nice to win F1, so I will try my best, but there are also many other great races such as Indy, Le Mans, Nascar, and Formula-E, which is also getting interesting nowadays. I would like to be a competitive race car driver and win any race, no matter what. To achieve this, you need to be fast, strong, and believe in yourself and the people around you. Of course, you also need some luck and a lot of support.

Do you have any advice for young women in this sport or any other male-dominated sport?

I think they should never give up and believe in themselves. If they do that, then there should be a way to follow their paths to success.