CUPRA KIRO taps Bianca Bustamante as development driver

Filipina racing driver Bianca Bustamante has joined Formula E team CUPRA KIRO as their newest development driver, continuing a fast-moving career that’s seen her rise quickly through the ranks of international motorsport.

Bustamante, 20, has been steadily making a name for herself since turning pro in 2022. She first caught attention in the Asian karting circuit before stepping into single-seaters. She competed in the now-defunct W Series and then in the all-female F1 Academy, racing for both PREMA Racing and ART Grand Prix between 2023 and 2024. In that time, she collected two wins and five podium finishes, holding her own in a competitive field.

For 2025, she’s taken on a new challenge in the GB3 Championship, one of the UK’s key feeder series into higher-level formula racing.

She’s not entirely new to the electric racing scene either. In 2024, Bustamante tested with the NEOM McLaren Formula E team and clocked the third-fastest time at the all-female Formula E test in Jarama, Spain.

Now, she steps into a new chapter with CUPRA KIRO, saying she’s thrilled to be part of a team that’s “disruptive” and “hungry for success.”

“In the very short time that we’ve been working together, it’s been incredible to experience the team’s approach and to see firsthand their drive to win,” Bustamante said. “Working with Dan [Ticktum], David [Beckmann], and the team is such a valuable experience at this point in my career. I’m looking forward to learning as much as I can and applying it in GB3 this year.”

She’ll first appear in official team colors at the Jakarta E-Prix, where she’ll shadow Ticktum and Beckmann and start getting up to speed with the inner workings of the team. Her first on-track action with CUPRA KIRO will come a few weeks later at the rookie test at the Berlin E-Prix on 14 July.

CUPRA KIRO COO Russell O’Hagan said the team is excited to have her onboard.

“Bianca’s made huge strides in just three years of single-seater racing,” O’Hagan said. “She’s not only proven she has what it takes on track, but she’s also become an important figure in opening doors for more women in motorsport.”

He added that CUPRA KIRO is keen to support her growth, both as a driver and as a role model. “We’re really looking forward to seeing her develop with us in the weeks to come and especially at her first Formula E test in Berlin.”