Discover what members of the Williams Racing Driver Academy were up to this past week

Academy Report: Lia makes history, plus Zak and Luke claim silverware

A redemption race victory for Lia Block is the highlight from the final rounds of the 2023 Extreme E Championship 

Academy Report: Lia’s season finale in Chile

Zak O’Sullivan drives in FP1, Franco Colapinto makes his F2 debut and Lia Block tests Formula 4 machinery

Academy Report: Trio try something new

Luke Browning triumphs at the Macau Grand Prix whilst Lia Block secured a P1 finish at the Baja 1000

Academy Report: Victories in Macau and the Baja 1000

Lia Block reacts to James Vowles' video message, welcoming her to Williams Racing

WATCH: James welcomes Lia to the team

The 17-year-old American joins our Driver Academy and will race with ART Grand Prix in the 2024 season

Lia Block to drive for Williams Racing in F1 Academy

Lia has grown up in the motorsport world and spent many of her childhood years in the paddock. She began racing karts at 11 years old and entered her first off-road racing series in the same year.

Lia then started drifting cars at 13 years old and assumed drag-racing duties in the famous 1,400HP Mustang ‘Hoonicorn’ the year after.
She continued to build her skills in off-road racing and karting, becoming a front-runner in the Lucas Oil Off-Road Series’ lower classes by 2021 and taking multiple karting wins.

She later took part in the final round of the 2021 American Rally Association Championship in the Oregon Trail Rally as a 15-year-old, for the Hoonigan Racing Division, marking her first national-level rally.

Lia undertook more regular rallying in 2022 as part of the ARA championship, a season which included her best finish at the Southern Ohio Forest Rally where she placed 9th overall and 3rd in the O2WD class.

This proved an even more successful event for her in the 2023 season, achieving a 6th place finish overall and a victory in the O2WD class.

With two rallies to go, Lia secured the 2023 ARA O2WD championship to become the youngest ARA champion in history.

2023 has been a busy year for Lia, competing in Extreme E as part of Carl Cox Motorsport for the second half of the season alongside Timo Scheider. She has also begun her first season in Nitrocross NEXT, the junior category of the championship previously known as Nitro Rallycross.

In November 2023, it was announced that Lia will compete in the 2024 F1 Academy season with ART Grand Prix, as well as coming onboard as a Williams Racing Academy Driver.

Later in the month, Lia competed in the Baja 1000 alongside her mother Lucy Block and the Block House Racing Team. Lia and the team raced to victory following a grueling 34 hours of rally racing in Mexico.