Fluxa Cross Makes F1 ACADEMY Debut in Vegas
The 16-year-old will drive as the Wild Card entry for the 2026 season finale in Las Vegas.
Updated on Nov. 5, 2026 in Motorsports
Luna Fluxa Cross will make her F1 ACADEMY debut as the Wild Card entry for the 2026 season finale in Las Vegas. She will drive the #10 Visit Las Vegas car operated by Hitech for the sixth and final round.
Why it matters
The appearance gives the 16-year-old a direct step into the F1 ACADEMY series, a development category for women in single-seater racing. It follows a run of junior results that includes a title and a Rookie Test selection.
Fluxa Cross secured the OK-N Senior title with six victories and a 125-point margin over her nearest rival. She finished sixth in both sessions of the F1 ACADEMY Rookie Test at the Circuito de Navarra.
The players
Luna Fluxa Cross
A 16-year-old driver who became the first female driver in the Mercedes-AMG F1 Junior Programme and is now making her F1 ACADEMY debut.
F1 ACADEMY
The all-female single-seater racing series that serves as a development pathway for young women drivers.
Mercedes-AMG F1 Junior Programme
The Mercedes-AMG driver development programme that Fluxa Cross joined in 2022.
The details
Fluxa Cross became the first female driver to join the Mercedes-AMG F1 Junior Programme in 2022 and was selected as an F1 ACADEMY DISCOVER YOUR DRIVE karter in 2024. She also took a maiden podium in the Eurocup-4 Spanish Winter Championship and contested a full F4 Spanish Championship season.
Timeline
2022: Joined the Mercedes-AMG F1 Junior Programme as its first female driver.
2024: Selected as an F1 ACADEMY DISCOVER YOUR DRIVE karter.
2026 season finale: Makes her F1 ACADEMY debut in Las Vegas as a Wild Card entry.
Legacy Line
Fluxa Cross became the first woman to win an FIA international championship since Susanna 'Susy' Raganelli took the World Karting Championship in 1966. Her F1 ACADEMY Wild Card debut continues that line into the women's single-seater ladder.
The Las Vegas round is the sixth and final race of the F1 ACADEMY campaign, so the Wild Card debut is a one-off appearance this season. Fans following the series can track the #10 Visit Las Vegas car in the finale.
The takeaway
Fluxa Cross's move from karting titles to a Wild Card F1 ACADEMY start shows how junior programmes build a pathway for young drivers. Watching her performance in Las Vegas will show how quickly her Rookie Test pace translates to a race weekend.
Further reading
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Source note: This article includes information reported by Formula 1® - The Official F1® Website.
