Audi’s Driver Development Programme is being built as more than a talent pipeline for its Formula 1 team. Led by Racing Director Allan McNish, the initiative is designed to prepare young drivers for the demands of top-level motorsport while helping them develop as people, whether or not they ultimately reach the F1 grid.

A programme designed for Audi’s long-term future

Launched in January ahead of Audi’s first season as a works Formula 1 outfit, the programme has its foundations in planning that began in 2023 and accelerated through 2024 and 2025. McNish, who raced in Formula 1 for Toyota in 2002 and has held senior roles across Audi’s motorsport operation, sees the driver as a central leader within any successful team.

“The driver is not just [someone] driving fast, they’re also a kind of leader within the team,” McNish said. Audi’s stated aim is to ensure that its prospects are ready to step into a Formula 1 car when the opportunity arrives, while also creating a sustainable stream of talent for the years ahead.

McNish describes the DDP as “a living organism” rather than a fixed structure. Its support is expected to change as drivers mature, with the needs of a teenager differing significantly from those of an established junior-category racer.

Slater and Felbermayr receive support on and off track

The programme’s current prospects are Formula 3 driver Freddie Slater and F1 ACADEMY racer Emma Felbermayr. Their support extends beyond driving performance, with Audi personnel helping in areas including media training, communications, marketing, physical preparation and engineering development.

Giampaolo Dall’Ara, formerly Audi’s Head of Race Engineering, has moved into driver development, adding technical expertise to the programme. After each race weekend, the drivers review their performance with Audi staff and McNish to identify areas for improvement.

“My goal is to become better every single day and they give me the opportunity to do that,” Slater said. Felbermayr highlighted the programme’s physical support, including medical assessments and body scans designed to establish a baseline and guide her progress through the season and into higher categories.

Mentoring and the freedom to make mistakes

Felbermayr, who is contesting her second F1 ACADEMY season, also benefits from regular guidance from former F1 ACADEMY racer Carrie Schreiner. The pair speak regularly, with Schreiner offering practical advice drawn from her own experience in the series.

“Carrie helped me a lot to be as prepared as possible,” Felbermayr said. “She’s always there for me during the race weekend.”

McNish believes young drivers must be allowed to make mistakes in a controlled and supportive environment. The important lesson, he says, is not avoiding every error but learning how to respond to disappointment and recover from it. He likened the development process to “a long, long university”.

That philosophy also reflects McNish’s view that prospects cannot simply be expected to carry the maturity of an experienced driver. They need time, guidance and the chance to grow at their own pace.

Managing pressure before it becomes overwhelming

With only 22 Formula 1 race seats available, the path to the top is intensely competitive. Audi is therefore taking a measured approach to exposing its young drivers to the wider spotlight of the sport.

McNish said the team deliberately limited Felbermayr’s social-media activity at the start of her development, choosing to increase the exposure when she was ready to handle it. The same staged approach applies to Slater, whose presence in the F1 paddock is being introduced at an appropriate moment rather than all at once.

“It’s about stage managing,” McNish explained. The objective is to prepare drivers for the broader responsibilities of a professional racer — including public appearances, media obligations and the mental demands of the role — instead of expecting them to absorb everything overnight.

McNish’s “second dad” role

For Slater and Felbermayr, McNish’s experience and accessibility are among the programme’s biggest assets. Slater described him as “a second dad” who helps him understand how motorsport works and how to think after a race weekend.

McNish’s involvement is rooted partly in his own early career, when his parents made long journeys to take him karting. He believes Audi has a moral responsibility to care for young drivers and their families, not simply assess them on performance.

“We also have got a little bit of a moral obligation,” McNish said. “These drivers are people at an early stage of their lives.” He added that the programme should treat its prospects “as if it was a very delicate egg”, reflecting the personal investment required to guide them responsibly.

Two targets — and the next generation already in view

Audi’s immediate objectives are twofold: develop drivers capable of reaching Formula 1 and help produce a winner in F1 ACADEMY. McNish also stressed that the programme’s ambitions extend beyond the all-female series, with Audi seeking to support longer-term careers rather than ending its involvement at a single category.

The next stage is to identify and develop the “next Emma and the next Freddie”. McNish said that is not about replacing the current prospects, but about complementing them and ensuring Audi has a continuous pipeline of talent as its Formula 1 project takes shape.