Andretti Altawkilat XE driver Catie Munnings dived into her experience and aspirations in Extreme E and Extreme H ambassadorship in an interview with Motorsport Week.
The 26-year-old British rally driver has experience competing in the European Rally Championship and has been racing in Extreme E since 2021.
As an ambassador of the new hydrogen-fuelled motorsport, Extreme H, Munnings will embark on a new journey.
Munnings told Motorsport Week: “I’ve been involved since the very first race of the first season, so we’ve had to adapt and change to lots of different challenges and environments and the places that we’ve raced have been all corners of the earth.
“It’s been a really special championship to be a part of and very exciting now to see the developments with hydrogen and the new technology, and hopefully I’ll drive the car soon.
“It’s a pioneering championship so it’s very motivational to be a part of.”
Extreme H officially launched earlier this year with their new Pioneer 25 race car, as the first FIA-certified fully-hydrogen championship is set to go underway in 2025 whilst offering groundbreaking technology and unique racing.
Their outgoing format enables drivers to compete in close proximity, and often side-by-side, creating intense and unique racing action for the fans and spectators.
Munnings holds an important role in the pioneering series, able to utilise her experiences as a successful female rally driver to improve the series.
Alongside her teammate and 2019 FIA World Rallycross Champion Timmy Hansen, Andretti’s Extreme E line-up finished third in last year’s championship.
“It’s going to be incredible to be a part of it and to hopefully race in the first race of the hydrogen era coming up next year,” Munnings said.
“Nobody knows what it’s going to be like, nobody knows the challenges it will face, but it was exactly the same with Extreme E.
“Hopefully we can take what we’ve learnt from that and as a championship, there’s already a lot that we’ve learnt about racing and the environments that we’ve
raced in, with the dust and with the conditions there, and how to manage it as an event.”
An EY survey showed that the performance gap between male and female drivers in Extreme E has radically decreased over time.
Munnings explained: “When we looked at the start of the championship, it was much harder to find as many females that were the top level of motorsport as it was for the men.
“So now I think it’s having the opportunity to be able to develop our skills. It sounds quite simple, but in motorsport, we all know how expensive it is to test and train and to get that experience.
“And the championship where it’s equal has just shown what we can do when we have that opportunity.”
She shared her hope for female progression in motorsport after earning Extreme H ambassadorship.
The British rally driver told Motorsport Week that female progression in rallying is growing as more female drivers are joining the sport.
She emphasised the importance of female representation in the sport, especially with the growth of the sport’s popularity in recent times.
Munnings shared: “I think it’s really important to me that we can help spread the message to younger girls, and let them know that there’s an option to be a racing driver if they want to be.
“If they don’t see that when they’re young enough to get into it at the right age to be competitive, then it’s going to be really hard for them to have a career in it.
“Targeting girls on track events, and we have girls on track to our races, and to try to promote it on mainstream media and TV, for the visibility to give them the knowledge that is out there if they want it.”
Munnings climbed up the ranks as a female in motorsport; from racing in the European Rally Championship to securing a third-place finish in the Extreme E standings.
Extreme E helped to pave the way for female drivers by mandating a male and female driver in each car.
She now holds a role in the hydrogen-fuelled motorsport set to launch in 2025 and continues to advocate for female progression in the sport having worked her way to the top.
The rally driver explained: “I think it’s the first of a kind in motorsport where this has been the case, so to have the access to be able to work with a teammate like Timmy and the other drivers that are in the championship across the board is a real privilege.
“I don’t think many people can say that they’ve been able to do that in their careers so I think we all feel really lucky to have worked alongside such talented drivers and they’ve learnt from them and share our knowledge with them as well.”
With a future of hydrogen-fuelled racing lying ahead for her, Munnings continues to prove that female drivers can climb their way to the top of any motorsport.
