Hawkins thus became the first woman to test a current or near-current grand prix car since Tatiana Calderon had a brief outing in a Sauber C37 on a filming day in Mexico in 2018, although the Colombian also drove a 2013-spec C32 for the Swiss outfit later that year and then in 2019.
Former W Series driver Hawkins has previously driven older F1 cars in demonstration runs, and has been awaiting her chance to have an outing for Aston, which came after extensive time in the Silverstone outfit’s simulator.
The 2021 car has been used regularly this year by Felipe Drugovich as part of his development programme, and the Brazilian was also present in Hungary.
The test was delayed by heavy rain, although Hawkins was eventually able to get in three runs, with the track dry by the end.
“I want to say a big thank you to everyone at AMF1 Team for having the trust in me, believing in me, and for giving me this opportunity,” said Hawkins.
“It’s taken me every bit of blood, sweat and tears to get here. When I first heard it might be a possibility, I could hardly believe it. I’ve had to keep it secret for months now – which was pretty hard!
“It’s been absolutely worth it, and it’s given me really valuable insight. Nothing will compare to the acceleration and braking of an F1 car and, having looked at the data, I’m really proud of my performance.
Source: Autosport