Interview

Palmowski reflects on ‘dream come true’ opportunity to represent Red Bull Racing at F1 75 Live

20 February 2025

Marking your first major event as a 2025 F1 ACADEMY driver doesn’t get much better than F1 75 Live, as Alisha Palmowski got the chance to be a part of one of the biggest events in the sport’s history.

Watching alongside 15,000 fans at The O2 Arena, the Red Bull Racing Pepe Jeans Academy driver joined Racing Bulls’ Rafaela Ferreira and Red Bull Ford driver Chloe Chambers at the groundbreaking event. We caught up with the Briton to get her take on an unforgettable evening in London.

“I was so excited to be attending the launch,” said Palmowski. “It was honestly a dream come true. If you’d have told me this time 12 months ago that I'd have got the opportunity to have been at the launch in a grandstand, let alone on a table at the front with Red Bull Racing, is absolutely incredible.

“I’m a huge Formula 1 fan ever since I've been five or six years old, as young as I can remember. I was sat at the same table as Max (Verstappen), Liam (Lawson) and Christian (Horner), I’m best mates with Geri (Halliwell-Horner) now. I’m like Speedy Spice, this is my new thing! It was absolutely incredible and I’m so grateful to everybody at Red Bull for the opportunity.”

Whilst the launch itself was the cornerstone of the day’s activities, Palmowski was revelling in an action-packed itinerary that saw her and several Red Bull-liveried cars take a tour of some of London’s most iconic landmarks.

Chambers, Ferreira and Palmowski enjoying the red carpet (left to right)

“It was a very, very long day,” she explained. “We did a convoy through London and we were in a (Land Rover) Defender, myself and Rafa, and Chloe was in a Ford Mustang ahead of us. We went through Hyde Park, Knightsbridge and Piccadilly, so we saw some awesome sites around London.

“That was really, really cool. Seeing everybody’s reactions as well as we were going through London, all the fans just looking around taking pictures, so to be amongst that was incredible. Then we went back to the hotel, got ready. Being with Chloe and Rafa, we were all so excited!

“Then first time on the red carpet, which was crazy. The VIP lounge as well, never thought I’d ever be in the VIP lounge. It was absolutely awesome.”

However, there was one standout moment for Palmowski — seeing the unveiling of the livery that will adorn the RB21. Also, with nearly 7.5 million people tuning in to the live broadcast on F1’s social media channels, eagle-eyed fans might have spotted a cameo from the 18-year-old as Red Bull Racing celebrated car culture during their launch.

“My highlight would be probably seeing the RB21 livery be launched and the actual car come out,” she remarked. “Seeing Max and Liam up on stage, that was incredible. Obviously a very exciting moment for the whole team and for myself to be amongst the team for that moment was really cool.

“Also, the video that Red Bull compiled and put together for the launch of the car culture. I had a little cameo in that, so that was awesome to see my face up on the big screen. So, I’d say the whole experience to be honest. I’m a huge Take That fan as well, so seeing Take That I was over the moon.”

One of 10 drivers from the 2025 grid to attend F1 75 Live, Palmowski acknowledged the significance of events such as this to help build their profiles as young female drivers looking to progress up towards F1.

“It’s honestly incredible, there are no more words that I can find to describe it,” she admitted. “Obviously, the visibility it gives for us young females — not just myself, but also Rafa, Chloe and all the other F1 ACADEMY drivers there is absolutely huge.

“The people we get to meet, we see how they operate at an event like that. It's just incredible, it really is a dream.”