Bianca Bustamante performs in a Google video.
Bianca Bustamante is advancing on her journey. PDO
Formula racing driver Bianca Bustamante, 18, got into a great video.
Bustamante ended up on the same video LeBron James’s and with Cristiano Ronaldo. The athletes were in Google’s 25th anniversary video, which featured the most searched athletes, people and events of all time. The video also features other public figures.
Bustamante, who hails from the Philippines, can be seen at the 3:18 minute mark in the video as he vents.
– It’s an incredible moment to represent motorsport with Google’s 25th anniversary video. I am speechless to be a part of this video and surrounded by legends and heroes and with groundbreaking moments that have left their mark on history, Bustamante writes on his Instagram account.
Bustamante’s access to the video means his growing fame in the sports world. He has, among other things, 1.3 million followers on TikTok and 1.1 million followers on his Instagram account.
at the McLaren Academy
Earlier this year, Bustamante was selected as the first female driver for the F1 team McLaren’s driver academy. For example, seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton and current McLaren driver Lando Norris have gone through the same development program.
This year, Bustamante has competed in the F1 academy series intended for female drivers in the Prema Racing team. He won two races during the season and finished seventh in points.
Next season, he will compete in the same series, but in the colors of McLaren.
– Winning on the track is one thing, but the real purpose of winning is to get the opportunity to empower the next generation. We have achieved a lot this year.
Coming from a middle-class family, Bustamante started racing at the age of 5, when he participated in local and international karting competitions. He won several karting championships around Asia and steadily moved up the racing ranks. He has since competed in the Formula 4 series in the United Arab Emirates and Italy, among others.
Bustamante competed for the first time in the women’s professional formula series in the W Series in the 2022 season. She competed against, among others, Emma Kimiläinen and was the best rookie driver in the series, although she only scored once.
If the embed is not visible on your device, you can watch it from here.
Funding
Bustamante’s father spent a long time paying for the expenses of the young driver’s racing. When Bustamante moved up the competition classes and series, so did the expenses. He said in April that he will start financing his career with NFTwhich is a cryptocurrency technology.
NFT is a collectible digital “currency”. A video, image or meme can be made into an NFT that is sold on. NFT is sold on various sites and at its best, people have made millions of dollars using it.
Bustamante started selling 2,000 NFTs, which by purchasing his fans have gained access to his private life as well as the world of motorsports. So Bustamante began selling his fans an exclusive opportunity to peek into his private life on and off the track.
Bustamante has transferred 75 percent of his profits from NFT to the costs of his driving career, such as a coach, physical training and everyday supplies. 20 percent went to maintain the project and five percent to the community.
– I build my community on social media, through which I share my story with others. People can relate to my story. I am so excited about my project, through which I can achieve everything – be it funding or sponsors, Bustamante said for the Daily Express in August.
– Coming from a middle-class family, I know how difficult it is to knock on the doors of sponsors or people to ask for support.
Sources: Bianca Bustamante’s homepage, The VergeDailyExpress, Inquirer.