Courtney Crone

Courtney Crone (born March 7, 2001) is an American racing driver who competes in F1 Academy for ART Grand Prix as part of the Haas Driver Development Program.

Crone previously competed in the IMSA VP Racing SportsCar Challenge and the USAC Western Midget Series.

Crone started racing in quarter midgets in 2005, at just four years old. At age 11, she started racing Junior Speedway, winning three track championships in the 150cc Motorcycle class before stepping up to the 250cc class. Crone won the 2016 Perris Auto Speedway Young Guns Championship in Sprint Cars with six wins. She was also the 2016 USAC Western States Midget Rookie of the Year, ending the season in 5th after making 14 feature race starts. In 2017, she made 4 feature race starts in the USAC National Midget Series.

In 2016, Crone won 3 Formula Mazda races in her 3 starts. She was also selected as a Women’s Motorsports Foundation Project Podium recipient by IndyCar driver Lyn St. James.

Crone was awarded the 2017 VMB Driver Development Racing Scholarship, which gave her an opportunity to race in the Formula Car Challenge. She placed 3rd in the FormulaSPEED class, with 13 podiums in 14 starts. In 2018, she continued in the series, this time winning the championship. She was then invited to compete in the Mazda Road to Indy Shootout, aiming for a scholarship into the USF2000 Championship. She was also one of ten drivers nominated for the Team USA Scholarship.

Crone was invited to the shootout for both the 2019 and 2020 seasons of the W Series, but was not selected to race in either. For the 2019 Formula F season, Crone raced with Brad Hayes Racing, winning 2 races and earning a podium finish in all four of her starts. She also contested the final round of the Formula 4 United States Championship with World Speed Motorsports. In 2020, she finished 4th in the Formula Pro USA F4 Championship. She had 3 podiums, 1 fastest lap, and 1 win.

Crone shifted focus to prototypes in 2021, racing in the IMSA Prototype Challenge, where she finished eighth with 3 top-10 finishes. In the same year, she received the Gorsline Scholarship, joining notable past recipients such as Buddy Rice and Josef Newgarden. She moved to Jr III Racing for the 2022 season, where she finished sixth with a best race finish of 5th.

In 2023, Crone contested the IMSA VP Racing SportsCar Challenge, which replaced the Prototype Challenge as a championship. She was awarded the 2023 IMSA Diverse Driver Development Scholarship, after being a finalist in 2022. She finished the season in 4th, with 6 podiums to her name. She also competed overseas for the first time, in the Prototype Cup Germany. She and Gabriela Jílková were the first women to compete in the series. Crone achieved two top-10 finishes in seven starts.