Channel Four to broadcast all-female W Series live in Britain

LONDON: The new all-female W Series will be broadcast live and free to air in Britain, something that no longer applies to Formula One, under a deal with Channel Four television announced on Tuesday.

The six-race single-seater motor racing championship starts in Hockenheim, Germany, on May 4 and ends in Britain at Brands Hatch in August.

W Series chief executive Catherine Bond Muir said in a statement that the British market was a 'cornerstone' for the series, which has five British women among 18 drivers competing.

Channel Four is also broadcasting delayed Formula One highlights this year after airing selected races live from 2016 to 2018 after taking over the rights from the BBC.

The sport is now exclusively live on pay-TV channel Sky in Britain, with the exception of the British Grand Prix in July which will also be available on Channel Four.

Britain's former grand prix racer David Coulthard, who presented Channel Four's F1 coverage and co-founded Whisper Films that the terrestrial broadcaster has a minority stake in, is chairman of the W Series advisory board.