On the Apex: Faye Ho Leads the Charge for Women in Motorsports

From watching the Macau Grand Prix in her youth to leading her own racing team in the British Superbike Championship, Faye Ho is building a legacy of trailblazing and triumph.

In a sport as male dominated as the world of motor racing, it takes a woman with immeasurable tenacity and courage to change the game. Whether it’s Maria Teresa de Filippis, the first woman ever to compete in Formula 1; Michele Mouton, the four-times rally winner dubbed “one of the best” by Sir Stirling Moss and a “superwoman” by Niki Lauda; or Danica Patrick, the only female to win an IndyCar race, those very qualities of strength, perseverance and the determination to prove the naysayers wrong are apparent in all of them. And it’s down to these traits that Faye Ho, the proud owner of FHO Racing, is also shaping up to be a trailblazer in motorcycle racing.

After taking the helm of her own British Superbike Championship (BSB) racing team in 2021, Ho has managed to transform a struggling challenger into a championship-contending force over the course of just three seasons. At the time of writing, a weekend filled with podium celebrations at Silverstone followed by another exceptional stint at Oulton Park places FHO Racing rider Josh Brookes firmly in second place in the championship, trailing leader Glenn Irwin by a mere four points.

The effect Ho has had on the team is clear, and perhaps it’s no surprise: the Macau native grew up trackside at her home city’s Grands Prix, and one of her earliest childhood memories places her on two wheels with her father. “I was very little, and I was riding on the back of my dad’s bike,” she reminisces. “It’s very faint, but it’s one of the very first memories that came through to me.” That passion for the sport grew until, in 2006, she began sponsoring her own team.

Over the next four years, she’d continue playing the role of a sponsor until she moved to England for her children’s education, when she took a break from the racing world. But it wasn’t until 2016, after she experienced one of – if not the – most difficult periods of her life that her passion for the sport was reignited.

“I’ll always remember that day when the doctor sits across from you and says you have breast cancer,” she tells me after a long, pensive pause. “Before that day, I never thought I’d get cancer. No one in my family had it. I never imagined I’d get it.” At the time of the diagnosis, her cancer had reached stage three, making its way into her lymph nodes, and her organs were the next target.

“There was once or twice I was ready to give up,” Ho admits somberly, “but then I thought about my kids … My children keep me strong, and I knew I had to fight. There’re only two things you can do – fight or give up – and I fought.” After rounds of chemotherapy, Ho underwent surgery, followed by another round of radiotherapy, all of which, despite taking a massive toll on her body, resulted in her triumphant victory over what she initially believed to be an insurmountable malady.

Like many before her, Ho’s near-miss experience with death has forever reshaped her outlook on life, and her career. “Everyone’s got rough patches in their lives, and it’s about how you conquer them. If you stay strong, you’ll come through the other end,” she tells me emphatically. “Because I’ve been given a second chance, I wanted to finally do the things that I love. I decided to follow my dreams.” And so, she took the leap and became one of the only women to own and lead a racing team – not just within the BSB, but across the entire motorsports industry.

Of course, Ho knew that convincing a paddock full of men – or as she affectionately calls them, “the boys” – to follow her lead in a field where their gender has held tight on the reins since its conception is no easy feat. When asked about the hurdles she’d encountered on her way to becoming the face of FHO Racing, she highlighted her desire to gain the team’s trust and show the rest of the grid that this isn’t just a fun pastime for her: she’s here to win.

“I felt like I had to show that I can actually get results, to show that I take racing very seriously,” she recounts. “I knew I had to enter the championship with a bang, so I made sure that I upgraded the team. I made sure my presentation was top notch and that the components of the bikes were perfect so my riders can perform. I invested a lot into bringing the team up.”

Make no mistake: while financial backing played a key role in the initial rebuilding of her team, Ho’s contributions to FHO Racing extend far beyond the mere injection of funds. Understanding the significance of her role as team principal, she learned everything she could about motorcycle racing and its technicalities, paying her dues in the workshop with her crew, who made it habit to grill her on various bike components and racing regulations every time she was there. But what really separates her from her male counterparts – and what’s becomes abundantly clear over an afternoon with her – is her amiable personality.

“I’m very approachable,” Ho says. “Not just to my team, but also to my fans. I’m always happy to interact with them whenever they ask for my autograph or want a chat. It’s important to put a face to the team, because people like to understand where the team comes from. People can relate to me, and I receive a lot of support for that.”

With this support behind her, and her own thorough understanding of the high barriers to entry for women in the world of motorsports, Ho – like the trailblazer she is – created a new initiative aptly named FHO Girls. The programme, which began in 2021, sponsors young female riders and gives them an opportunity to race in championships they otherwise wouldn’t have had the resources to compete in. It started with three girls, and has expanded over the years to now include five female riders, one of whom Ho proudly tells me is riding in the BMW F 900 R Cup.

“Two years ago, I was approached by one of the girls’ fathers, who asked me if I could give his daughter a bit of encouragement as a female rider,” Ho says. “I knew there were female riders at the time, but they were largely under the radar. That’s when I decided to bring them under the FHO banner, so they can get the exposure and support they deserve.”

From being just a young girl clinging on to the back of her father’s bike to leading her own motorcycle team in the BSB Championship, the journey Ho has embarked on has been – as the cliché goes – paved with countless obstacles, but there’s nothing clichéd about the respect she’s earned, not only in her own team but from many others in what’s often considered the big boys’ club of motor racing. And while it’s true that being a trailblazer requires those core qualities of tenacity and courage, Ho believes all it takes is just one simple act: to try. “If you have a passion for it, then take a leap of faith and follow your dreams,” she tells me as she heads off to the airport to rejoin what she now considers her second family on the track. “If you never try, you’ll never know.”