McLaren Development Driver is top-ranked among female motorsport athletes, according to a list by UK-based media group SportsPro.
Filipina racer Bianca Bustamante earned the distinct honor of being among the world’s most marketable athletes, according to UK-based sports media group SportsPro.
Bustamante, the only Filipino on the rankings, came out at 64th in SportsPro and NorthStar Solutions Group’s Most Marketable Athletes list released earlier this week.
The 19-year-old took to Instagram expressing her disbelief at being included — even as she currently boasts a huge social media presence, highlighted by 1.5 million followers on her Instagram alone.
“Little Bia probably wouldn’t believe this right now but we made it to [SportsPro media’s] most marketable athletes list of 2024 ranking 64th in the world. Being amongst such iconic names is surreal and humbling,” wrote Bustamante.
The top-ranked athlete on the list is seven-time Olympic gold medalist Simone Biles, while also on the top-10 are WNBA Rookie of the Year Caitlin Clark, NBA superstar LeBron James, football legend Lionel Messi, and USA star swimmer Katie Ledecky.
Lewis Hamilton, seven-time Formula 1 champion, is the highest-ranked motorsport athlete in the list at no. 11. Reigning F1 champion Max Verstappen is ranked at 31st.
Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc comes in at 33rd, while Bustamante’s McLaren teammates Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri are at 37th and 46th, respectively.
Carlos Sainz (58th) and George Russell (63rd) are also on the list.
The only other female motorsport athlete on the list is Toni Breidinger at no. 91. 2025 Haas driver Ollie Bearman and motorcycle racer Marc Marquez round out the motorsport athletes on the list.
“It’s beautiful to see that hard work can turn into results, and I just want to take a moment to thank everyone, especially all my sponsors and partners that have given me this privilege to compete in motorsport,” said Bustamante, who is a Laguna native.
“There is still so much work to do and it won’t get any easier on this journey, but I’m truly enjoying the process of developing my skill as a driver as well as building my name in the sport. Nothing but gratitude to everyone and I will continue to give it my all,” she added.
Near Bustamante’s place at 64th are the likes of NBA players Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving, who are ranked lower than the Filipina driver at 71st and 72nd. Japanese baseball star Shohei Ohtani is further down the list at 88th.
The list computes the athletes’ scores through their brand strength, total addressable market, and economics.
Bustamante is currently competing in the final round of the Italian F4 Championship in Monza with ART Grand Prix. She is also slated to undergo testing in Formula E with McLaren in November.
The Filipina driver mainly competes at the F1 Academy where they resume with Round 6 in Qatar at the end of November.
Bustamante is currently at P7 in the standings with 57 points to her name and two rounds to go in the 2024 season.