Luna Fluxa Cross named Las Vegas F1 ACADEMY Wild Card

Luna Fluxa Cross has been named the final Wild Card driver for the 2026 F1 ACADEMY season finale in Las Vegas, where she will race in a Hitech-run Visit Las Vegas car. The announcement was made on November 5.

The 16-year-old Spaniard will drive the #10 entry at the FORMULA 1 HEINEKEN LAS VEGAS GRAND PRIX. She is the sixth and final Wild Card selection of the season, and the opportunity follows a rapid progression from karting into single-seaters.

Fluxa Cross brings a strong karting record to Las Vegas

Fluxa Cross began karting at six and worked through Mini and Junior categories in the CIK-FIA World and European Championships, WSK and IAME Euro Series. In 2022, aged 11, she became the first female driver to join the Mercedes-AMG F1 Junior Programme.

Two years later, she was selected as an F1 ACADEMY Discover Your Drive karter for the Champions of the Future Academy Program. She went on to win the OK-N Senior category by 125 points, becoming the first female winner of an FIA international championship since 1966. That achievement also earned her the inaugural F1 ACADEMY Rising Star Award.

The Las Vegas weekend offers her a new stage after her first season in single-seaters. She reached the podium in the Eurocup-4 Spanish Winter Championship at Portimão, then recorded a best finish of eighth in the F4 Spanish Championship at Aragón.

Rookie test pace precedes her F1 ACADEMY opportunity

Fluxa Cross also took part in this year’s F1 ACADEMY Rookie Test, finishing sixth-fastest in both sessions. The Wild Card entry now gives her a place on the grid for the championship’s final event of 2026.

Las Vegas has become a major stop on the F1 calendar; our guide to the Las Vegas Grand Prix covers the event’s setting. Fluxa Cross’s route into the series also reflects the wider development work around the championship, a subject explored in our report on how F1 ACADEMY success is measured.

She said the opportunity was exciting and described the Las Vegas entry as a special experience, adding that she was eager to get on track and make the most of the weekend.