Jessica Howden (Team Trasimeno) showed lots of potential in her rookie season in the FIM Women’s Circuit Racing World Championship after some injuries which set her back early in the season. After a concussion suffered in the Pirelli Emilia-Romagna round at Misano, she shone in round three, landing her season´s best result in seventh place. She closed out the season with that same strong form, grabbing back-to-back eighth place finishes in the Prometeon Spanish Round at Jerez. In 2025 she will look to return to championship form, a level she proved in her 2022 lifting of the Women´s European Championship.

FROM CAPE TOWN VIA ZIMBABWE TO WorldWCR: Howden’s racing journey

Jessica Howden is a talented young rider from Cape Town who is blazing a trail in the
FIM Women’s Circuit Racing World Championship, having made a name for herself first on the domestic scene in her native South Africa and subsequently in the CIV300 series, the ESBK paddock and the Women’s European Championship. Having also lived in Zimbabwe as a child, she now pursues her racing ambitions on the world scene, encouraged into competitive riding by her father, a car racer and big motorsports enthusiast himself. She was also previously coached by her compatriot and current WorldWCR rival Nicole van Aswegen, who has had a significant influence on her career.

INSPIRED BY ANOTHER ROLE MODEL: Howden on her idol, racing against Van Aswegen

Howden describes her journey into racing and how it was another female South African racer who caught her eye and inspired her to go full gas on two wheels. “When I was 14, I used to go with my dad to the track every weekend because he used to race cars,” she explains. “I saw a woman called Savannah Woodward racing a motorbike at the track and I told my dad that I wanted to try that. She won the race and the next weekend we went again, and I rode a bike, so that’s when I started riding. I’d say Savannah was the one I looked up to more when I first started racing and we still talk a lot. My first bike was a Honda CBR250. From my first ride is when I fell in love and knew I wanted to keep doing it. We didn’t race with that Honda bike, I went straight onto a Yamaha R3 and raced with that here in South Africa. Nicole (Van Aswegen) also used to coach me, she taught me for a year, and she taught me a lot. It is amazing that we now race against each other, and we do fight a lot!”
 
A FATHER’S INFLUENCE: “My dad has always been my idol…”

Like many young riders it was her father’s passion for racing which pulled her towards the racetrack and it’s clear that he still plays a big role in how she approaches competitive riding. “My dad has always been my idol and I know he loves motorsport, so it inspired me to make him proud and finally race in a World Championship,” recognises Howden. “When I was younger my dad would watch a lot of WorldSBK and MotoGP™ races, so immediately I was drawn to it. The relationship became stronger when I started racing because he loves the sport so he wanted to help as much as he could. The relationship is really, really strong with my dad. He even stopped racing so that he could help me more. That’s been really important for me because without him I wouldn’t be anywhere. It’s been more on the mental side where he has helped me most in the last two years. Although the physical side is important the mental part is the main part which I speak with my dad about. Mentally racing is tough, but he has a strong personality. I stress way too much before a race and he is always helping me to be calm.”

REPRESENTING SOUTH AFRICA: one of two South African riders on the 2024 grid

Howden took part in the Women’s European Championship in 2022 and her victory in Misano saw her become the first African woman to win a race in the series. It was a key moment for her and a significant step in helping her to get where she is today. In terms of the importance to her career of taking part in the historic 2024 FIM Women’s Circuit Racing World Championship and how proud she is to represent her country alongside Van Aswegen in the inaugural season of the competition, Howden reveals: “It meant a lot to me to have raced against the best women in the world, it makes me very proud of how far we have all come. I’ve really noticed how the other girls in the paddock cheer you up, I mean they all really support each other, both privately and at the track. I’m very proud to represent my country because it’s not often you see an African in this sport and it makes me very happy.”

COMING BACK FROM ADVERSITY: bouncing back from injuries

As a rider who, like many others, is familiar with fighting back from injuries, it is notable that Howden cites as inspirational two athletes who know very well the experience of overcoming adversity. Howden’s 2023 campaign was impacted when she broke her thumb and dislocated her shoulder in the pre-season and then she suffered a concussion at the opening round of the WorldWCR season in Misano earlier this year. Asked about her favourite rider she says, “Marc Marquez. I’ve supported him since I was young, maybe 10 years old. What I have seen from him is that in the moments he struggles he always comes back really strongly.” When it comes to female athletes, Howden states, “Simone Biles is the one. I saw that previously she wasn’t ready mentally and she has come back so strong. I watched the documentary on her and it’s really impressive her story.”

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