ALICE Powell says consistency will be the key to her challenging for the W Series title.

The Chipping Norton driver takes to the grid in Belgium today for the second round of the inaugural season of a championship which aims to encourage female participation in single-seater motorsport.

Powell impressed in the opener at Hockenheim, Germany, earlier this month, finishing second behind Jamie Chadwick.

The 26-year-old is refusing to get carried away by her performance ahead of this afternoon’s race at Zolder.

But, with it only being a six-round series, she can ill-afford to take her foot off the pedal in a bid to be crowned champion and land in excess of £350,000 in prize money.

“Winning the title is in everyone’s mind,” said Powell. “But I’m trying not to think about it too much.

“I’m going to take it race by race and try to keep consistent and stay on the podium – that’s going to be key.

“If you have a bad race, it’s going to be quite difficult to bounce back.

“There’s going to be more drivers further down the field who are going to be really challenging.

“It’s not just going to be myself, Jamie and Marta Garcia (who was third in Germany) – it will be extremely close.”

Before Hockenheim, Powell, who was runner-up in the Formula 3 Cup six years ago, had not raced a single-seater since 2015.

She came through a gruelling selection process which started with a field of 54 to make the 18-driver W Series grid.

Sponsorship money is not required to enter the championship and Powell is relishing the challenge.

She said: “All the cars are exactly the same.

“We will never drive the same car twice – you swap cars, engineers, mechanics.

“If someone thought someone had an engine that was slightly better they would not have it again. They use that to keep it as fair as possible.

“They’re not as powerful as Formula 1 cars and they don’t have power steering.”

Powell added: “The first race went really well.

“I was disappointed I didn’t win, but I’m happy with the second place considering where I started in sixth.

“There was a little bit of (a sense of the) unknown.

“But I knew Jamie Chadwick would be quick from the word go – it was not a surprise that she was so strong.

“I don’t feel too bad ahead of Belgium. I’m just trying to focus on myself and improve.”