After F1 Academy completed its pre-season testing in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia this week, attention turns ahead to Round 1 at the Corniche Circuit on March 07-09.
Heading into its second season, F1 Academy is looking to make a global impact.
All seven rounds feature on the Formula 1 support programme with all 10 F1 teams backing a driver in the all-female single-seater series and the support of major brands such as Charlotte Tilbury and Puma mark a significant step for the championship.
Returning for a second campaign with Rodin Motorsport is Alpine Junior Driver Abbi Pulling, who finished fifth in last year’s standings with seven podiums and two pole positions and she’s looking to put together a consistent second season and claim race wins.
“I’m very guilty of putting too much pressure on myself and setting my expectations quite high,” Pulling said on the F1 Academy website.
“I think I’m capable of getting results, but sometimes maybe overthink it. So, just focusing on the process and what it takes to get that done. It’s a similar approach that I’ve had in the past, but it’s reinforcing it.
“The first half of the season I’m just aiming to be consistent and be there or thereabouts every race. By the time I’ve got through a bit more seat time in the car this year, also I’m racing with Rodin Motorsport in British F4.
“Hopefully, by halfway through the season I’ll be getting those wins and bringing home some big points. That’s the aim and I think just keep it as consistent as possible is a big thing.”
Standing in Pulling’s way in the fight for victory will be Hamda Al Qubaisi, the highest-finishing driver returning to F1 Academy for 2024.
The Emirati driver, representing Red Bull Racing as a member of its Driver Academy – continues with MP Motorsport after claiming four wins, two pole positions and seven podiums en route to third in the 2023 standings.
Now, the 21-year-old is gunning for the title.
“We ended off the season last year really well, so I’m really excited to bring what I’ve learned from last year into this year and improve even more,” said Al Qubaisi.
“I think we always want to strive to do better. Last year, I felt like I had more in me.
“Also, I look back and think I could have performed even better, so I’m going into this year with that mindset and trying to aim for the title.
“I think it’s just to focus fully on the driving, focus with the team, try to extract the most out of every test we have and every race weekend. It’s not going to be easy, so we need to be fully focused and prepared to expect anything.”
At the other end of the spectrum is rookie Tina Hausmann who will be racing for PREMA in Aston Martin colours.
“I feel great!” the 17-year-old said ahead of her rookie campaign.
“I’m really excited for this season. There’s a lot to learn and it’s my learning season, so I want to learn as much as I can and hopefully, we’ll get some podiums and wins.
“My goals and expectations for myself are to work really hard, to learn as much as I can, to suck everything in and understand as much as I can, which will help me for my next season.”
