It came down to the final seconds in the F1 Academy qualifying for the Dutch GP. But it was Maya Weug who won out with a time of 1:38.834. The Scuderia Ferrari driver claimed the top spot after the checkered flags came out. Alisha Palmowski was just under four hundredths of a second behind with her best lap time.
Thirty Minutes to Make it Count
After the dusty conditions in Practice 1 and the rainy Dutch weather disrupting Practice 2, the drivers were ready for whatever the qualifying session had in store. Due to morning rain, the already challenging track had significant damp patches throughout. The top eight qualifiers are in reverse order for Race 1. But the drivers’ grid positions in Race 2 are based on this qualifying performance.
Even so, all cars were on wet tyres to begin, with only a slight dry line. Nina Gademan received good news on her 22nd birthday. She was medically cleared for the session and the rest of the weekend. Chloe Chong immediately reported that the “bowl is completely dry”, but the rest of the track was still wet. This message came a little too late for Aiva Anagnostiadis, who was hit from behind by Nicole Havrda. This incident, to be investigated after the session, raised red flags for a short time, and everyone returned to the pits.
Making the Gamble to Change from Wet to Slick Tyres
At the session restart, Lia Block was quick to set the pace for everyone else, posting a time of 1:48.856. She skillfully positioned her car to coast through wet patches and dry lines. Ella Lloyd was not far behind, but Weug went fastest with a time of 1:48.053. Meanwhile, Chloe Chambers and Gademan both had to take the escape road after overshooting Turn 1.
With twenty minutes to go, we were all wondering who would make the call to go in and risk putting on slick tyres. Once again, it was Block and her ART Grand Prix teammate, Aurelia Nobels, who were the first to take the gamble. Lloyd did incredibly well to make it out of the gravel in Turn 1, but was under investigation for not following directions to go straight on through to the escape road.
Slipping Wide and Lock Ups Persist as Puddles Remain
Despite the track slowly drying, there were still damp patches that caused lock-ups from multiple drivers. Tina Hausman had some contact with the wall, and Palmowski had her time deleted for exceeding the track limit. However, it was a devastating blow for Nobels as she went sliding into the gravel, ending her session and bringing out the red flags once again.
The remaining qualifying contenders made it out for their final chance to gain speed, grip, and positions. Rafaela Ferreira had the rear wing on her Racing Bulls Campos Racing car quickly changed before she returned for her last run of the session. Emma Felbermayr found massive momentum in the final few minutes. Still, Weug promptly answered with a lap time in the 1:39s. It all came down to the final seconds as the checkered flag waved, with Palmowski very close to stealing pole position from the Scuderia Ferrari MP Motorsport driver.