The crowds at Zandvoort had a lot to celebrate in Race 2 of the F1 Academy, with another Dutch driver winner in Maya Weug. The Scuderia Ferrari MP Motorsport driver comfortably completed a pole-to-win conversion. Nina Gademan finished in sixth after her win yesterday, and wildcard entry Esmee Kosterman finished seventh. Alisha Palmowski and Doriane Pin inherited second and third on the podium after Ella Lloyd fell to fourth from a time penalty incursion.
On Grid Issues Before Lights Out
After yesterday’s Race 1, all drivers started on the grid in their Saturday qualifying positions for Race 2. This meant Weug started from pole position, with Palmowski and Lloyd. There had been rain earlier in the morning, which meant there were damp patches already on the track. Chloe Chambers had some issues on the grid before the formation lap. Her Red Bull Ford Campos Racing car was pushed back to the pit lane. However, she was unable to start the race, losing crucial championship points.
Due to the confusion, Lia Block made an error by moving too far up and into the wrong box. This is where Chambers should have been. While Block tried to reverse back and before moving to her spot, she was still rolling forward when the lights went out. The Williams ART Grand Prix driver was handed a ten-second time penalty for a false start and being out of position.
Clean Start As Lloyd Chases Down Weug
Lloyd was hot the rear wheels of Weug within the first few turns. There was an incident involving Nicole Havrda and Aurelia Nobels, in which the former locked up and forced the latter to navigate to the escape road in Turn 1. Lloyd started losing momentum, putting her directly in the sight of Palmowski and Pin. Weug was in her element on her home track, cruising ahead by three seconds. In Sector 3, Emma Felbermayer spun out on her own into Turn 10, tumbling down to sixteenth place.
Coming off her maiden win in Race 1, Gademan felt her PREMA Racing teammate, Tina Hausmann, was making too many mistakes in front. Kosterman looked comfortable, as she had most of the weekend, clearly putting the spotlight on her as a potential full-time F1 Academy driver next year. Meanwhile, Courtney Crone and Alba Larsen were in a battle to chase Chloe Chong, with a possible tenth-place finish in sight as a result of Block’s penalty.
Under Pressure and Late Penalty for Lloyd
With a few laps remaining, Lloyd was handed a five-second time penalty. Upon review of the race start, the McLaren Rodin Motorsport driver had crept forward before the signal. Unfortunately, this meant that hopes of finishing on the podium were dashed.
The information was communicated to Pin by her Mercedes PREMA Racing team, giving her extra motivation to catch Palmowski. Larsen saw an opportunity coming into Turn 1 on the final lap, perfectly executing pressure on Chong and forcing the Charlotte Tilbury Rodin Motorsport driver to lock up under braking. But up the front, it was clean air and smooth sailing as Weug crossed the line.
Race Results
With only two more races in the series to go, there can be no room for error for Pin, Chambers, and Weug as they compete for the crown. What will happen when we go racing again in Singapore? We’ll find out in five weeks.