Doriane Pin, a pilot for Prema Racing in France, dominated the opening qualifying session of the 2024 F1 Academy season in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. She secured a double pole position by setting the fastest time of the session, clocking in at 2:03.472. This put her nearly eight tenths ahead of the competition, with Abbi Pulling from Alpine leading the chasing pack.
The second season of the women-exclusive single-seater series marks a new chapter, as all 10 F1 teams are backing a designated driver. Additionally, global brands such as Puma, Charlotte Tilbury, and Tommy Hilfiger are supporting the drivers. The first round of the season took place in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, and is one of seven races scheduled for the entire 2024 campaign.
The grid positions for both races were determined by a 30-minute qualifying session. The fastest times set by the drivers determined the grid for Race 1, while the second fastest times determined the grid for Race 2. Pin, representing Mercedes Junior and Prema, set the fastest time in practice, establishing a 0.212s advantage over Pulling from the Alpine Academy in her Rodin Motorsport vehicle. Both drivers aimed to translate their practice performance into a successful qualifying session.
The pole position for Race 1 was secured by Pin with her impressive benchmark time of 2:03.472s. Pulling will join her on the front row of the grid, with a gap of 0.785s. Maya Weug from Ferrari will lead the second row, accompanied by Nerea Martí, who is supported by Tommy Hilfiger. Bianca Bustamante from McLaren and Lola Lovinfosse, supported by Charlotte Tilbury, will start on the third row. Lia Block from Williams Academy and Chloe Chambers, supported by Campos from Haas, will complete the all-American fourth row. Aurelia Nobels, supported by Puma, and Jessica Edgar from Rodin complete the top 10 in both Qualifying and Race 1 grid.
Race 1 is scheduled to start on Friday at 3:10 pm local time (12:10 GMT). Race 2, which concludes the F1 Academy action, will take place on Saturday at 3:05 pm local time (12:05 GMT). Once again, Pin will start from pole position, with her second fastest time beating the second best effort by six tenths of a second.
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