F1 Academy: Ella Lloyd takes maiden victory in Jeddah race 1
- RACERS
- 3 minutes ago
- 4 min read
Welsh racer Ella Lloyd secured her first victory in F1 Academy at the end of an action-packed opening race in Jeddah, where the McLaren driver seized the lead into Turn 1 and survived a late charge from Maya Weug to beat the Ferrari racer by just one tenth of a second across the finish line.
Welsh racer Ella Lloyd secured her first victory in F1 Academy at the end of an action-packed opening race in Jeddah, where the McLaren driver got the best launch off the line, seized the lead into Turn 1, and survived a safety car restart and a late charge from Maya Weug to beat the Ferrari Academy racer by just one tenth of a second across the finish line.
The first race of the weekend in the all-female series delivered plenty of action at the front of the field, as Weug, Alisha Palmowski and Doriane Pin all finished within two seconds of the race winner.
Following a closely fought qualifying session under the lights on Friday night, Chloe Chambers emerged as the fastest driver, beating Doriane Pin, Maya Weug and Alisha Palmowski. Eighth-fastest qualifier Emma Felbermayr would therefore start from pole in Race 1 with the reverse grid, alongside fellow rookie Ella Lloyd. Tina Hausmann and Alba Hurup Larsen lined up on the second row.
The fast and technical Jeddah Corniche Circuit hosted F1 Academy for the second consecutive year – this time with several drivers fighting at the front. In warm temperatures, Saturday’s Race 1 offered plenty of action.
Lloyd had the better start and took the lead into Turn 1, with Felbermayr holding second ahead of Palmowski, who made a stunning getaway. Chloe Chong and Farah Al Yousef, however, had more difficult starts and dropped to the back of the field.
From sixth on the grid, Weug also had a brilliant launch and moved up into fifth, then cleared Larsen on the opening lap as she chased down Palmowski and Felbermayr, who were locked in a close battle. While Chloe Chambers initially fell behind Nina Gademan, the Red Bull driver reclaimed the position by the end of the first lap and began to hunt down Pin and Hausmann ahead.
With Felbermayr holding second, Lloyd was able to open a two-second gap by the end of lap two – the only driver to dip under the 2:07 mark. Palmowski eventually cleared Felbermayr, closely followed by Maya Weug, who was now right on Palmowski’s gearbox.
Lia Block, who had gained ground up to P13 from last on the grid, was caught in an incident where she was tagged by Courtney Crone, forcing the American to drop back again. Nicole Havrda and Chloe Chong were also caught in the melee. On lap 4, Palmowski came under pressure from Weug – but a safety car was deployed shortly after due to Chong’s stricken Charlotte Tilbury-liveried car, which had sustained front-right suspension damage.
It was also a challenging start for Nicole Havrda, who had to pit for a front wing change but rejoined at the back and caught up to the pack thanks to the safety car.
The neutralization was unfortunate for race leader Lloyd, who had built a solid advantage while battles raged behind. The race resumed on lap 8: Weug attacked Palmowski into Turn 1 but the British driver held firm. Behind them, Pin passed Felbermayr, who lost momentum and was also overtaken by Hausmann – with Chambers now lining up an attack.
As the top three pulled away, Pin continued her charge and launched a move on Larsen. The Danish driver initially defended strongly, but Pin made the move stick at the final corner and held on through Turn 1 to secure fourth place.
Chambers, meanwhile, found a way past Felbermayr and moved up into seventh, with Nina Gademan close behind and looking to advance as well.
On lap 10, Weug mounted another attack on Palmowski but instead came under pressure herself as the Red Bull driver launched a late charge on race leader Lloyd. Behind them, Pin set the fastest lap of the race with a 2:05.228 in an effort to close the gap to the leading trio.
One lap later, Weug finally overtook Palmowski for second, as the race developed into a four-car battle for victory.
With Pin and Palmowski locked in a fierce fight, Weug and Lloyd were able to gain a few tenths – setting up a nail-biting final lap. After a stunning photo-finish, Ella Lloyd crossed the line just one tenth ahead of Maya Weug, claiming her maiden F1 Academy win – and her first single-seater victory, after four podiums in British F4 last year.
Palmowski held off Doriane Pin to secure her second podium of the season. Pin, however, retained her championship lead with a fourth-place finish.
Alba Larsen claimed her second top-five finish of the season in fifth, ahead of Tina Hausmann – who scored her first points of the campaign – and Chloe Chambers in seventh.
Nina Gademan came out on top in a close battle with Emma Felbermayr to grab the final point in eighth. Aurelia Nobels completed the top ten, ahead of Joanne Ciconte. Lia Block recovered to 12th despite the early incident, finishing ahead of Rafaela Ferreira, Aiva Anagnostiadis and Nicole Havrda. Farah Al Yousef was 16th after serving two penalties for starting infringements. Courtney Crone retired with four laps to go.
Maya Weug remains the only driver to have finished on the podium in every race so far this year, now trailing Doriane Pin by just three points in the championship. Pole-sitter Chloe Chambers retains third in the standings, ahead of Palmowski and Lloyd.
Sunday’s second race will award full points and will see Chambers start alongside Doriane Pin on the front row. The race is scheduled for 15:05 local time.