By Steven Oldham Cover photo: F1 Academy
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Singapore debut for F1 Academy
Cumbrian F1 Academy driver Jessica Edgar left the Singapore Grand Prix empty-handed after finishing outside the points in both races, as the series visited the Marina Bay circuit for the first time.
The Rodin driver qualified in 13th place for both races, and after holding station in the first race, slipped back to 15th in the second race. The 19-year-old finished 6.8 seconds away from the final points paying position in race one – with the last point being taken by Prema’s Tina Hausmann.
Edgar’s weekend was hampered by contact with the wall in free practice, which damaged her rear wing and limited her running time in her first race weekend at this circuit.
Ennerdale’s Edgar is competing in her second season in the competition and has one win and three further podiums under her belt to from her debut campaign last year.
She took her maiden win in the F1 Academy in the final race of the season at COTA in Austin, Texas. It was her second podium of the weekend, having come second in race two and also stepped on the podium at Monza and the Red Bull Ring in the season-opener.
Edgar will get the opportunity to boost her points tally at the next event in Losail, Qatar on the weekend of November 30. The series concludes in Abu Dhabi a week later – which will also be her last race in the series, having reached the two-season limit in the competition rules.
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Pulling continues to dominate F1 Academy
Both races were won by Edgar’s team-mate Abbi Pulling, with the formula’s runaway leader extending her advantage at the top of the standings to 95 points. The Lincolnshire driver has won seven of ten races to date this season and has finished on the podium at every event. She now has 245 points.
Prema duo Maya Weug and Doriane Pin completed the podium spots in both races, and their strong weekend see their team sit atop the championship.
French driver Pin claimed her first podium of the weekend by a narrow margin over ART’s Lia Block after successfully extending the gap between the pair to nullify a five-second penalty earned by a jump start.
Block produced her strongest weekend of the season to date with two fourth placed finishes, while there were also double points scores for Chloe Chambers, Nerea Marti, Hamda Al Qubaisi and Carrie Schreiner.
Schreiner’s six points gained for Campos’ Schreiner sees Alpine-backed driver Edgar slip back to tenth in the standings. Edgar has 22 points on the board, with her best result a fourth place finish in Jeddah.
It was a weekend to forget for Filipina driver Bianca Bustamente, who caused an aborted start by rolling over her grid slot and then received a ten-second stop/go penalty for failing to start from the pit lane in the first race.
She brought out the safety car in race two after a spin, and later was involved in a clash with Hausmann, which resulted in the Swiss driver being handed a ten-second time penalty.
Ella Lloyd makes successful debut as F1 Academy wildcard
Fellow Brit Ella Lloyd made the most of her opportunity as this event’s wild card driver and scored points in both races. The 18-year-old Pontypridd driver finished ninth in the first race, and improved to P7 in the second race to take six points away from a successful weekend.
Lloyd is competing in British F4 this season, and will be buoyed by her performance in Singapore heading into the final event at Brands Hatch on October 5-6.
She has claimed three podium finishes in the competition, but has yet to take the top step – coming closest with second place finishes at Silverstone and Knockhill.
The all-women F1 Academy series – in its’ second season – is now part of the Formula One support programme and is racing 14 times across seven events this year.
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