Photo: Formula Motorsport Ltd
Doriane Pin led a Prema one-two in F1 Academy qualifying at the Losail circuit.
The Mercedes F1 junior was 0.2 seconds faster than team-mate and Ferrari Academy member Maya Weug. Rodin Motorsport’s Abbi Pulling, who could clinch the title in race one on Saturday evening, overcame a slightly tricky qualifying to end up behind her main two rivals in third.
Barrier repairs following an incident in another support series resulted in the session being delayed and shortened from 30 to 23 minutes in duration.
After drivers had completed a couple of tyre preparation laps, Prema’s Tina Hausmann posted the first representative time, a 1m57.683s, before Pin lowered the pace to a 1m55.988s to lead Weug, Pulling and wildcard driver Alisha Palmowski.
Weug claimed top spot on her next attempt by 0.2s from Pin who also improved but remained second. Pulling, meanwhile, encountered traffic and headed for the pitlane for fresh tyres, and she was relegated from third by Palmowski.
An even faster lap enabled Weug to momentarily extend her advantage inside the final seven minutes, but moments later Pin reclaimed first place by 0.2s with a 1m55.309s.
Weug remained second despite making a further slight improvement with her subsequent effort, while Pulling moved up to third before being delayed once more by traffic on her next lap.
Pin then made sure of pole by setting a 1m55.267s on her penultimate lap, while Weug also set another personal best to secure a front row spot for Saturday’s opening contest. Pulling also found more time, but ended up 0.06s shy of Weug.
ART Grand Prix’s Lia Block and MP Motorsport’s Hamda Al Qubaisi both vaulted themselves up the order to fourth and fifth late on, while Palmowski ended her first F1 Academy qualifying in sixth having been unable to improve on her early pace.
Campos Racing’s Nerea Marti was further 0.048s adrift in seventh and comfortably clear of ART’s Bianca Bustamante who was over one second off the outright pace in eighth.
Pin’s second-best lap, a 1m55.309s, was fast enough to secure her pole for Sunday’s second race, where Weug will again line up alongside her. Pulling will also start from third in that contest, while Palmowski will start two places higher in fourth.
Qualifying results
Race one grid
1 Doriane Pin Prema 1m55.267s
2 Maya Weug Prema +0.206s
3 Abbi Pulling Rodin Motorsport +0.270s
4 Lia Block ART Grand Prix +0.608s
5 Hamda Al Qubaisi MP Motorsport +0.688s
6 Alisha Palmowski Prema +0.733s
7 Nerea Marti Campos Racing +0.781s
8 Bianca Bustamante ART Grand Prix +1.084s
9 Aurelia Nobels ART Grand Prix +1.219s
10 Jessica Edgar Rodjn Motorsport +1.233s
Race two grid
1 Pin 1m55.309s
2 Weug +0.192s
3 Pulling +0.673s
4 Palmowski +0.934s
5 Al Qubaisi +0.951s
6 Marti +1.034s
7 Bustamante +1.059s
8 Block +1.062s
9 Carrie Schreiner Campos Racing +1.456s
10 Nobels +1.465s