F1 Academy: Double pole position for Abbi Pulling in Singapore

Abbi Pulling dominated qualifying at the Singapore Marina Bay circuit, securing her sixth and seventh pole positions of the F1 Academy season, ahead of Maya Weug and Doriane Pin in a competitive session under the lights.

Photo credits: James Gasperotti Photo

Abbi Pulling continues her dominance, securing her sixth and seventh pole positions of the F1 Academy season, outpacing Maya Weug and Doriane Pin to the top spot in an intense qualifying session at Singapore Marina Bay Street Circuit.

The Alpine driver had already topped the only practice session earlier in the afternoon, with Marti, Pin, and Weug alternating as her closest challengers. A few hours later, the top contenders remained mostly unchanged, in a session that saw again significant track development and times dropping until the final minute.

This was the second qualifying session of the season held under the lights, this time against the scenic backdrop of Singapore.

Pulling immediately took the lead with a 2:05.876, ahead of Lia Block and Bianca Bustamante in the opening minutes. As the times started to tumble, Nerea Marti, Hamda Al Qubaisi, and Chloe Chambers all improved to the top three.

It wasn’t long before Pulling reclaimed the top spot, dipping below the 2:05 mark with an especially strong second sector. Her closest championship rival, Doriane Pin, responded by improving her time and briefly topping Pulling, with Weug just a tenth behind.

Chambers, despite a big oversteer at the final corner, managed fourth but was later demoted to fifth after Hamda Al Qubaisi's improvement.

Wild card entry and British F4 rookie Ella Lloyd, who had limited track time in FP1 due to a brake sensor issue, climbed to seventh. A brief spin at Turn 1 by Amna Al Qubaisi saw her continue without major incident, as all drivers returned to the pits to fit new tyres midway through the session.

With 12 minutes remaining, drivers resumed their runs on fresh rubber as track conditions continued to improve. Schreiner was the first to make a significant leap, moving back into the top five after her strong practice session earlier. Campos teammates Chambers and Marti also improved to sixth and seventh, with Block rising to ninth.

Hamda Al Qubaisi slotted into fourth, half a second behind Pulling and Pin, and less than a tenth from Weug in third. With four minutes to go, Doriane Pin set a purple first sector but lost time with a mistake at the final corner, while teammate Maya Weug found enough time to snatch second place.

Chambers and Marti both advanced to fifth and sixth, pushing down Block and Lloyd, who still remained in the top ten.

On the final runs, Pulling improved her first sector but couldn’t better her overall time, though neither Weug nor Pin could challenge the championship leader. Pulling therefore locked in her double pole position for both races at Singapore, bringing her season tally to seven.

Maya Weug will start on the front row in Race 1, just ahead of Mercedes’ Doriane Pin.

With an impressive final lap, Lia Block secured fourth on the grid, ahead of Hamda Al Qubaisi and Chloe Chambers, who spun at the final corner on her last lap and couldn’t improve.

Nerea Marti and Ella Lloyd were seventh and eighth, with just one-tenth of a second separating drivers from P4 to P8. Bianca Bustamante and Carrie Schreiner, with another strong performance, will complete the top ten.

Tina Hausmann qualified eleventh, ahead of Lola Lovinfosse and Jessica Edgar, who rebounded after missing most of the practice session due to a barrier contact. Emely De Heus took P14, followed by Aurelia Nobels and Amna Al Qubaisi.

In the second-fastest lap classification, Pulling will once again start from pole, this time alongside Doriane Pin. Maya Weug will share the second row with Lia Block, while Nerea Marti gains two spots for Race 2, starting ahead of Hamda Al Qubaisi. Carrie Schreiner also moves up two places, while Ella Lloyd is set to start both races from eighth in an impressive first F1 Academy outing.

Chloe Chambers will aim to recover from ninth, ahead of Bianca Bustamante. Emely De Heus will line up in P11 for Race 2, followed by Tina Hausmann, Jessica Edgar, Aurelia Nobels, Lola Lovinfosse, and Amna Al Qubaisi.

Race 1 is set for 15:05 local time and promises to be an action-packed battle in the heat and humidity of the Lion City.