GB3: Abbi Pulling returns to the podium in Barcelona
Abbi Pulling brought her 2026 GB3 Championship campaign to a positive conclusion in Barcelona, securing her fourth podium of the season with a third-place finish in Sunday's second race.
Abbi Pulling brought her 2026 GB3 Championship campaign to a positive conclusion in Barcelona, securing her fourth podium of the season with a third-place finish in Sunday's second race. The Rodin Motorsport driver showed front-running pace throughout the final round at Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, ending the weekend with a strong points haul to secure eighth in the championship standings with 261 points.
Pulling arrived in Spain following a challenging round at Brands Hatch, where she had recovered from a difficult opening race to score two top-ten finishes, but a technical retirement while fighting for a podium in Race 2 had prevented her from capitalising on her pace. That weekend followed one of her strongest performances of the season at Donington Park, where she secured two podium finishes, including third place in the opening race and another top-three result in the finale, in which she also led laps. The double podium lifted her to eighth in the standings heading into the final round.
The British driver immediately found her rhythm in Barcelona, finishing sixth in the opening practice session with a 1:33.130 before topping the second session with a 1:33.531. She continued to lead the way in the third practice session, setting the fastest time of the day with a 1:32.756 ahead of qualifying.
The first qualifying session proved more difficult, as traffic prevented Pulling from putting together a clean lap early in the session on the tyre's peak. She initially recorded a 1:33.838 before improving to 1:33.723 in the closing minutes, moving up to eighth, but ultimately ended the session ninth, just three tenths of a second away from pole position.
Pulling was much closer to the front in the second qualifying session, as the times continued to tumble. With five minutes remaining, she moved into third place with a 1:33.078, just 0.045 seconds off the provisional pole time. No further improvements came at the front, leaving her third in a closely contested session in which six drivers were covered by just one tenth of a second.
Starting ninth for Saturday's opening race, Pulling made an excellent getaway, immediately gaining two positions off the line. The race was neutralised shortly afterwards when Bansal and Wilson went off at Turn 1, with the field returning to green-flag conditions at the end of lap five. Pulling held seventh on the restart, but soon found herself under pressure from Lee, who managed to force his way past and drop her to eighth.
Deagan Fairclough also attempted to capitalise, with Pulling having to defend firmly along the straight before eventually losing another position into Turn 1. She remained close to Ingram Hill, who had also been passed by Fairclough, and began to put pressure on the driver ahead again while opening a gap to the cars behind. With three tenths of a second separating the pair at the start of the final lap, Pulling remained within striking distance but could not quite find an opportunity to pass and finishes eighth. Nikita Bedrin took the race victory and secured the championship title.
Sunday morning's second race presented Pulling with a major opportunity from third on the grid, and she made the most of it with an outstanding start. Pulling drew alongside Green and completed the move into second place at Turn 1, immediately positioning herself behind race leader Wherrell. Contact between Vinci and Jackes resulted in the former going off, but the race remained under green-flag conditions.
Pulling settled into second and began to close on Wherrell, while also keeping Green and Bedrin within reach behind her. Green attempted to attack at Turn 1 on lap six, but Pulling defended effectively, leaving her rival vulnerable to Bedrin and allowing her to regain some breathing room. The Safety Car was subsequently deployed after Theo Palmer went into the gravel at Turn 1.
Racing resumed on lap nine, with Pulling making a good restart and retaining second place, although she was not quite close enough to challenge Wherrell for the lead. Behind her, Bedrin continued to put pressure on Green, and their battle once again allowed Pulling to establish a small gap. Bedrin eventually completed the pass and then turned his attention to the Rodin Motorsport driver, attacking at Turn 1 on lap 12. He went around the outside to take second place, setting the fastest lap of the race in 1:35.552 in the process.
Pulling was left to defend third, with Green around a second behind and still under pressure. As Bedrin and Wherrell fought for the victory on the final lap, she maintained control of her position, keeping Green and Fluxá at bay to cross the line in third. The result marked her fourth podium of the 2026 season and the fifth of her GB3 career.
The final race of the weekend, and of the championship season, saw Pulling line up tenth on the grid. There was early drama on the formation lap when Dante Vinci spun while warming his tyres from second place, although he managed to recover his position before the start. Pulling held tenth through the opening corner, but Fairclough soon began attacking and eventually made his way past on the second lap.
Running at a tyre disadvantage, Pulling subsequently dropped to 11th and found herself leading a group of cars before losing another position to Bansal. The race was neutralised with five minutes remaining after Palmer stopped at Turn 3, with Fluxá also retiring from the contest. Pulling was 11th when the Safety Car was deployed, leaving only one lap of racing after the restart.
She made the most of the final opportunity to gain positions, while track-limits penalties for Vinci and Molnar further reshuffled the order. Pulling was classified ninth on the road before being promoted to eighth, adding another top-ten finish to her Barcelona weekend and bringing her season to a close on a positive note.
The British driver ended the championship eighth overall with 261 points, completing a campaign that featured her first GB3 victory alongside multiple podium finishes and continued progress in her sophomore season. After demonstrating her pace at several rounds and becoming an increasingly consistent contender at the front, Pulling will now turn her attention to securing the funding needed to continue her racing career and build on the progress made throughout the season.
