Lisa Billard tops best finish in French F4, Stiebleichinger takes double class win in Female trophy
- MIKA BÖCKER
- 16 minutes ago
- 7 min read
A record-breaking grid of ten female drivers launched the 2026 French F4 Championship season at Circuit Paul Armagnac, where Lisa Billard topped her personal best in the series with two top-10 finishes. Rookie Clara Stiebleichinger took an impressive double Female Trophy win, while Annabelle Brian scored the class win in race 3 to take the top of the female-standings.
The 2026 French F4 Championship season began at Circuit Paul Armagnac with a historic milestone for women in junior single-seater racing, as a record 10 female drivers lined up on the grid, the highest numerical total ever seen in Formula 4 competition worldwide.
Representing nearly one third of the 32-car field, the achievement surpassed the previous record of eight women set in British F4 at Zandvoort. While the Saudi F4 Championship still holds the record for the highest percentage of female participation, the Nogaro round marked a new global benchmark in terms of total entries.
The grid featured a balanced mix of experience and fresh talent. Six returning drivers - Angelina Proenca, Sofia Zanfari, Héloïse Goldberg, Annabelle Brian, Lisa Billard and Jade Jacquet - were joined by four series rookies, and three at their first ever full season of F4: Clara Stiebleichinger, Autumn Fisher, Isabella Abreu, the first Cuban driver to compete in Formula 4, and Ginevra Panzeri, in her second season after competing in E4 Championship.
Billard and Jacquet combined their French F4 appearances with programmes in F1 Academy, entering Nogaro as guest competitors and therefore ineligible for points in the newly introduced Female Trophy classification.
Friday testing already revealed encouraging trends. Billard frequently ran inside the top ten and twice broke into the top five, while Brian, Stiebleichinger, Jacquet and Proenca established solid midfield pace. Zanfari emerged as one of the most improved drivers entering her second season, and Abreu on her European debut showed significant progress, finding several seconds across the opening day.
Saturday morning’s first official practice session was led overall by Thibaut Ramaekers, with Billard the fastest woman in 14th place on a 1:26.765 lap. Zanfari impressed in 18th, just over a second from the outright pace, followed closely by Jacquet and Proenca. Stiebleichinger’s European debut produced a competitive P25 result ahead of Brian, Fisher and Panzeri, while Goldberg and Abreu continued building confidence, the latter improving steadily despite remaining at the rear of the field.
Qualifying proved far more eventful. Early runs briefly placed several women near the front, as Jacquet led momentarily, Zanfari ran second and Fisher appeared inside the top five during initial laps as times rapidly evolved. Billard ultimately secured 11th on the grid with a 1:26.7 lap, narrowly missing the top ten. Jacquet qualified 18th as second-best female, while Stiebleichinger impressed with P21 in her first French F4 qualifying session.
Brian, Proenca and Zanfari followed closely behind, with late-session red flags shaping the order after incidents involving Ramaekers and later Abreu, whose lap times were deleted after triggering a stoppage. Despite the setback, Abreu reduced her deficit to the leaders by nearly two seconds compared to practice.
For the first race, guest starter Lisa Billard was the highest-placed woman on the grid, starting just outside the top ten in 11th position. The next woman behind her was Jade Jaquet in 18th. Clara Stiebleichinger followed in 21st, and Annabelle Brian, Angelina Proenca, and Sofia Zanfari in 23rd through 25th. Héloise Goldberg, Autumn Fisher, and Isabella Abreu brought up the rear of the field. These starting positions each improved by one place, as the second-placed car retired to the pits at the end of the formation lap due to engine trouble.
The actual start of race 1 was uneventful. However, things were quite different on lap two: first, a car spun in the midfield, then a few corners later, Dussol spun from second place. Dussol was unable to get going again under his own power, triggering the safety car on lap three. Panzeri also came out of the pits at the same time, having to have some damage repaired.
Behind the safety car, the women were positioned as follows: Billard in 9th place, Stiebleichinger and Jaquet in 16th and 17th respectively, Brian, Zanfari, and Proenca followed in 19th to 21st. Goldberg, Fisher, Abreu, and Panzeri completed the field in 26th to 31st.
The race restarted with 18 minutes remaining. Jaguet immediately attacked and overtook Stiebleichinger on the first lap. Eschalier, who was right in between the two groups of female drivers, spun after contact with Brian, bringing the two groups together. After two more laps, Brian also passed Stiebleichinger. Shortly afterward, they would gain another position when Chandaria spun off the track and rejoined the race at the very back of the field.
Meanwhile, the battle at the front intensified. The battle for sixth place held up the chasing pack, creating a tight group that stretched all the way to Jaquet in 15th. Billard lost a position in this fight towards the end of the race. At the same time, Jaquet managed to overtake Iliffe. When one car from this group pitted with issues, all the drivers behind it gained a position. Further back, Zanfari and Stiebleichinger were locked in a fierce battle.
Lisa Billard finished ninth, her second time in top ten in French F4 in her career, and top of the women's classification. Jade Jaquet narrowly missed the top ten, finishing 12th.
Clara Stiebleichinger and Sofia Zanfari followed in 15th and 16th place respectively, with the Austrian therefore securing her first Female Trophy win on her first start, with Billard and Jacquet not eligible in the standings.
Angelina Proenca finished 19th, securing a place in the top 20. She was followed by Goldberg in 22nd, Brian, who dropped to 24th after a penalty, and Fisher in 26th. Panzeri was forced to retire after 13 laps.
Due to a shoulder injury, Ginevra Panzeri was unable to participate in the second race. The other drivers started from their same starting positions as in the first race. Japanese driver Tsuchihashi however stalled his car during the starting procedure and was pushed back to the pits from fifth place. Another formation lap followed, which was already counted towards the race time.
Since his starting position remained empty, the drivers behind him each inherited a position; the actual race start was clean, with only a few close battles. This would change with 24 minutes remaining when Avril went through the gravel, triggering the safety car. After it was deployed, Woda divebombed Jaquet, with the cars colliding behind the safety car, damaging Jaquet's suspension. She had to retire from the race, with Woda also retiring a few laps later.
After only two laps, the safety car was back in; at the restart, Iliffe was taken out and got stuck in the gravel. The safety car therefore was back out immediately. The recovery took longer this time, and at the restart, the clock showed 13:30 minutes remaining.
Billard rejoined the race from 10th place. Stiebleichinger, Zanfari, and Proenca followed in 16th to 18th positions. Brian and Fisher were next in 20th and 21st, as Goldberg and Abreu followed in 24th and 26th. Brian dropped one position bheind at the restart - however, Dussol collided with another car, and both were forced to stop in the gravel with only 10 minutes left. The safety car was deployed again and all the female drivers inherited two positions as a result.
The restart took place with three minutes remaining: the finale was intense, as everyone tried to use the limited time in the tightly packed field to gain positions. In the penultimate lap, Fisher's car was unfortunately launched into the air during a collision with Goldberg and rolled over. Despite the big hit, Fisher was luckily uninjured. Goldberg would also park her car at the same spot, and the race was then logically finished behind the safety car.
In the end, Lisa Billard once again prevailed among the female entries, this time finishing 8th overall - and thus securing the best ever finish for a woman in French F4's history.
She was followed by Clara Stiebleichinger in 14th, again very impressive on her first weekend and again scoring maximum points in Female Trophy.
Sofia Zanfari, Angelina Proenca and Annabelle Brian finished P17, P18 and P19 respectively. Isabella Abreu finished the race in 23rd place, keeping it clean and managing to cross the finish line in a solid position.
The final race of the weekend featured new starting positions: Billard would line up from 10th place, Jaquet remained her closest pursuer in 17th, Brian, Stiebleichinger, Zanfari, and Proenca followed from 21st onwards, while Goldberg, Fisher, and Abreu occupied positions 28 through 30.
The first lap however was chaotic and went wrong for the female entries; Billard dropped back at lights out, but things were even worse for Stiebleichinger and Zanfari. The two are involved in separate collisions, both taken out, and were forced to retire, bringing out the safety car. The best-placed woman was now Jade Jaquet, just ahead of Billard, who had fallen back to 16th. Proenca then moved up to 23rd, ahead of Goldberg in 25th, Fisher in 28th, and Abreu in 29th.
After just one lap, the race resumed: Billard lost another position at the restart, but once again, there was again drama: one lap after the restart, Jaquet clipped the grass in the first corner, resulting in a spin and her car came to a stop in the gravel. The second safety car was therefore deployed and, after the restart with 13 minutes remaining, the race remained relatively calm. There were no further changes in position, especially among the Women Trophy entries. Only Proenca lost out a position shortly before the end of the race, however, she could regain it when Pasquier pitted from the front, thus handing everyone a spot.
In the final race, Lisa Billard again secured the lead among the women, but only managed 16th place. With a good recovery drive, Annabelle Brian scored maximum points in the Female Trophy in P19.
Proenca, and Goldberg followed in P20 and P21, with Fisher and Abreu in 24th and 25th. The Cuban was therefore protagonist of another solid race, with no mistakes, finishing all races this weekend and collecting valuable track time.
The season will now continue on May 15–17 at Circuit de Dijon-Prenois, where the expanding Female Trophy battle will continue to provide exciting battles for points in the French F4 sub-class.
Annabelle Brian now leads the standings with 40 points, one clear of Angelina Proenca and 5 ahead of rookie Clara Stiebleichinger, whose race three DNF proved costly after two class wins.
