F1 Academy: The 2025 story so far as the all-female championship increases momentum
- Anny Wooldridge
- 8 hours ago
- 5 min read
F1 Academy so far this season has seen fierce battles, six winners, reverse grid races, rookie wins, penalties, an all-rookie podium, a cancelled race, two championship leaders and two team standings leaders, but we’ve got a long way to go… Caught your breath yet!?
2025 has been a significant year for F1 Academy, marked by racing in four countries, the release of the F1: The Academy series Netflix documentary, and the publication of the F1 Academy Driver Development Guide, all aimed at informing and empowering young girls in the world of motorsport.
2025 season after four rounds
With four rounds of the season taking place already, Mercedes’ Doriane Pin currently tops the standings after adding another win and a podium finish in Montreal. The French driver has a 20-point advantage over second-placed Chloe Chambers.
Ella Lloyd is currently the highest-placed rookie in the standings, having achieved three second-place finishes in Montreal and is currently sitting in fourth place with 67 points.
Alisha Palmowski became the first race winner of the season, claiming victory in the first-ever reverse grid race in Shanghai. Pin took her first race win of the season at Race 2 in Shanghai, followed by race wins from Lloyd, Maya Weug, Emma Felbermayr and Chambers.
In-season testing at Zandvoort
The F1 Academy drivers took part in an in-season testing session in Zandvoort from July 22-23, ahead of Round 5, which will take place over the Dutch Grand Prix race weekend at the end of August. The session had 12 hours of track time across two days, with morning and afternoon sessions.
It was Nicole Havrda who was the first to get a time on the board during the first day of testing, with drivers quickly heading out onto the track to make the most of the running time.
Palmowski set the fastest lap time during the first day of testing with a 1:38.074s lap time, at the very end of the afternoon session. She was followed by Weug in second, with Chambers, Lloyd and Ferreria rounding out the top five.
On the second day, Weug set a lap time of 1:36.789 during the first hour of the morning session, which stood for the rest of the day and put her fastest overall.
Biggest moves of the season so far
Pin did not have the start to the season that she had hoped or wished for, despite the pre-season hype surrounding her. However, with consistent performances including three race wins, she hasn’t finished a race below fourth place this season, giving her enough points to lead the championship.
Pin will be the one to watch going into the last three rounds, with two tracks she is familiar with after achieving a race win in Zandvoort last season and two third-place finishes in Singapore.
Weug’s season, in contrast, started strong with a third and second place finish in Shanghai, a second place finish and a race win in Jeddah, finishing the first four races on the podium.
Despite suffering torrid luck and an illness in Miami, she fought hard to take a fourth-place finish. Weug will be looking to regain her momentum in Zandvoort and try to close the gap to Chambers and Pin in the standings.
Who have the wild card drivers been so far?
At each F1 Academy race weekend, a local or up-and-coming driver competes, allowing more young drivers from each race region to participate.
Wei Shi was the season's first wild card and participated in the Shanghai opener. Wei was the first Chinese driver on the grid and has a strong racing background, competing in the Toyota Gazoo Racing GR86 Cup and the China Endurance Championship. Wei also won the Challenge Cup at the FIA F4 Chinese Championships and came third in the CFGP category. During the Shanghai race weekend, her best result was 14th in Race 2, following a retirement in Race 1 due to a spin.
Farah Alyouseff made her debut in Round 2. Farah is a rising talent in Saudi motorsport and was crowned the Saudi Women’s Karting Champion in 2022. She also has experience racing in the F4 Middle East Championship and completed three days of testing in-season at the Jeddah Corniche Circuit in an F1 Academy car. Farah’s best result of the weekend was a 16th-place finish in Race 1.
American driver, Ava Dobson, made her F1 Academy debut in Round 3 and was supported by F1 Academy’s new financial services partner, Morgan Stanley. Ava finished 13th in Race 1 over the Miami Grand Prix weekend, but Race 2 was cancelled due to rain and rescheduled for Montreal. The 16-year-old American driver is currently competing in the GB4 Championship, sitting 22nd in the standings. She’s also recently been confirmed as part of the prestigious Ferrari Driver Academy from 2026.Â
Mathilda Paatz made her debut in Montreal sporting a Gatorade livery. Due to the rescheduled race, Mathilda took part in three races, with her best result being an 11th-place finish. The 16-year-old German driver is currently competing in the F4 CEZ Championship and secured her first podium with a second-place finish at the Red Bull Ring.
Lloyd is achieving podiums outside of F1 Academy
A small number of F1 Academy drivers are also racing in other series this season. Pin is competing in the Formula Regional European Championship around F1 Academy race weekends. Weug also competed in Round 4 of the championships at Hungaroring in July.
Felbermayr is competing in Spanish Formula 4 as well as the British Formula 4 Championship. Emma is joined in British F4 by Lloyd, Nina Gademan, Larsen and Chloe Chong.
Lloyd is currently ranked the highest in the series out of all the F1 Academy drivers, with a ranking of 13th in the standings. Lloyd is also the only driver to have made it onto the podium this season with a third-place finish in Zandvoort.
Three rounds still to go in 2025
F1 Academy is back with three more rounds of the remainder of the season. The first race back after the break is in Zandvoort and takes place over the Formula 1 Dutch Grand Prix weekend from August 29th to 31st, and is hoped to be less wet than last year!
The penultimate race weekend of the season will take place over the Formula 1 Singapore Grand Prix weekend, from October 3rd to 5th, when the girls will race under the floodlights for the second consecutive year.
For the first time in F1 Academy history, the season finale will take place under the glitz and glamour of the prestigious Las Vegas Strip, surrounded by the thrills and excitement of the Formula 1 Las Vegas Grand Prix weekend, as well as being a new track for the series, adding to the excitement.
All images are credited to F1 Academy Limited.