Report
Léna Bühler Fastest in Zandvoort Free Practice
Léna Bühler topped Free Practice in Zandvoort at Round 4 of F1 Academy as she continues her hunt to close the gap at the top of the driver’s standings.
Heading to the Dutch seaside town for the first time this year, the drivers got straight to work, completing a total of 354 laps to get themselves ready for the three races ahead of them.
Free Practice 1
Despite drivers being greeted by grey clouds as they arrived at the track yesterday, the sun broke out ahead of FP1 as all fifteen drivers took to the track.
It was a great start for MP Motorsport who set the early pace with Dutch driver Emely de Heus. Her time of 1:39.593 would eventually be beaten but after taking her first win of the season in Barcelona, the driver will be one to watch this week.
As times across the board began to tumble, Hamda Al Qubaisi and Rodin Carlin’s Abbi Pulling battled for the top spot and finished the session with just 0.2s between them. One of only two drivers to make it into the 1:37s, Al Qubaisi’s time around the 4.259km Zandvoort track was the benchmark as the drivers went into FP2.
Free Practice 2
In a shortened FP2 session, the drivers didn’t waste any time getting up to speed, with Al Qubaisi again leading the way with a 1:38.170, before she went even faster with a 1:37.709.
With just two minutes to go, all the drivers set off on push laps and it was ART Grand Prix’s Bühler, who having secured her first win last time out in Barcelona, set the fastest time of the day with a 1:36.689, ahead of Britain’s Jessica Edgar and Spaniard Nerea Martí.
Swiss driver Lena Bühler said:
“Practice was quite good – we still can improve the lap time as I think we are not yet on the limit and it was good to see how the new tyres were going. The aim is to win the race – it is always the aim!”
What’s Next
The teams will take to the track for Qualifying tomorrow morning at 08:00 before Race 1 begins in the late afternoon at 16:30. Sunday will see the drivers take to the track for two races to wrap up the weekend.
F1 ACADEMY 2023 – ZANDVOORT, FREE PRACTICE 1, FINAL CLASSIFICATION
| DRIVER | LICENCE | TEAM | LAPTIME | LAPS | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hamda Al Qubaisi | ARE | MP Motorsport | 1:37.758 | 17 |
| 2 | Abbi Pulling | GBR | Rodin Carlin | 1:37.964 | 18 |
| 3 | Lena Bühler | CHE | ART Grand Prix | 1:38.422 | 17 |
| 4 | Emely de Heus | NLD | MP Motorsport | 1:38.489 | 13 |
| 5 | Marta García | ESP | PREMA Racing | 1:38.656 | 17 |
| 6 | Chloe Grant | GBR | ART Grand Prix | 1:38.964 | 17 |
| 7 | Nerea Martí | ESP | Mercantile Campos Racing | 1:39.040 | 17 |
| 8 | Carrie Schreiner | DEU | ART Grand Prix | 1:39.093 | 16 |
| 9 | Bianca Bustamante | PHL | PREMA Racing | 1:39.451 | 14 |
| 10 | Amna Al Qubaisi | ARE | MP Motorsport | 1:39.643 | 17 |
| 11 | Jessica Edgar | GBR | Rodin Carlin | 1:39.776 | 17 |
| 12 | Lola Lovinfosse | FRA | Mercantile Campos Racing | 1:39.816 | 16 |
| 13 | Chloe Chong | GBR | PREMA Racing | 1:39.888 | 16 |
| 14 | Megan Gilkes | CAN | Rodin Carlin | 1:40.154 | 16 |
| 15 | Maite Cáceres | URY | Mercantile Campos Racing | 1:41.674 | 17 |
F1 ACADEMY 2023 – ZANDVOORT, FREE PRACTICE 2, FINAL CLASSIFICATION
| DRIVER | LICENCE | TEAM | LAPTIME | LAPS | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lena Bühler | CHE | ART Grand Prix | 1:36.689 | 7 |
| 2 | Jessica Edgar | GBR | Rodin Carlin | 1:37.032 | 7 |
| 3 | Nerea Martí | ESP | Mercantile Campos Racing | 1:37.092 | 8 |
| 4 | Chloe Grant | GBR | ART Grand Prix | 1:37.357 | 7 |
| 5 | Bianca Bustamante | PHL | PREMA Racing | 1:37.380 | 7 |
| 6 | Abbi Pulling | GBR | Rodin Carlin | 1:37.439 | 8 |
| 7 | Marta García | ESP | PREMA Racing | 1:37.532 | 7 |
| 8 | Hamda Al Qubaisi | ARE | MP Motorsport | 1:37.543 | 8 |
| 9 | Carrie Schreiner | DEU | ART Grand Prix | 1:37.613 | 7 |
| 10 | Lola Lovinfosse | FRA | Mercantile Campos Racing | 1:37.840 | 7 |
| 11 | Emely de Heus | NLD | MP Motorsport | 1:38.212 | 7 |
| 12 | Amna Al Qubaisi | ARE | MP Motorsport | 1:38.442 | 8 |
| 13 | Megan Gilkes | CAN | Rodin Carlin | 1:38.736 | 7 |
| 14 | Chloe Chong | GBR | PREMA Racing | 1:38.782 | 7 |
| 15 | Maite Cáceres | URY | Mercantile Campos Racing | 1:40.309 | 7 |