‘A phenomenal farewell’ – Amna Al Qubaisi hoping to keep inspiring young women on home soil in Abu Dhabi

On the eve of her final F1 ACADEMY weekend, Amna Al Qubaisi is preparing for one last hurrah to show fellow Emirati women and girls that they can pursue their dreams.

With 32 races under her belt in the series, Round 7 marks her final appearance at the end of her two-season stint. For the RB driver, there’s no better place to end this chapter than in front of her supportive home crowds.

“It’s actually a really nice way to end the season because it’s also my last year (in F1 ACADEMY),” she said. “Ending it at my home track in front of my home crowd will be a phenomenal farewell.

“It’s quite amazing to see the actual support face-to-face amongst the others. I know a lot of locals volunteering as marshals and they would always send me a message or tell me ‘I’m at this corner, I’m going to wish you the best of luck’.

“They would come to us in the pits after the race is over, so it’s really nice to have more inspiration and more support from them, especially face-to-face.”

From being a nine-year-old watching her father race, Amna Al Qubaisi pursued a journey few other young Emirati girls had taken, climbing up the ranks of karting and later single-seaters.

Speaking earlier in the year, the 24-year-old touched on some of the challenges she’d faced early on in her racing journey.

“I wasn’t just the only female racing driver, but also representing the Middle East,” Al Qubaisi noted. “Every time I would go abroad or compete internationally, people would already spread rumours.

“It was still stereotypical when they would see me on track, so the stereotypes would start coming in and I wanted to change that. In the Middle East, there are women who are not just competing in sports, but they are CEO’s, they are in a field where it’s considered male-dominated, they are leaders. I wanted to change that stereotype and show them that women are more than just what they think they are.”

READ MORE: Yas Marina Preview: Talking points ahead of Round 7

Steadily paving her own way, Al Qubaisi has become a role model for her compatriots and inspiring them to chase their dreams no matter how difficult — an achievement that she holds close to her heart.

“I’m really happy to see people consider me as a role model,” she explained. “I never saw that and I would think of it as I’m just any person who enjoys the sport and would love to share it with everyone else.

“Hearing that from someone is very heartwarming to me. But at the same time, I’m really happy to show them that I’m just competing in a sport, but I’m also signed with Red Bull representing VCARB.

“It’s something that’s still so surreal for every female motorsport enthusiast in the UAE. They thought that it was never possible and seeing us making it possible, it’s giving them an opportunity to new doors.”

Turning her attentions to the Yas Marina Circuit, Al Qubaisi cited the value in-season testing has brought her, admitting that one area remained her Achilles heel until then.

“I really like the technical parts under the hotel, it’s my favourite part. I’ve raced at the track for many years and I’ve never really managed to get it right until the last test day we had, so now it’s become my favourite corner.”

“The big areas I would like to work on would be consistency, try to put everything together and make that perfect lap from the first get-go.”

Al Qubaisi’s 2024 form hasn’t matched up to her success last year, where she secured four podiums including two wins.

This time around, the RB driver has recorded only three points-scoring finishes in Jeddah and Miami and has three remaining chances to add to that tally before the final chequered flag.

When asked about her hopes for her final F1A weekend, she said; “End it on a high note — a podium would be really nice. I would love to eventually end it on a podium. (I need) full focus, no mistakes and try to replicate everything I did from the test.”