Pulling refusing to let title fight pressure get to her after ‘perfection’ on the Miami streets

Race weekends don’t come much better than this for Abbi Pulling, as the Alpine driver put together an almighty performance throughout Round 2.

Tackling the issues she identified in Free Practice 1, Pulling and her Rodin Motorsport team quickly overcame them, going fastest in FP2 before sweeping the board with both pole positions and victories. Only a missing point for the fastest lap in Race 1 denied her a Grand Slam weekend.

Understandably “over the moon” about her best-ever F1 ACADEMY weekend, Pulling believes every little helps in the long run, with a total of 280 points to play for across the five remaining rounds.

“It literally couldn’t have been any better this weekend,” she remarked. “To take the fastest lap as well in that one — that extra point, they go a long way. So, I’m over the moon.”

Despite a substantial 34-point buffer to Doriane Pin in the Drivers’ Standings, the Briton is steadfast in putting the title fight to the back of her mind at this stage.

“To be honest, I’m not even thinking about it,” Pulling admitted. "I’m just going to keep doing what I’m doing. It seems to be working, keeping my headspace. I’m not even going to look at the table, it’s not worth it.

“But I know that we have a little bit of a gap, so if anything was to go wrong — at least you’ve got that buffer. I can’t thank the boys and girls at Rodin Motorsport enough for this weekend, it’s been absolute perfection.”

Pulling seems to have found her ideal mindset this season. Doing things her own way, she is refusing to be weighed down by the expectations of others, or herself. Instead, she said that focusing on the enjoyment of racing is fuelling her success.

READ MORE: RACE 2: Pulling completes the Miami double with masterful victory

“It’s just been perfect,” Pulling explained. “I don’t want to put pressure on myself. I think being in the position that I’m in, people would think that I’ve got the most pressure on myself. But at the end of the day, it’s however much pressure you’re putting on yourself.

“I’ve definitely been victim of doing that to myself in the past, but this year I’m trying to be a new Abbi. Trying to be a better version of myself and I always say, ‘a happy Abbi is a fast Abbi’, so I’m keeping the smiles going.”

Turning her attentions towards Round 3 in Barcelona next month, Pulling admitted that her pre-season testing pace wasn’t on par with what she’s shown since then.

Achieving P2, P3 and P4 finishes at the Spanish circuit, the Alpine driver is looking forward to the change of track after two tight street venues.

READ MORE: Schreiner satisfied by Race 2 improvements but fell short of pre-weekend targets

“Barcelona was actually one that we struggled at in pre-season testing,” she noted. “We made a few adjustments to the car since then and our tyre management — you’ve seen today, it’s been great.

“So, hopefully that translates to Barcelona. However, it is a very different track, so I’ll be working with the team, making sure we’ve got no stone unturned for that.”