Chloe Chambers claims pole position in Jeddah ahead of Doriane Pin and Maya Weug at the end of F1 Academy Qualifying in Saudi Arabia. Palmowski and Larsen shine, while AlYousef struggles.
Under the floodlights of the Jeddah circuit in Saudi Arabia, F1 Academy Qualifying has just concluded, wrapping up the first day of the Grand Prix weekend in the Middle East. The session saw American driver Chloe Chambers — backed by Red Bull Ford — claim pole position, ahead of a struggling Doriane Pin and Maya Weug, who completed the top three.
Among the standout drivers to watch this F1 Academy season is Alisha Palmowski, who came close to snatching pole before being outpaced by her Campos Racing teammate. Completing the top ten are Alba Larsen, Tina Hausmann, Ella Lloyd, Emma Felbermayr, Nina Gademan, and Chloe Chong. No praise, however, for wildcard entry Farah AlYousef, who will start from the penultimate spot in both races this weekend in Saudi Arabia.
F1 Academy Qualifying in Saudi Arabia – Session Report
Ella Lloyd, the British driver supported by McLaren and racing for Rodin Motorsport, was the first to set a benchmark time — a 2:06.550 — despite struggling with some lock-ups. However, Maya Weug quickly lowered that lap with a 0.480s advantage, coming close to the pace she had shown in the single Free Practice session earlier in the day.
The first major twist came just seven minutes into the session: Lia Block, reporting reduced grip over the radio compared to the morning, crashed into the wall at the final corner — a scenario eerily similar to Yuki Tsunoda’s incident in F1 FP2. A tough start to the season for the American driver, who once again missed out on qualifying after also being sidelined during the Shanghai weekend due to a Free Practice collision with Rafaela Ferreira.
Once the session resumed, Ella Lloyd temporarily reclaimed the top spot, only to be surpassed by Maya Weug by just 0.051s. Behind them were Alba Larsen and Alisha Palmowski. Doriane Pin, meanwhile, wrapped up her first run after the red flag in seventh place, trailing by 0.876s. Palmowski then jumped to the top of the timing sheets, but Chloe Chambers soon bettered the Ferrari Driver Academy driver’s morning benchmark, setting a provisional pole time of 2:05.097.
Despite a few errors and corrections, Lloyd moved into third place, behind the Red Bull Ford-backed Chambers and Red Bull Racing-affiliated Weug. Using a strategy reminiscent of Doriane Pin’s approach in China, Weug returned to the track on used tyres with six minutes remaining, reclaiming Lloyd’s spot before being overtaken by Alba Larsen.
But it was Doriane Pin who made a statement. The French driver, supported by Mercedes, became the first to dip below the 2:05 mark, posting a 2:04.816. Meanwhile, a mistake at Turn 13 cost Weug valuable time, placing her fifth. Chloe Chambers responded by reclaiming the top spot, going 0.255s faster than the championship leader. Late drama came from Palmowski, who kept her car on track after a moment of instability but compromised her flying lap in the process.
F1 Academy will return to the track tomorrow, April 19 at 14:20 CET for the Sprint Race, with Sauber-backed Emma Felbermayr starting from reverse-grid pole. For Race 2, Chloe Chambers will line up on the front row alongside Doriane Pin.
Photo: F1 Academy.
