Doriane Pin was crowned F1 Academy Champion last time we went racing back in Las Vegas. Since then, many of the drivers from the 2025 grid have left for pastures new, while a new crop of rising talent has joined to take their place. Last weekend saw the blend of rookies and experienced drivers return to the grid for the first time in 2026 as the new season got underway in Shanghai, China. Here are The Paddock Chronicle’s Key Takeaways from that opening round.
Felbermayr Flourishes
In 2025, Emma Felbermayr ended the season with a sole podium (which was also a race win) in Canada and finished in P10 overall, level on points with Lia Block. In her first weekend back in 2026, it’s fair to say she’s smashed past all expectations and established herself as a unexpected, but most welcome, title contender.
“I think I was the underdog because last year I had so many complications and some things with the team. Honestly, I was just not prepared for all of the season. I had some highlights but also some lows. I think I can be one of the favourites now.” – Emma Felbermayr
During Saturday’s race, Emma converted P6 into a P3 podium finish. To get there, she performed a masterful move on Brazil’s Rafaela Ferreira in the closing moments of the race. Sunday then saw her start from P3. Aided a little by Larsen’s off track antics (more on that later), Felbermayr nonetheless remained level headed to keep Palmowski behind her and clinched the win. She leaves Shanghai as both Audi F1’s first podium sitter and race winner, as well as F1 Academy Championship leader – ahead of Palmowski by six points.
It’s the type of story that makes fans fall in love with motorsport all over again. What’s more, it was great to see the amount of support that Emma had from the Audi F1 team itself. Both Jonathan Wheatley and Allan McNish, along with a hoard of Audi personnel, including Carrie Schreiner, were present during the races, as was Gabriel Bortoleto during Sunday’s race. You love to see it.
Alisha Palmowski Starts Strong
In her second full season of F1 Academy and still backed by Red Bull, Alisha Palmowski came storming out of the gates in China. She topped the time sheets in the sole practice session by 0.467 seconds to Alba Larsen. Palmowski then repeated that feat by beating the Dane to Pole Position for Sunday’s Race, this time with a gap of 0.403 seconds to P2.
While the win eluded her for both races, the British driver still put in some solid drives that very much made you think that she has the long game for the season firmly in mind. P5 in Saturday’s race was followed by P2 in Sunday’s. Six points behind Felbermayr in the Championship, she has a three point gap to Gademan in third.
“We need to analyse what went wrong here.” – Alisha Palmowski
After Sunday’s race, she was critical of herself on the team radio. But she was also determined to extract as much as she could from the weekend to do better in the future. Having achieved five podiums last season, including a win, it’s easy to see why Palmowski has the perspective that she does. As someone who is a favourite for the Championship, she now has just over two months to prepare herself as best as possible to strike back when F1 Academy goes racing in Canada.
Redemption for Gademan
When F1 Academy went racing in Shanghai in 2025, victory looked all but guaranteed for Nina Gademan in the reverse grid race. But car trouble at the very end robbed her of that, devastating both driver and fans everywhere. You could understand the anxiety that many had when Gademan found herself lining up on Reverse Grid Pole again in Shanghai in 2026.
But we needn’t have worried. Bathed in enough pink to be seen from space with the naked eye, Nina had a race that was almost as smooth as a tiger in a tuxedo. Leading from lights out, she led comfortably throughout. The only danger came when she had to lead the pack to green again following a brief Safety Car period. But Nina remained calm and collected, keeping rookie Granada at bay all the way to the end to claim the first race win of the new season.
“It was a very easy race. I learned a lot from last year on how to manage a race from P1. I actually had a really bad start, which I normally don’t have. I instantly looked in my mirror and I was like ‘wait everyone else also had a bad start, so I’m safe.” – Nina Gademan
Starting from P8 on Sunday, Nina went on to finish in P4. Put under pressure for the majority of the race by Lloyd behind her, the Dutch driver didn’t relent. P3 overall in the standings is her reward, six points clear of rookie Westcott.
Lacklustre for Larsen
Despite not having finished on the podium in her rookie season, all eyes were on Alba Larsen heading into the weekend. Now with Ferrari backing and an undeniable level of raw speed within her when she’s in the car, many thought she’d take that first elusive podium in Shanghai. But it wasn’t to be for the young Danish driver. In Saturday’s race, Larsen drove into the back of Ferreria and needed a new front wing as a result. Bizarrely, the team didn’t call her in immediately for this and waited instead until the Safety Car had returned to the pits before doing so. She finished in P18 as a result.
Launching off the line in Sunday’s race, Larsen quickly snatched the lead from Palmowski. Again though, it was that pesky Safety Car that caught Larsen out. This time however, it was on the race restart. Going onto the kerbs around the final corner, she bounced over them and launched herself across the gravel on the opposite side of the track. Alba tumbled down the order as a result and could only recover to P8 by the end of the race.
Shanghai thus provided the young driver with a couple of harsh lessons. Hopefully by the time we get to Canada, she’ll have learnt from them and we can see her fighting at the front of the grid where she belongs.
Rookie Watch
F1 Academy saw ten brand new drivers enter the series as it went racing in Shanghai. This didn’t include returning Wild Card driver Wei Shi. But how did these rookies get on and who impressed the most?
Westcott, Billard, Patz and Bruce impressed the most in qualifying. They all drove quick enough to get firmly into the top ten for Sunday. In Saturday’s race, Westcott and Billard continued to impress, finishing in P6 and P8 respectively. But there was one rookie in particular that stole their thunder.
Granada Podiums on Debut
Announced to be joining F1 Academy just days before the start of the season, rookie Natalia Granada impressed everyone by finishing in P2 at the end of Saturday’s Reverse Grid race. What’s more, the Shanghai weekend was the Spaniard’s first time ever driving and competing in single seater machinery. Watch out for this rising star in the future.
Podium & Points on Sunday
Not to be left out, Westcott then went and finished in P3 in Sunday’s race. The Mercedes backed driver was one of only two rookies to score points in both races this weekend. The other was Lisa Billard. Megan Bruce and Ava Dobson also got their first points in F1 Academy as they rounded out the top ten.
Notable Mentions
As mentioned, Payton Westcott impressed from the off in Shanghai. But before her podium, she started strong too as she finished in P3 in Friday’s practice session. She then converted this pace into a P4 starting position for Sunday. Having only previously raced in F1 Academy at last year’s season finale in Las Vegas, it was a strong showing from the American driver on her official debut.
The aforementioned Nina Gademan repeated history by securing reverse pole position for Saturday’s race. Elsewhere, Rafaela Ferreria had her best F1 Academy result to date, finishing in P4 and P6 across the weekend. Ella Lloyd also had a solid weekend back, finishing in P7 and P5.
It was not as positive a weekend for Robertson and Jacquet. The former collided with Wild Card driver Shi Wei on the approach to Turn 14 during Sunday’s race. She’s received a five place penalty for Canada as a result. Jacquet also earned herself the same penalty after rear-ending Esmee Kosterman. Sadly, Kosterman’s car, that carries the Lego branding as part of their official partnership with the series, was not as easily repairable as the title sponsor might suggest.
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F1 Academy returns May 22nd in Montreal, Canada
Feature Image: Audi F1 Media Centre