Doriane Pin once again quickest with stunning FP2 performance in Qatar

Credit: Joe Portlock

A very strong performance in the latter stages in Qatar of free practice 2, in F1 Academy, sees Doriane Pin end the session top on Friday night.

The Mercedes-backed driver, racing for Prema, had a phenomenal final 10 minutes where she set consecutive fastest laps, in a very competitive latter stage of the second practice session, in what is a significant weekend that she has to make count.

Pin needs a pretty much flawless weekend if she is to avoid losing the championship to the current championship leader Abbi Pulling of Rodin Motorsport and Alpine Academy. Pulling currently has a 95-point lead over Pin with two full rounds worth of points remaining.

Prema's Pin was fastest with a 1:54.794, which was a tenth faster than her championship rival Pulling, who had to settle for second in a closely-fought session. Wildcard entry Alisha Palmowski was third in a superb effort.

How F1 Academy Free Practice 2 unfolded in Qatar

F1 Academy action would return on Friday to conclude the day's running as it would be time for the second and final practice session of the weekend.

In contrast to the day's earlier free practice 1 session, the night skies had fallen and the lights were shining on the circuit and the drivers would be set to complete another 40 minutes of free practice in the evening at the Lusail International Circuit.

Mercedes-backed driver Doriane Pin, the only driver that is mathematically in contention for the championship other than Abbi Pulling, would set the fastest time in the opening practice session - in her Prema machine.

Pin was fastest ahead of Pulling, who missed the early stages of the session with mechanical problems. Maya Weug, backed by Ferrari, made it three Prema drivers in the top three. In FP1, wildcard entry Alisha Palmowski was seventh.

It would be time for free practice 2, and with the green light on at the end of the pit lane, the session would be underway and a flurry of drivers would head out almost immediately. Some of them though would pit after just one out lap.

For the drivers in the early stages, it was all about trying to get temperature into the tyres and warm the brakes up ahead of pushing on flying laps around this tricky and demanding circuit. However, it was not going quite to plan for Bianca Bustamante, as in the first few minutes, she would have a spin but thankfully would be able to continue.

In the first 10 minutes, for a lot of drivers they would be laying down their first representative lap times and Abbi Pulling would be the driver who would be at the top of the times ahead of Chloe Chambers and Jess Edgar. 

Drivers would still be searching for improvements and lap times would be improved, meaning positions were constantly changing up and down the order with Abbi Pulling moving away from top spot for a couple of moments as Maya Weug would have a small stint up at the top of the times.

By the halfway point, all of the drivers had headed to the pit lane for any mechanical changes, tyre changes or simply for the drivers to have a chat with their engineers and review any data. Abbi Pulling was sat at the top with Weug in second and wildcard entry Alisha Palmowski was having another strong showing in third place.

Eventually, slowly but surely the drivers were making their way back out onto the circuit and as the session was approaching the final 10 minutes, qualifying runs would be needing practice ahead of qualifying on Saturday.

The times would change multiple times with many different drivers having spells at the top of the time sheets as drivers were making significant improvements in their lap times. Pulling and Palmowski were shining but as to was Doriane Pin.

Pin would set rapid lap time after rapid lap time and she would do this at the very end of the session to take top spot as the clock hit zero and the chequered flag was brought out. A stunning lap from Pin, and she looked to have great pace and looked to be the favourite for pole position in a potentially championship-deciding weekend.

Pin was fastest by a tenth ahead of Abbi Pulling in second place with a fantastic session from Alisha Palmowski saw the British wildcard entry finish third and completed the top three. Maya Weug of Prema would be fourth with Red Bull Racing backed Hamda Al Qubaisi completing the top five for MP Motorsport.

Jess Edgar would be sixth ahead of Lia Block in seventh with Emely De Heus, Chloe Chambers and Bianca Bustamante completing the top 10.

Action will return at the Lusail International Circuit for F1 Academy this weekend, with qualifying taking place on Saturday afternoon that will set the grid for both races.

2024 F1 Academy Championship: Round 6 - Qatar free practice 2 result

1. Doriane Pin (France, Prema Racing)
2. Abbi Pulling (Great Britain, Rodin Motorsport)
3. Alisha Palmowski (Great Britain, Prema Racing) *WILDCARD*
4. Maya Weug (Netherlands, Prema Racing)
5. Hamda Al Qubaisi (United Arab Emirates, MP Motorsport)
6. Jess Edgar (Great Britain, Rodin Motorsport)
7. Lia Block (United States, ART Grand Prix)
8. Emely De Heus (Netherlands, MP Motorsport)
9. Chloe Chambers (United States, Campos Racing)
10. Bianca Bustamante (Philippines, ART Grand Prix)
11. Tina Hausmann (Switzerland, Prema Racing)
12. Nerea Marti (Spain, Campos Racing)
13. Aurelia Nobels (Brazil, ART Grand Prix)
14. Carrie Schreiner (Germany, Campos Racing)
15. Amna Al Qubaisi (United Arab Emirates, MP Motorsport)
16. Lola Lovinfosse (France, Rodin Motorsport)

Brandon Whiteside
Writer and X Contributer - F1 Journal