Nissan have announced that 2024 F1 Academy champion, Abbi Pulling will be joining the Japanese team as rookie and simulator driver on a multi-year agreement.
The 22 year old impressed the Formula E paddock last November at Circuito del Jarama in Madrid, topping the timesheets in the first ever all women’s session.
Pulling will become an important member of the team both on and off the track, taking part in Rookie Tests, simulator work and event preparation, as well as in the initial set-up of the squad’s new state-of-the-art, bespoke Dynisma simulator ahead of Season 12.
Considered as one of the most promising young drivers in world motorsport, Pulling has a strong racing CV. In addition to her superb title-winning 2024 F1 Academy season, she also became the first female driver to take a race victory in British F4, and has been competing in GB3 this year, finishing a strong fifth in the season-opener at Silverstone.
I’m really excited to be joining Nissan Formula E Team and extending our collaboration together, after driving for the squad during the all-women’s test in Jarama. Everything the team did for me during the test was so professional. The time and effort put in to make sure I was prepared was great to see, and the crew were patient with me as a rookie. The GEN3 Evo car is so unique, especially the 350kW mode in all-wheel drive which was very fun to use! It’s different from anything I’ve driven before, and it took some time to adjust to the increased power. I’m looking forward to my work in the simulator and to take the car on track as well when the opportunities arise. Pulling on the news.
We’re very pleased to welcome Abbi to the team as our official rookie and simulator driver on a multi-year agreement. We were very impressed with her speed, commitment, and professionalism during the all-women’s test in Madrid last November, and we’re very happy to extend and formalize our collaboration. She is very talented – she was able to adapt incredibly quickly to the car and comfortably top the timesheets, which is difficult in every category but even more so in Formula E, so she is the perfect candidate to join us in this role. Abbi will have many responsibilities in the position we’ve created for her; we want to give her as much experience as possible and we are confident that this long-term, continued collaboration will be very beneficial both for the team and for Abbi, to keep developing as a more complete driver. Tommaso Volpe, Managing Director & Team Principal.
Mercedes backed Doriane Pin secured double pole in qualifying, meaning she will start first in both races across the penultimate 2024 F1 Academy weekend.
Alongside her on both front rows will be her PREMA Racing teammate, Ferrari’s Maya Weug, with Alpine’s Abbi Pulling have to settle for third across the two events as she chases down the Drivers’ title.
After a delayed start to the session due to barrier repairs from an earlier event, Qualifying got underway with just 23 minutes available.
Pin who was quickest in both Free Practice sessions on Friday, set the first representative time of the session to go top of the timesheets with a 1:55.998. However, it didn’t take long for Weug to beat that with a 1:55.779 with the two PREMA teammates going back and forth with the fastest times.
As Pin found herself quickest once again, Standings’ leader Pulling tried to add to her tally of seven pole positions this season.
Several drivers found themselves testing the limits of the circuit layout, with the likes of Haas’ Chloe Chambers driving through the gravel traps, Bianca Bustamante losing the rear of her McLaren into Turns 13 and 14 and Block experienced a spin.
However in the end it was Pin who finished on top as she set a blistering final lap of 1:55.267, going purple in the first sector and improving on her own best time.
Race 1-
Abbi Pulling has secured the 2024 F1 Academy title in Qatar, despite Mercedes’ Doriane Pin claiming a dominant victory from pole position in Race 1.
Pin had been unstoppable so far this weekend, topping every session before delivering a brilliant win in the desert in an attempt to keep her own title hopes alive. However, it wasn’t enough to stop Pulling from claiming the Drivers’ title with the Briton’s second place putting it out of mathematical reach.
Pole-sitter Pin managed to hold her lead over the pack behind on the approach into Turn 1. Behind her, there was a brilliant battle for second place unfolding between Maya Weug and Pulling, as the Alpine racer managed to find a space past.
Hamda Al Qubaisi was also on a charge at the start and made up a position from fifth, while F1 Academy Wild Card Alisha Palmowski also moved up a spot on her race debut.
By the start of the third lap, Pin had pulled out a 1.5s gap to Pulling and continued to extend her lead lap by lap, whilst Weug dropped further off the Brit’s tail in third.
Bustamante had an eventful outing with the McLaren driver finding the gravel on multiple occasions during the race, including at Turn 12 at the start with two big snaps of oversteer. She would also bring out some brief yellow flags during the final few laps as she spun out after getting her wheels in the gravel between Turn 4 and 5.
Meanwhile attentions turned to the front as the race entered its final laps. “You have a four second gap behind so just bring it home” Pulling was told by her Rodin Motorsport team, as Pin drove off into the distance.
The full top 10 are- P1: Pin, P2: Pulling, P3: Weug, P4: H Al Qubaisi, P5: Palmowski, P6: Block, P7: Edgar, P8: Marti, P9: Nobels and P10: De Heus.
Day 3-
Due to extended barrier repairs at the Lusail International Circuit, the race was cancelled.
As a result, no points will be awarded for the race. However, Doriane Pin will receive the two points for pole position.
Alpine’s Abbi Pulling started as she means to go around the Marina Bay Street Circuit, ending Free Practice fastest of all. The only driver to set a time inside the 2:03s, the standings leader kept building a gap over the pack.
The 16 drivers made the most out of every second of the 30 minute session as they began acclimatising to both the track and humidity.
Doriane Pin set the early benchmark with a 2:11.332 whilst Wild Card Ella Lloyd brought out a brief yellow flag after stopping momentarily on track.
As the track rubbered in, times continued to tumble. Pin went fastest once more, but only momentarily as PREMA Racing teammate Maya Weug utilised the tow to pull out an advantage of over one second. The trio traded personal best efforts and Weug responded quickly.
Drivers were all finding the limit and discovering how the Singaporean streets punish mistakes. A spin from Jessica Edgar saw the American Express driver tap the barrier at Turn 8.
Inside the final 12 minutes, Pulling became the first driver to go below the 2:04s mark, going over four tenths faster than Weug.
Track evolution allowed the field to push until the end, as purple and green sectors littered the timing screens. As Pulling went fastest again on a 2:04.648, Marti climbed up into second.
Pin returned to the top spot in the final minute, but it would be Pulling who’d take the chequered flag first and leapfrog the Mercedes driver into P1, setting a 2:03.993.
Qualifying-
Abbi Pulling overcame a three-way fight with Maya Weug and Doriane Pin to seize both pole positions on offer around the Singaporean streets.
The trio traded personal bests throughout the session, but it was the Alpine driver who emerged triumphant, posting an unbeatable 2:03.631 with five minutes left on the clock.
Nerea Marti opened qualifying on a 2:06.806 but the Tommy Hilfiger driver’s initial exploration was swiftly beaten by Pulling.
The Brit’s pace continued to build, as her second flying lap of a 2:04.662 launched her almost five tenths clear. Weug and Pin each demoted her in turn, before Pulling responded with a 2:04.335 to go top by 0.040s.
As the Campos Racing and ART trio led the field peeling into the pits, there was a nervous moment for Amna Al Qubaisi as the RB driver span over the run-off in Sector 1.
Fining more grip on their second set of tyres, personal bests flooded in inside the final five minutes. Pulling re-emerged out in front posting a 2:03.631, whilst Weug became her nearest competitor.
Pulling couldn’t improve on her final attempts, but nobody could answer her previous attempt as Weug and Pin had to settle for second and third, 0.238s and 0.256s back, respectively.
A storming last gasp effort for Lia Block promoted her to fourth, her best qualifying result of the season so far!
The full top 10 are- Pole: Pulling, P2: Weug, P3: Pin, P4: Block, P5: H Al Qubaisi, P6: Chambers, P7: Marti, P8: Lloyd, P9: Bustamante and P10: Schreiner.
Drivers’ Standings leader Abbi Pulling ran the show in Qualifying, going from strength to strength to secure both F1 Academy pole positions on offer in Miami.
Her hold onto P1 was unrelenting, with a time of 1:58.507 in the final minutes of the session putting her over five tenths clear of Doriane Pin and Hamda Al Qubaisi. The Alpine driver will have different company for race 2, as Bianca Bustamante’s consistency was rewarded for P2, four tenths off, ahead of Pin in third.
With only 30 minutes on the clock, there was not a lot of time to lose as the field flooded out as the lights went green. Having set the pace in Free Practice 2, laid down the initial benchmark at 1:59.882.
Ferrari’s Maya Weug took over the top spot heading into the halfway mark, going 0.024s faster than Pulling’s latest attempt.
Benefitting from the track evolution, Bustamante pushed on, deposing Pulling momentarily with a 1:59.122, whilst Pin moved inside the top three. Pulling immediately responded with a 1:58.714.
As Pin improved to just over three tenths off, one flying lap solidified Pulling’s place at the top of the timing sheets, where she broke 0.574s clear of the Mercedes driver.
Hamda Al Qubaisi’s late burst of pace elevated her to third for Race 1 ahead of McLaren driver Bustamante.
The full top 10 for race 1 are- P1: Pulling, P2: Pin, P3: Hamda Al Qubaisi, P4: Bustamante, P5: Weug, P6: Marti, P7: Chambers, P8: Nobels, P9: Hausmann and P10: Lovinfosse.
The full top 10 for race 2 are- P1: Pulling, P2: Bustamante, P3: Pin, P4: Hamda Al Qubaisi, P5: Marti, P6: Weug, P7: Nobels, P8: Chambers, P9: Edgar and P10: Hausmann.
Race 1-
Controlling the race from pole, the Alpine driver led every lap and never looked back, taking the chequered flag with a 5 second advantage over second-placed Doriane Pin. Chloe Chamber gave her home crowd something to celebrate, battling hard to go from P7 to her first podium in the series.
Acing her getaway at lights out, Pulling kept Pin at bay into Turn 1 and immediately set out creating a 1 second buffer to the Mercedes driver in the space of a lap.
At the tail end of the top 10, Tina Hausmann’s race came to an early end after contact with Aurelia Nobels sent the Aston Martin driver off into the wall at Turn 8. Nobels would later be handed a 10-second penalty for the incident.
A three car battle for fourth saw Weug forced to go on the defensive heading into lap 3, as Nerea Marti attempted to move around the outside of Turn 1. Just behind, Chambers sat patiently, waiting to pounce when the opportunity arrived one lap later.
Marti found her way past Weug on lap 6, but a mistake undid all her work and allowed the Ferrari driver and Nobels to slip through momentarily.
Bustamante continued to make up lost ground, diving to the inside of the final corner with a move on Amna Al Qubaisi. Going side-by-side with RB driver, Bustamante managed to eke out ahead, but received a 5 second penalty for going off track and gaining an advantage a few laps earlier.
Out front, Pulling’s mirrors were clear as she crossed the line to win by 5.2s to Pin and Chambers. The full top 10 are- P1: Pulling, P2: Pin, P3: Chambers, P4: Marti, P5: H Qubaisi, P6: Weug, P7: Edgar, P8: A Qubaisi, P9: Bustamante and P10: Lovinfosse.
Day 2- Race 2-
Abbi Pulling made it two for two as she brought home her second win on the streets of Miami. Bianca Bustamante righted her wrongs from Race 1, fending off a late push from Doriane Pin to earn her first podium for McLaren in second.
Pole sitter Pulling was instantly on the defensive from Bustamante as the lights went green, locking up slightly into Turn 1, managing to outbreak the ART car, she managed to hold the lead.
Chambers was once again on a charge after her race 1 podium. A storming start from P8 for the Haas driver saw her slide past Aurelia Nobels, Nerea Marti and Maya Weug in turn through the opening corners and moved to fifth.
Behind her, Tina Hausmann found herself out on the opening lap for the second race in a row. Locking up into Turn 1, Lola Lovinfosse tagged the Aston Martin car ahead, forcing her to retire with a puncture. Lovinfosse later received a 10 second time penalty.
On lap 5, Weug dispatched the Hamda Al Qubaisi, but found her mirrors full of a train of cars behind from P6 to P13. Two laps later, Lovinfosse gambled on another move as Nobels left the door open, with the two running side-by-side.
Bustamante’s hold over P2 had a momentary scare, as Pin closed right in on her tail. However, the Filipina racer kept up her pace to break the slipstream advantage to the Mercedes driver behind.
At the tail end of the top 10, Block hunted down her first points of her F1 Academy campaign. Eyeing a move on Carrie Schreiner in 10th, the Williams went in too deep, allowing Emely De Heus to capitalise and overtake the American driver.
Jessica Edgar was on the march as she overtook Marti for seventh. However, the Spainard wasn’t giving up, diving up the inside of Turn 1 but she overshot the corner and allowing the American Express driver to cutback through. However, Edgar’s race unravelled a few corners later, losing the rear through Turns 6 and 7 and spinning wide over the runoff.
Completing her 27th tour of the Miami circuit, Pulling brought home a comfortable second win of the season. The full top 10 are- P1: Pulling, P2: Bustamante, P3: Pin, P4: Chambers, P5: Weug, P6: H Qubaisi, P7: Marti, P8: A Qubaisi, P9: Schreiner and P10: Block.
Now we have a little wait till the next round, which is Round 3 and we head to Barcelona on the 21st to 23rd of June.
Doriane Pin led from the front and never looked back as she claimed her first F1 Academy victory. Alpine’s Abbi Pulling fended off Maya Weug early advances with a podium in second and retained the bonus point for the fastest lap.
Following an extra formation lap, Pin nailed a textbook getaway at lights out to lead comfortably into Turn 1 from Pulling and Weug. Lovinfosse managed to get the better of Bianca Bustamante off the line, demoting the McLaren driver to sixth.
After starting eighth, Chloe Chambers quickly made up ground, finding her way past Lia Block on lap 2. Immediately piling the pressure on the second ART Grand Prix car of Bustamante.
Tina Hausmann, Aurelia Nobels and Jessica Edgar went three wide down into Turn 1, but it was the Aston Martin car of Hausmann that emerged in front in ninth. Out front, Pin’s 1.2 second lead evaporated at the appearance of the Safety Car on lap 3. A nudge from Amna Al Qubaisi at Turn 4 sent Reema Juffali into a spin, but both were able to pit and rejoin the race.
Block was forced to go on the defensive, being hunted down by Hausmann. The pair locked up, going deep out of the final corner and gifting Jessica Edgar the chance to sneak her way through to eighth.
In the battle for the final points-paying position, Hamda Al Qubaisi got a good run on Nobels down into the final corner, but the PUMA driver defended hard. A mistake on the next lap gave Al Qubaisi the benefit of the slipstream to send a move down the inside of Turn 27, but the MP Motorsport ran wide at the opening chicane and had to let the Brazilian back through.
Block’s race unravelled on the penultimate lap. Comfortably in eighth the Williams driver bounced over the kerb and spun into the barrier as she tried to close in on Bustamante. In the fight for fourth, Lovinfosse tried a look around the outside of Nerea Marti down to Turn 1, but clipped the rear of the Tommy Hilfiger car and sent her into a spin.
Despite leading the race, Pin was not fully satisfied as she tried to wrestle the fastest lap point away from Pulling on the final lap. Unfortunately she wasn’t able to get the clean sweep, taking the victory by 0.848s to Pulling.
The full top 10 are- P1: Pin, P2: Pulling, P3: Weug, P4: Chambers, P5: Bustamante, P6: Hausmann, P7: Nobels, P8: Lovinfosse, P9: H Al Qubaisi and P10: Schreiner.
Day 3-
Doriane Pin closed her first F1 Academy weekend in perfect fashion bringing home her second consecutive victory on the streets of Jeddah.
Pin immediately pulled to the left at lights out to cover off Pulling who kept close within her tow. Just behind, Nerea Marti was on the attack, slipping past Lola Lovinfosse into Turn 2.
The Charlotte Tilbury driver instantly had to go in the defensive as her and Chloe Chambers went side-by-side through Turns 6,7 and 8. The Haas driver emerged out in front after going over the run-off and earned a five-second time penalty for leaving the track and gaining an advantage.
Lovinfosse repaid the favour, gliding past the slipstream. However, Chambers locked up into the first corner, knocking the French driver into a spin. Unable to avoid, Lia Block made contact necessitating a Safety Car. The Williams driver was able to continue after a nosecone change, with Lovinfosse retiring.
With the field bunched together on the restart, Pulling attempted to find her way through on Pin on the short-lived return to Green Flag racing. Fighting over the final point, Carrie Schreiner was sent into a spin whilst battling with Emely de Heus. Forced to take avoiding action, Reema Juffali found the barriers requiring another Safety Car.
Pulling was waiting to pounce on lap 10 restart. Despite Pin going early into the final corner, the Alpine driver caught on and stayed with her down the main straight. Weug found herself vulnerable to Marti.
Recovering from her earlier contact, Block found herself back within the points in seventh. Sandwiched between the Al Qubaisi sisters, the ART Grand Prix car lost out to Amna but kept Hamda at bay.
Out front, Pin set out to earn the grand slam she was denied in Race 1, taking the fastest lap away from Pulling on her final attempt. The PREMA Racing driver took the chequered flag by 1.9s ahead of the Brit and Weug.
However… Doriane Pin has received a drive-through penalty for crossing the chequered flag twice and completing two laps at full speed until the Red Flag was shown. As the penalty could not be served in-race, it has been converted into a 20-second penalty added to her elapsed race time.
Amna Al Qubaisi has been issued a five-second time penalty for leaving the track and gaining an advantage. Lastly, Lola Lovinfosse has been handed a five place grid penalty for the next race for causing a collsion.
As a result, Abbi Pulling is promoted to race victory, Maya Wueg in second and Nerea Marti rounding out the podium.
The full top 10 are- P1: Pulling, P2: Weug, P3: Marti, P4: Edgar, P5: H Al Qubaisi, P6: Bustamante, P7: Schreiner, P8: A Al Qubaisi, P9: Pin and P10: Chambers.
The next race weekend for F1 Academy is the 3rd to 5th May in Miami!
Abbi Pulling is returning for her sophomore F1 Academy season next year, with Alpine announcing that their Academy driver will be continuing to race with Rodin Carlin.
In the series’ inaugural season, Pulling brought home seven podiums, two pole positions and four fastest laps on her way to finish fifth in the Standings.
The Alpine Junior’s single seater career began in 2018, before going on to secure sixth in British F4 in her debut campaign two years later. From there, she entered W Series midway through the 2021 campaign and returned for a full season the following year. She went on to finish fourth in the Standings with two podium finishes, she went on to become a full Alpine Academy member in 2023.
I am very grateful to be coming back for another year as an Alpine Academy driver, and I am honoured that BWT Alpine F1 Team are entrusting me as their driver selection for the 2024 F1 Academy season. This will be my third season in the team’s driver development programme, it’s amazing to be a part of the Alpine Racing family and have such incredible access and support from a Formula 1 team. I am looking forward to competing in the F1 Academy series for a second season and to be racing with Rodin Carlin again. I’m hoping to have a successful year and bring in some good results for the team. I am excited to head into another season of racing on the Formula 1 support bill, the atmosphere is going to be incredible.
Pulling on the news.
We are pleased to announce Abbi as our BWT Alpine F1 Team driver selection for F1 Academy’s 2024 season. This will be her third season as a member of the Alpine Racing family as an Alpine Academy driver, and she has shown some great progress over the course of her time with the team, both on and off the track. She is a fantastic example of how the Academy programme aims to help develop our drivers and support them in the progression of their career, both as drivers and as people. She will be competing in F1 Academy for a second consecutive season and will be supported by the Academy programme and wider BWT Alpine F1 Team throughout her campaign.
Abbi Pulling will be racing with Rodin Carlin this season in the F1 Academy, as well as becoming a fully-fledged member of the Alpine Academy driver programme.
Pulling was an Alpine Affiliate last season during which she achieved a seventh place finish in the 2022 W Series campaign.
The British driver began her career at nine, racing in karting before graduating up to Ginetta Juniors. In 2020, she moved to British Formula 4 where she took four podiums on the way to P6 in the championship.
A second British F4 campaign and a further three podiums followed. She also completed her maiden season in W Series, finishing the 2021 season seventh. The following year, she climbed to fourth place overall, achieving four top five finishes in 2022.
It is great to be competing in the first season of the F1 Academy, especially to be working with such a successful team as Rodin Carlin. Having spent time with the team before, I can’t wait to get the season started, working alongside some incredible people. I have lots of trust in them and know they will push me to be the best I can be. I’m very thankful for the continued support of the Alpine Academy for a second season and the great work of Gazing Performance and Alice Powell behind the scenes. I’m also excited to welcome My First Alert who are supporting my programme for the first time this year.
Abbi Pulling on her F1 Academy seat.
We’re delighted to welcome Abbi to the team for this first season of F1 Academy. Our paths have crossed in the past before and Abbi is a driver we’ve wanted to work with for some time now. We’re really excited that we are able to work on this programme together and have no doubt that Abbi will be a huge asset to the team. Thank you to the Alpine Academy for entrusting us with this next stage of Abbi’s career. We can’t wait to get on track.
Jordan's Track Talk 