Felbermayr wins for the first time in F1 Academy: "I'm proud of the progress I've made"

After six races without success, Emma Felbermayr finally managed to climb onto the top step of the podium in Race 2 at the Gilles Villeneuve circuit. By climbing to sixth place in qualifying, the Sauber-backed driver had already laid the foundations for a successful weekend. Indeed, she had never qualified so well this season, suggesting a strong pace for the future.

Holding the sixth fastest time, the Austrian, daughter of driver Horst Felbermayr, started from third place on the starting grid for the second race, thanks to the reverse grid. Taking advantage of a hectic race, marked, just like the first of the weekend, by numerous collisions, Emma Felbermayr finally succeeded where she had failed before Montreal.

Qualifying 7th or 8th since the start of the season, and consistently between Shanghai and Miami, the young driver always started from the front row, but seemed to be overtaken each time by the much superior pace of her rivals. This time, it was by starting from the second row that she was able to show off her qualities.

Relief and areas for improvement still visible for Felbermayr

“This weekend was very special for me. Even though I was disqualified in Race 1, I didn't let myself get down and I stayed focused, she communicated after the weekend. Bouncing back to win my first victory in F1 Academy in Race 2 was an incredible feeling and a huge confidence boost – it was great to see the team cheering me on from the podium. Race 3 was a bit more challenging, but I kept pushing hard and learned a lot from the experience. Overall, I'm happy with how the weekend went. I'm proud of how I've come in these first four rounds, and I'm looking forward to continuing this momentum for the rest of the season, starting at Zandvoort."

Indeed, despite this first success, which boosted the Austrian driver's confidence, the disqualification in race 1 could well have destroyed her motivation. Initially third, Emma Felbermayr saw her car being weighed below the minimum weight allowed after the race. As for the third and final track meeting of the weekend, a further loss of pace caused her to fall to tenth position. This shows a still latent difficulty in being fast over the duration of a weekend, faced with a track that increases in temperature throughout the week. Currently ninth in the championship, the rookie wearing green now has 21 points.

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