Montreal – Race 1: Palmowski wins decisively

The pilot supported by Red Bull Racing literally evolved in its own division this Saturday, for the first round of the weekend in F1 Academy in Montreal, Canada. Palmowski won by more than ten seconds over her teammate Megan Bruce, who started alongside her on the front row.

Mathilda Paatz, the pilot supported by Aston Martinmanaged to secure third place on the podium after a particularly eventful race for the championship leaders. The standings leader before this first race, Emma Felbermayr, stalled on the grid after starting from the second row. The German driver was able to restart her engine and ultimately finished tenth, but she now sees Palmowski take the championship lead, as this additional race of the weekend features the same points system as the main race on Sunday.

Payton Wescott, who succeeds the reigning champion, Dorian PinAmong Mercedes BenzShe also lost valuable points by finishing sixteenth. The American, who was battling for second place, cut the final chicane in the early laps and received a five-second penalty. This penalty ultimately had little impact, as Wescott eventually had to pit to clean the air intakes on her sidepods, which were clogged with grass after she went off track while attempting to overtake Bruce.

Ella Lloyd (McLaren), who started at the back of the pack, managed to climb back up to sixth place overall, greatly helped by the five-second penalty given to the protégé ofAlpineNina Gademan was penalized for failing to follow the return-to-track procedures at the final chicane. This prevents the Welsh driver from losing too much ground before the final two races of the weekend. For the French drivers, the race proved difficult, with Jade Jacquet finishing 13th after starting from the back of the grid, and Lisa Billard having to settle for 15th place after suffering damage to her front wing while attempting to overtake Alba Larsen early in the race.

F1 Academy 2026 – Montreal
The classification of Race 1

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