Good feelings for Doriane Pin after her return to F1 Academy

Sidelined during the 24 Hours of Le Mans due to a rib fracture, Doriane Pin made her return to the wheel this Friday, during the F1 Academy free practice session in Barcelona.

The French driver finished this first test session in tenth place, but it was above all the fact of getting back into a seat and feeling in shape that was the most important. From this point of view, the free session is a success for the young driver Mercedes Benz, who was also able to beat her two teammates from the Prema team.

“I feel good after this little injury, I'm really happy to be back in the car. I have different feelings than usual because not being able to train and not being able to ride was quite frustrating. We don't lose our sensations, but we end up missing them. Today, I was able to rediscover all the joy that driving a racing car gives me. »

Lots of work left for Prema

The one nicknamed “Pocket Rocket” admitted, however, that there is still work to be done for her and her team after a difficult first session. It is worth remembering that F1 Academy drivers only have one free practice session before qualifying, as is the case in the two other support categories of the Formula 1, the F2 and the F3.

“It was a difficult session for us here in Barcelona. It looks like we still have a lot of work to do, but the evolution of the track will be enormous. Today even more so, because we were the first on the track and we will also be the last, for qualifying, after all the other sessions. I'm looking forward to it and I'm going to keep pushing and working for the best possible result. »

Abbi Pulling (Rodin) set the best time in the free practice session, in the same thousandth of a second as Bianca Bustamante (ART GP). Hamda Al Qubaisi (MP) ranked third. F1 Academy qualifying will take place at 18:30 p.m. this Friday evening, before a race on Saturday, and another on Sunday.