2026 F1 Academy season
Ongoing women's motor racing championship
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The 2026 F1 Academy season is the fourth edition of F1 Academy, an all-female, Formula 4–level, open-wheel racing championship founded and organized by Formula Motorsport Limited. For the third year running, it supports selected rounds of the FIA Formula One World Championship. 10 of the 18 cars sport liveries sponsored by 10 of the 11 Formula One teams, with new entrant Cadillac supporting an eleventh F1 Academy livery starting in 2027.[1]
Three-time champion Prema Racing entered the season as the defending teams' champion.
Entries
F1 Academy is a spec series; all teams competing with an identical Tatuus F4-T421 chassis and tyre compounds developed by Pirelli. Each car is powered by a 123-kilowatt (165 hp) turbocharged 4-cylinder engine developed by Autotecnica.[2][3]
| Full season entries | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Teams | No. | Driver | Supporting F1 team | Rounds | Ref. |
 MP Motorsport |
3 | Nina Gademan |
 Alpine |
1 | [4] |
| 12 |  Alba Hurup Larsen |
 Ferrari |
1 | [5] | |
| 32 | Esmee Kosterman |
N/a | 1 | [6][7] | |
 Campos Racing |
4 |  Megan Bruce |
N/a | 1 | [8] |
| 18 |  Rafaela Ferreira |
Racing Bulls |
1 | [9] | |
| 21 | Alisha Palmowski |
 Red Bull Racing |
1 | [9] | |
 Rodin Motorsport |
5 | Emma Felbermayr |
 Audi |
1 | [10] |
| 20 | Ella Lloyd |
McLaren |
1 | [11] | |
| 28 | Ella Stevens |
N/a[a] | 1 | [11] | |
| Prema Racing |
8 | Mathilda Paatz |
Aston Martin |
1 | [12] |
| 9 |  Payton Westcott |
Mercedes |
1 | [13] | |
| 19 | Natalia Granada |
N/a | 1 | [14] | |
| ART Grand Prix |
14 | Lisa Billard |
N/a | 1 | [15] |
| 91 | Kaylee Countryman |
Haas |
1 | [16] | |
| 95 | Jade Jacquet |
Williams |
1 | [17] | |
| Hitech |
55 | Ava Dobson |
N/a | 1 | [18] |
| 56 | Rachel Robertson |
N/a | 1 | [19] | |
| Wildcard entries | |||||
| Hitech |
24 |  Shi Wei |
N/a | 1 | [20] |
| Sources:[21] | |||||
Driver changes
- Prema Racing saw reigning champion Doriane Pin move to European Le Mans Series' LMP2 class with Duqueine Team, Nina Gademan move teams to MP Motorsport, and Tina Hausmann leave the series.[22][4] Montreal wildcard driver Mathilda Paatz replaced Hausmann as the new Aston Martin-backed driver, while Las Vegas wildcard driver Payton Westcott succeeded Pin in the Mercedes seat.[12][13] Iron Dames karter Natalia Granada rounded out the lineup with backing from Sephora.[14]
- Joanne Ciconte left the series to compete in Kyojo Cup with KCMG.[23] Alba Hurup Larsen remained with MP Motorsport but switched to Ferrari, taking over from title runner-up Maya Weug.[5] The team signed Alpine Academy driver Nina Gademan, who finished 6th with Prema Racing.[4] Zandvoort wildcard driver Esmee Kosterman will make her full-season debut with MP Motorsport and Lego sponsorship.[6][7]
- Rodin Motorsport replaced Chloe Chong with new McLaren junior Ella Stevens, backed by McLaren Oxagon. Stevens will be making her single-seater debut after topping the 2025 rookie test.[11][24]
- ART Grand Prix lost both Lia Block, who returned to rallying, and Aurelia Nobels, who graduated to the GB3 Championship.[25][26] They replaced them with a pair of French F4 graduates in Singapore wildcard driver Lisa Billard, who retained the support of Gatorade, and Jade Jacquet, who succeeded Block as the Williams-backed driver.[15][17] 16-year-old Kaylee Countryman moved over from USF Juniors and into the Haas seat, previously occupied by Courtney Crone.[16]
- Hitech will have an all-new line up, as Aiva Anagnostiadis was replaced by her Las Vegas substitute driver Rachel Robertson, who secured Puma sponsorship. Miami wildcard entry Ava Dobson took over from Nicole Havrda as the American Express–supported driver.[19][18]
- Campos Racing replaced Chloe Chambers with Singapore substitute driver Megan Bruce, who succeeded Anagnostiadis as the TAG Heuer–supported driver.[8]
Wildcard entries
- Chinese driver Shi Wei returned to race as the wildcard entry for the first round in Shanghai with the support of Juss Sports.[20]
Calendar
The calendar for the 2026 season was announced on 10 December 2025, and amended on 14 March 2026. All six rounds will support the 2026 Formula One World Championship.[27] A three-race format for Montreal and Austin was used to account for the cancelled round at Jeddah.[28]
| Round | Circuit | Opening race | Reverse-grid race | Feature race |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Shanghai International Circuit, Shanghai |
N/a | 14 March | 15 March |
| 2 |  Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, Montreal |
23 May | 23 May | 24 May |
| 3 | Silverstone Circuit, Silverstone |
N/a | 4 July | 5 July |
| 4 | Circuit Zandvoort, Zandvoort |
N/a | 22 August | 23 August |
| 5 | Circuit of the Americas, Austin |
24 October | 24 October | 25 October |
| 6 | Las Vegas Strip Circuit, Paradise |
N/a | 20 November | 21 November |
| Source:[27] | ||||
Cancelled races
| Circuit | Reverse-grid race | Feature race |
|---|---|---|
 Jeddah Corniche Circuit, Jeddah |
18 April | 19 April |
Calendar changes
- The Silverstone Circuit was added to the calendar for the first time and the Circuit of the Americas was reinstated, having previously appeared in the 2023 F1 Academy season. These tracks replaced the Miami International Autodrome and the Marina Bay Street Circuit.
- Round two was set to be held at the Jeddah Corniche Circuit, but was cancelled due to the 2026 Iran war.[29] An additional opening race was subsequently added to the rounds at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve and Circuit of the Americas.[28]
Season Summary
Round 1: Shanghai
Alisha Palmowski took her maiden pole position ahead of Alba Larsen in qualifying. Nina Gademan qualified in eighth place, which gave her the reverse-grid pole for race one.[30]
Alpine-backed Nina Gademan led every lap of the reverse-grid race. In lap 7, Ferrari-backed Alba Larsen collided with Audi-backed Emma Felbermayr. The safety car was called on lap 8 to retrieve debris from Larsen's front wing. Larsen fell to last place after pitting to change her front wing. Despite finishing last, Larsen set the fastest lap.[31] On the closing lap, Felbermayr overtook Rafaela Ferreira to claim third. Gademan won the first race of the 2026 F1 Academy season. Rookie driver Natalia Granada finished in second place, while Felbermayr rounded out the podium.[32]
In the main race, Red Bull driver Alisha Palmowski had a bad start from pole position. Larsen and Felbermayr overtook Palmowski in the opening lap.[33] Granada sustained front wing damage after she collided with the back of Ferreira in lap 1. Williams-backed Jade Jacquet locked up and collided with the back of Esmee Kosterman on lap 6, triggering the safety car. Larsen had a bad restart after the safety car, losing the lead of the race and falling to eighth place. On lap 10, Rachel Robertson collided with wild card driver Shi Wei, leading to a retirement for Wei. Felbermayr won Race 2 ahead of Palmowski and Mercedes-backed rookie Payton Westcott, respectively.[34]
Results and standings
| Round | Circuit | Pole position | Fastest lap | Winning driver | Winning team | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | RG | Shanghai International Circuit |
Alba Hurup Larsen[b] |
Nina Gademan |
MP Motorsport | |
| FR | Alisha Palmowski |
Alisha Palmowski |
Emma Felbermayr |
Rodin Motorsport | ||
| 2 | OR | Circuit Gilles Villeneuve |
||||
| RG | ||||||
| FR | ||||||
| 3 | RG | Silverstone Circuit |
||||
| FR | ||||||
| 4 | RG | Circuit Zandvoort |
||||
| FR | ||||||
| 5 | OR | Circuit of the Americas |
||||
| RG | ||||||
| FR | ||||||
| 6 | RG | Las Vegas Strip Circuit |
||||
| FR | ||||||
Qualifying
The fastest laps from qualifying set the grid for the feature race. The top 8 from qualifying is inverted for the reverse-grid race, with the driver that qualified P8 starting from pole position. The second-fastest laps from qualifying set the grid for the opening race.[35][28]
Scoring system
Two points are awarded to the driver who starts the feature race from pole position. Fastest lap points are also handed out in each race to the driver and team who achieved the fastest valid lap time and classified inside the top 8 for the reverse-grid race, and top 10 for the opening and feature races. No points are given to the driver who clocked the fastest lap time but finished outside the points.[35][36]
- Reverse-grid race points
Points are awarded to the top eight classified finishers. A bonus point is awarded to the driver who set the fastest lap and finished in the top eight.[35]
| Position | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | 5th | 6th | 7th | 8th | FL |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Points | 10 | 8 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 |
- Feature race and opening race points
Points are awarded to the top ten classified finishers. Bonus points are awarded to only the feature race pole-sitter and to the driver who set the fastest lap and finished in the top ten.[35]
Drivers' championship
|
† — Did not finish, but classified | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Teams' championship
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† — Did not finish, but classified | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Notes
- Although Stevens is a McLaren Driver Development Programme member, her entry is not directly supported by the F1 team.
- Alba Hurup Larsen set the fastest lap but did not finish in the top 8, so she was ineligible to score the point for it. Ella Lloyd scored the point for setting the fastest lap amongst the top 8.
- Only in the feature race.