Maya Weug rose to the occasion at Zandvoort, snatching a last-gasp pole position in front of her home crowd after a dramatic F1 Academy qualifying shootout.
The Ferrari-backed driver reignited her title challenge by setting the pace on Saturday, bouncing back after losing the championship lead to Doriane Pin in Montreal.
Weug’s late flyer edged Alisha Palmowski by just 0.039s to take pole for Race 2, with McLaren-backed junior Ella Lloyd completing the top three.
After a summer break, F1 Academy returned to action at Zandvoort, the only circuit to feature in all three seasons of the series, for Round 5 of the 2025 campaign.
With the title fight heating up between championship leader Pin, Chloe Chambers and Weug, the weekend began with Palmowski topping FP1 before Chambers mastered mixed conditions to lead FP2.
The weekend’s wildcard entry was local favourite Esmee Kosterman, backed by TeamViewer and lining up with Hitech.
Hitech team-mate collision sparks early red flag
Heading into qualifying, Campos Racing hoped to carry the momentum from Friday’s practice sessions, as all 18 drivers ventured onto a slightly damp Zandvoort circuit on wet-weather tyres.
Barely three minutes into the session, though, the red flags were out when Hitech’s Aiva Anagnostiadis slid into the gravel at Turn 1. Replays revealed contact from her own team-mate, Nicole Havrda, leaving the Australian beached and prompting the stewards to launch an investigation into the incident.
The session quickly resumed, with ART’s Aurelia Nobels laying down the first representative lap at 1:48.805s, though her benchmark was swiftly beaten.
Lloyd briefly moved to the top before Weug lowered the target to 1:48.399s. Meanwhile, Aston Martin-backed Tina Hausmann slotted in between them to split the pair.
Weug lowered the benchmark to a 1:48.053s, but Pin soon found her rhythm, climbing from sixth to snatch the top spot with a 1:47.784s. At the same time, ART gambled by calling Lia Block in for slicks, with the crossover point looming ever closer.
As the session reached its midpoint, more drivers switched to dry tyres, while Block continued searching for grip on the emerging dry line. Her opening effort was still off the pace, but Block still hoped to retain an edge thanks to the extra laps spent adapting to the tricky conditions.
Courtney Crone was the first to make gains, lifting her ART machine into third with a 1:48.448s. Palmowski then seized provisional pole with a 1:45.441s, only to have her effort deleted for track limits.
Moments later, the session was halted again as Nobels slid into the gravel at Turn 7, triggering a red flag and sending the field back to the pits with just over nine minutes remaining.
Before the stoppage, Block had improved to reclaim the top spot, her 1:46.195s good enough for provisional pole ahead of Kick Sauber junior Emma Felbermayr, who also found time on the board before the interruption.
Chaotic pole shootout ends with Weug on pole
When the session resumed, the track came alive with a flurry of personal bests as the fight for pole intensified. Weug, Block, Pin, Lloyd, Chambers, Palmowski and Felbermayr all traded fastest laps in a frantic shootout.
After two rounds of flying laps, Felbermayr briefly held the advantage before Weug struck back with a 1:39.632s, a benchmark that proved difficult to beat with under two minutes remaining.
Palmowski and Chambers surged into second and third, only for Block to steal top spot with a 1:39.279s. But Weug immediately responded with a 1:38.975s.
As the chequered flag fell, Chambers slotted into second, unable to take pole, while Felbermayr stayed sixth. Palmowski then produced a stunning final effort to go fastest with a 1:38.873s. Block followed but could do no better than fourth, Lloyd jumped to second, and Pin managed only fifth.
At the death, however, the home favourite had the final word: Weug lit up Zandvoort with a 1:38.834s, snatching pole for the Dutch crowd and her MP Motorsport team.
Palmowski secured a spot on the front row in second, with Lloyd completing the top three. Chambers took fourth ahead of Pin in fifth, while Block ended up sixth fastest alongside Hausmann in seventh.
Rounding out the top eight, Nina Gademan claimed reverse-grid pole for Race 1 later on Saturday.
READ MORE – Chloe Chambers storms to first F1 Academy win of 2025 from pole in Canada
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