The 6 storylines to watch for the second half of the F1 Academy season

The third F1 Academy season is winding down a summer break, before the grid returns to action for the final three race weekends of the 2025 campaign.

Fresh off two days of testing at Circuit Zandvoort, site of the next F1 Academy race weekend, the grid is getting ready for the final stretch of the campaign.

Here are the five key storylines to watch.

Last season saw four drivers — Abbi Pulling, Doriane Pin, Maya Weug, and Chloe Chambers — win races. All were first-time winners.

So far this year, three drivers have won their first race: Alisha Palmowski, Ella Lloys, and Emma Felbermayr. And with three races weekends (and six races overall) left this F1 Academy season, will another first-time winner join them?

Several drivers in particular are knocking on that door. As noted above, the next F1 Academy race is set for the Dutch Grand Prix at the end of August, coming after two days of F1 Academy testing at Circuit Zandvoort. That might give Lia Block a shot at her first win, as she was third-fastest on the second day of testing in Zandvoort.

Nina Gademan is another driver to watch in this category. She enters the second half of the season sitting eighth in the F1 Academy Drivers’ Championship race, and is coming off a pair of podiums at the Canadian Grand Prix, the first two podiums of her F1 Academy career.

As noted above, McLaren driver Ella Lloyd notched her first F1 Academy race win with a victory in the first race at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix. When you factor in the trio of P2 finishes she had at the Canadian Grand Prix, Lloyd sits fourth in the F1 Academy Drivers’ Championship, behind veterans Pin, Chambers, and Weug.

Lloyd has 67 points on the season, putting her five points behind third-place Weug and 22 points behind second-place Chambers. Pin leads the way with 109 points.

Can the McLaren rookie climb higher in the standings over the second half of the season? She was impressive during testing at Zandvoort earlier this month, posting the second-fastest time of the session behind only Weug. A strong weekend at the Dutch Grand Prix would set her up for a great final stretch.

When it comes to the F1 Academy Teams’ Championship, it helps when you have the driver leading the standings in your garage.

That is certainly the case for Prema Racing.

With Pin in the fold, Prema leads the way in the Teams’ Championship with 178 points, 27 points ahead of second-place Campos Racing. In addition to Pin, Prema has both Gademan and Tina Hausmann in the fold. Gademan’s pair of podiums in Montreal is a reason she sits eighth in the standings, and after a tough start in China, Hausmann has rebounded with six consecutive points finishes.

Campos is still in striking distance, with Chambers and Palmowski already notching race wins this season. Rafaela Ferreira endured a tough weekend in Montreal, as she finished outside the points in all three races at the Canadian Grand Prix, but she opened the year with a P5 and a P8 at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.

The 2025 F1 Academy season will come to a close at one of the most iconic spots in the world.

Las Vegas.

Formula 1 added the Las Vegas Grand Prix as a race for the 2023 season, but in each of the past two years, the F1 race has been the only item on the docket in Sin City.

That changes this year, as F1 Academy heads to Las Vegas to close out the year, as the first single-seater support race held on the new street circuit.

According to Susie Wolff, the Managing Director of the F1 Academy, this is “testament to the wealth of support” the series receives from both Formula 1 and Liberty Media.

“Finishing our season in Las Vegas will be an iconic moment, and its addition to the calendar is testament to the wealth of support we receive from Formula 1 and Liberty Media,” said Wolff when the calendar was announced last November.

Under F1 Academy rules, drivers are allowed to race for two seasons. This regulation is in place to help drivers progress to higher levels of racing, and to give opportunities for more drivers to make a name for themselves on the grid.

That means that after the Las Vegas Grand Prix, drivers such as Pin, Chambers, and Weug will be moving on, creating spots for some new drivers to join the grid for next season.

One driver to watch for a full-time spot is Mathilda Paatz. The 16-year-old participated in the three races at the Canadian Grand Prix, selected as a wild card participant for a Gatorade-branded car.

“I’m beyond excited to have been selected as the Wild Card driver for Round 4 of F1 Academy at the Canadian Grand Prix, driving the Gatorade race car,” Paatz said at the time. “Growing up, I was captivated by the theatre of racing – the energy, the passion and how drivers carried the pride of their teams. To now be racing on a Formula 1 weekend, with fans around the world watching, is a dream come true. I’m especially proud to partner with Gatorade, a brand that’s championed athletes at every level and is helping pave the way for the next generation of women in motorsport.”

Gatorade is joining the F1 Academy grid on a full-time basis for 2026, not only as the “first official sports drink partner” but also as a sponsor for a team, and a driver.

Given what we saw at the Canadian Grand Prix, Paatz might be that driver.

As the 2025 season winds down, who gets added to the F1 Academy grid for 2026 is a major storyline to watch.

What F1 Academy driver will lift the biggest trophy at the Las Vegas Grand Prix?

At the moment, Doriane Pin leads the F1 Academy Drivers’ Championship with 109 points, followed by Chloe Chambers in second with 89 points. Maya Weug sits third with 72 points, followed by Ella Lloyd with 67 points.

Alisha Palmowski rounds out the top five with 53 points.

Pin looks the favorite to hold onto the lead and secure her first F1 Academy title. She scored a pair of podium finishes at the Singapore Grand Prix a year ago, the site of the penultimate race this F1 Academy season.

But do not count Weug out. She topped the timing sheets during testing at Zandvoort, which could make her a contender for wins in both races at the Dutch Grand Prix at the end of August. That kind of race weekend would vault her right into contention for the title.

Either way, we might see a fantastic finish to the F1 Academy season on the Las Vegas Strip.