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Alisha Palmowski established herself as the driver to beat on the opening day of in-season testing at Circuit Zandvoort, topping both the morning and afternoon sessions. The Red Bull Racing driver set a 1:37.146 in the first session before returning to the top in the afternoon with a 1:37.200, finishing five tenths clear of Emma Felbermayr.
The result underlined the strength of Palmowski’s day after she arrived at Zandvoort as the Standings leader. Her pace also provides an immediate reference point for the rest of the field ahead of the second day of running. The wider context of the test was outlined in F1 ACADEMY’s Zandvoort in-season testing preview.
The opening session began cautiously, with only a handful of reconnaissance laps completed during the first hour. Palmowski then moved from a 1:40.241 to a 1:37.146 across her next four laps, going two tenths faster than Alba Larsen.
Zoe Florescu caused the first interruption when the Zandvoort Wild Card driver stopped at pit entry. After the restart, the field increased its mileage, but Palmowski’s benchmark remained untouched. Three further red flags followed during the third hour: Rafaela Ferreira found the barrier at Turn 9, Esmee Kosterman stopped at the exit of Turn 10, and Florescu came to a halt at Turn 3 with three minutes remaining. The session was not restarted.
Ella Lloyd finished third, 0.281 seconds behind Palmowski, ahead of Lisa Billard and Felbermayr. Rachel Robertson, Nina Gademan, Ferreira, Kosterman and Natalia Granada completed the top 10.
Lloyd was the early pace-setter in the afternoon, but Felbermayr, Lloyd and Billard traded the lead as the times fell. Billard, making her first appearance at Zandvoort, lowered the benchmark to 1:38.111, while Lloyd later posted 1:37.805 and Felbermayr set a 1:37.726.
Palmowski then delivered the decisive lap: a 1:37.200 that put the Red Bull Racing car five tenths clear of Felbermayr’s #5 Audi. A brief red flag followed when Palmowski reached the gravel at Turn 7, while Jade Jacquet later hit the barrier at Turn 9.
Neither interruption changed the order at the front. Felbermayr ended the afternoon second, followed by Lloyd, Robertson, Granada and Gademan. Billard was seventh, ahead of Kosterman, Larsen and Payton Westcott.
Day 2 is scheduled to begin at 08:30 local time (UTC+1).
Ciara is a Dublin native, award-winning film producer, podcaster and writer with 20 years of storytelling experience. A lifelong Leinster and Ireland rugby fan, she turned her attention to the grid after moving to Berlin and co-founding Formula Live Pulse. Now, she applies her producer’s brain to Formula 1, navigating the highs of Oscar Piastri’s rise and the unique stress of being an adopted Ferrari fan. She loves talking and talking about F1, if you give her the chance!