Mathilda Paatz claims maiden F1 ACADEMY victory in Montreal Reverse-Grid Race

Aston Martin-supported Mathilda Paatz claimed her maiden F1 Academy victory in the reverse-grid race at Montréal's Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, converting a fourth-place grid position into a historic win for Prema after a race defined by collisions, penalties, and a Safety Car that proved decisive.

A Chaotic Opening

Ferreira and Paatz got away well at the start, with Ferreira slotting into the lead ahead of Countryman, Paatz, Larsen, and Felbermayr through turn one. The early drama began at turn four, where Felbermayr went around the outside of Larsen — a battle that resumed through turn nine, culminating in contact that sent Felbermayr spinning. The incident gifted the top three a gap to the rest of the field, with Payton Westcott moving up to fourth and Larsen regrouping in fifth.

Further back, chaos was unfolding in the midfield. Hitech's Ava Dobson was eliminated after wildcard Autumn Fisher made contact at turn nine in the same sequence of events involving Felbermayr and Larsen. Her teammate Rachel Robertson also retired — bottlenecked by Williams-supported Jade Jacquet, which left McLaren-backed Ella Lloyd with nowhere to go, and Robertson's car paying the price.

Restarts, Penalties, and a Title Twist

Racing resumed on lap seven, with Ferreira leading Countryman, Paatz, Westcott, Larsen, Alisha Palmowski, Megan Bruce, Nina Gademan, Lisa Billard, and Natalia Granada completing the top ten. Having starred earlier in the weekend — Palmowski had won the opening race in dominant fashion — the German now found herself fighting through the pack rather than leading it.

The restart brought fresh incidents almost immediately. Palmowski went deep into the turn 10 hairpin on lap seven, picking up front-wing damage and falling to seventh. Felbermayr, still recovering from her earlier spin, passed Ella Stevens for 13th — though Stevens would face her own troubles after being penalised for a starting procedure infringement at the Safety Car line, earning a stop-and-go penalty for the McLaren-backed Rodin driver.

Ferreira's start had already come under scrutiny by this point. Replays were inconclusive — some appearing to show a clean getaway, others suggesting she had moved marginally before the lights went out. The decisive piece of evidence came from her own onboard footage, which showed she had barely jumped the start.

Elsewhere, Jacquet collected a five-second penalty for speeding in the pitlane during the Safety Car period. Palmowski, told to pit for her damaged front wing, ignored the instruction and continued on track, battling Bruce for sixth.

On lap 12, Paatz made the decisive move of the race, sweeping past Countryman at the final chicane to take second. But almost simultaneously, the pack behind erupted: Bruce and Palmowski made contact, with Gademan collected in the accident. Gademan retired on the spot, while Bruce and Palmowski resumed in ninth and 14th respectively.

A second Safety Car period followed, by which point the thirty-minute race duration had been reached — meaning only one final lap would be run after the restart, cutting the race from 17 to 16 laps and intensifying the pressure on every driver on the grid.

The Final Lap Delivers

Ferreira led the pack away for the last time ahead of Paatz and Countryman, but the race was not yet settled. At the restart, Bruce lost two places to Lloyd and Felbermayr.

Then came the outcome that changed everything. Ferreira was handed a penalty for her earlier jump start, promoting Paatz to victory in her first-ever F1 Academy win. Behind her, Larsen produced a composed move on Countryman at the hairpin, winning the braking battle into the final corner to secure second.

Countryman held on for third by the slimmest of margins over Westcott and Granada, claiming her first podium in F1 Academy. Lloyd and Felbermayr both recovered from difficult afternoons to score points in seventh and eighth respectively — a strong response to the chaos that had engulfed the earlier stages of the race.

For Paatz, it was a breakthrough moment — a maiden victory carved out through patience, consistent pace, and one perfectly timed overtake under enormous pressure.