Pacy Palmowski seals double win

Glossop motorsport star Alisha Palmowski soared to the top of the F1 Academy standings over the weekend with a duo of record-breaking wins in Montreal. 

After comfortably securing pole position in qualifying, the Simmondley resident romped to victory in the opening race, showing blistering pace to finish 10.1 seconds clear of her nearest challenger – the biggest winning margin in the competition’s history. 

A lowly P12 finish in the reverse grid race followed, with the 19-year-old slipping down from P8 after a costly collision with Campos teammate Megan Bruce. 

But the Red Bull Racing driver recovered expertly in the third and final contest, navigating the damp conditions to cross the line 10.9 seconds in front of her competitors, smashing her own record in the process. 

Palmowski’s heroics in Canada have seen her open up a 25-point championship lead on Austrian driver Emma Felbermayr, whom she trailed by six going into the weekend. 

The former St Phillip Howard student will look to extend her advantage in round three, which takes place this July at the iconic Silverstone Circuit. 

Following the triumph, Palmowski told the Chronicle:

“It was an incredible weekend for us at Montreal and quite a turnaround from last year.  

“To come away with a double pole position, two race wins, two records broken and the championship lead is a great reward for how hard myself and the team are working behind the scenes.  

“Still a long way to go in the championship so we’ll remain focussed and hopefully keep the momentum going into my home race at Silverstone in July!”