Emma Felbermayr Leads F1 Academy to Montreal by Six Points
Emma Felbermayr takes a six-point lead into f1 academy Round 2 in Montreal after winning the Feature Race in Shanghai. The championship returns to Circuit Gilles Villeneuve with a weekend that can hand out 65 points across three races, so the order at the top can change fast.
Emma Felbermayr and Shanghai
Felbermayr qualified third in Shanghai, then beat Alisha Palmowski off the line on her way to the Feature Race win. That result put her at the top of the Drivers’ Standings, while Nina Gademan moved into third after winning the Reverse Grid Race.
The Shanghai opener set the shape of the championship before Montreal even arrived. Felbermayr left that weekend with the lead, Gademan had already banked a win, and Palmowski had been denied the launch she needed to control the race from the start.
Circuit Gilles Villeneuve Weekend
Montreal is the first of three North American stops for the series this season, and the format is heavier than a standard single-race weekend. The Opening Race on Saturday morning uses drivers’ second-fastest Qualifying times, the top eight in Qualifying are reversed for the Reverse Grid Race, and the Feature Race closes the weekend on Sunday morning.
That structure spreads the points across the full weekend. The Opening Race and the Feature Race award full Grand Prix points to the top 10, while only the top eight score in the Reverse Grid Race, creating three separate chances to make ground before the paddock leaves Canada.
Autumn Fisher Debut
Autumn Fisher makes her F1 ACADEMY debut as the 14th different Wild Card driver in the series. The 18-year-old represents Standard Chartered, took part in last year’s Rookie Test, and has raced in both the French F4 Championship and the British F4 Championship.
Wild Card entries have not yet reached a podium, and Mathilda Paatz missed out on points when Montreal last hosted a Wild Card driver. That leaves Fisher with a clear target on a weekend where a strong result would cut through the field quickly and a quiet one would leave the championship picture in the hands of the established front-runners.
For Felbermayr, the lead is small enough to be dangerous and large enough to defend. Montreal gives her three races to protect it, and the 65-point ceiling means one bad session can be repaired only if the next two go clean.
