The American driver finished second in the final race on Saturday, while the Spanish driver climbed to the third step on Sunday, securing a top-4 finish in the championship. Schreiner matched her best result of the season with a sixth-place finish
The 2024 F1 Academy season concluded this past weekend at the Yas Marina Circuit in Abu Dhabi, with two of Campos Racing's drivers making podium appearances. American Chloe Chambers finished second in the race held on Saturday night, while Valencia's Nerea Martí returned to the podium on Sunday. To round off the team's excellent overall performance in the UAE, German driver Carrie Schreiner also collected a good haul of points, equaling her best result of the season.
The strong synergy between the three drivers from the Alzira-based team was evident from the free practice session, where Chambers set the benchmark time in her Haas F1-colored car, clocking 1m56.175s. Martí recorded the sixth-fastest time with a lap of 1m56.908s, while Schreiner's best time was 1m57.419s.
In the qualifying session, which determined the starting grid for the three races based on each driver's best three laps, Chambers secured her spot on the front row for all three races with laps of 1m56.201s, 1m56.255s, and 1m56.413s. Chambers would line up alongside newly crowned champion Abbie Pulling, aiming to challenge her for victories. Martí qualified eighth for the opening race of the weekend and seventh for the remaining two. Schreiner posted the ninth, tenth, and eleventh best times for each of the races.
On Saturday morning, Chambers rocketed off the line as soon as the lights went out. She reached the first corner in the lead, ahead of Pulling. However, with cold tires, the American lost the rear of her car and spun, dropping to the back of the pack. Meanwhile, Martí and Schreiner were running in sixth and eighth positions, respectively, in the early stages of the race. The Valencia driver defended her position fiercely against her closest pursuer, Maya Weug, with the Ferrari driver unable to overtake the Spaniard over the fourteen laps. Martí finished sixth, while Schreiner came in ninth.
With nightfall over Yas Island, Chambers was again the star during the first lap, overtaking Pulling on the back straight to take the lead. Martí also gained positions at the start, moving into sixth, while Schreiner had less luck, being forced to retire after a collision with another driver. Chambers held off Pulling until the ninth lap, when a slight off-track moment allowed the British driver to reclaim the lead. Chambers, who had set the fastest lap, had no further chance to lead the race, especially as the safety car came out for the final two laps, ending the race under neutralized conditions with Chambers in second and Martí in sixth.
The third and final race saw Chambers as the main casualty, colliding with Doriane Pin at the first corner and both dropping to the back of the field. Martí skillfully avoided the incident, moving up to fourth place. Schreiner also moved into the top eight by the end of the first lap. The battle for the lead was intense between Pulling, Weug, Hamda Al Qubaisi, and Martí, with other contenders like Bianca Bustamante and Lia Block close behind. Several incidents occurred, which Martí managed to avoid, causing spins and penalties. After another safety car period late in the race, Martí crossed the finish line in third place. Schreiner, improving throughout the race, finished sixth. Chambers finished in 16th.
After fourteen races, Martí secured fourth place in the overall standings with 136 points, thanks to four podiums and scoring in all but one race. In her second and final season in F1 Academy, the Valencia driver proved to be one of the most consistent in the all-female category. Chambers finished sixth, the rookie driver achieving one victory, one second place, and two third places, totaling 122 points. Schreiner, like Martí in her second and final season in the category, finished ninth with 34 points. Campos Racing ended the season in third place in the teams' standings with 290 points.
Campos Racing is already looking ahead to the next F1 Academy season, which will begin in 2025 at the Shanghai International Circuit on the weekend of March 22-23.
Photos: © Dutch Photo Agency
