Palmowski certain there’s ‘a lot of time still to unlock’ as she eyes up pole on Singapore debut

Alisha Palmowski was in fine form as she took to the Marina Bay Street Circuit for the first time, as the Red Bull Racing driver finished inside the top three in a closely-fought Free Practice.

Keeping apace with title contenders Doriane Pin and Maya Weug, the Briton held the P1 spot at times throughout the opening 40-minutes of running in Singapore. Clocking a 2:03.995, she came within 0.051s of the fastest time set by Pin.

Speaking after her debrief, Palmowski was satisfied with how she’d gotten to grips with the track but asserts that the field haven’t seen the best of her pace yet.

“I’m feeling really happy,” she began. “It was a really good session. Obviously, my first time at the track, so just getting up to speed learning the circuit. I’m a big fan, it's a really technical circuit so a big challenge.

“But we've got a great balance in the car. It was not at all the perfect lap for me, so we’ve got a lot of time still to unlock. Hopefully we can make that step forward for Qualifying.”

Searching for the limit around the 4.927km track, there were a few on the edge brushes with the wall. Pinpointing the most difficult area to get right, Palmowski admitted that whilst challenges cropped up “everywhere”, the run through Turns 7 to Turn 13 were proving to be the most difficult combination to ace.

READ MORE: PRACTICE: Pin narrowly leads Weug and Palmowski in Singapore opener

“I’d say Sector 2, it’s very technical in particular,” she said. “The exits are so important because many long straights on this circuit so it's finding the right compromise between entry speed and exit speed, which is what we're just trying to refine now so fingers crossed we can get it right.”

Having come close to her first F1 ACADEMY pole position last time out in Zandvoort and bolstered by her strong pace this afternoon, Palmowski has no doubt in her potential. When asked about her chances of fighting for pole this evening, she asserted: “Of course, I wouldn’t have come if not!”