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Larsen eyeing up a Las Vegas podium after ‘amazing' top-five finish in Singapore
With just one round left of her rookie season in F1 ACADEMY, Alba Larsen is unwavering in her ambition to achieve a podium after securing a strong result in Singapore Race 2.
The 16-year-old finished in the top five for a sixth time this year, dealing with the changeable weather conditions and Safety Car restart perfectly at the Marina Bay Street Circuit to round off the weekend on a high.
It wasn’t all smooth sailing as Larsen struggled to find the pace throughout Free Practice and Qualifying, unable to qualify higher than ninth place on the grid. In Race 1, she made contact with Wild Card Lisa Billard and was given a 10-second time penalty that made her the last of the finishers.
But Race 2 saw a much improved performance as she gained four positions to cross the line in fifth, the Tommy Hilfiger driver's ninth points finish of the year — the most by any driver who has not scored a podium this season.
“I’m very happy with the result,” she reported. “Finishing P5 in such a difficult race is an amazing result, especially on top of a pretty difficult weekend for me.
“It started off pretty difficult and the race yesterday was pretty difficult, so finishing P5 is great. I feel like I had good pace, especially in the rain.
“We only got one lap after the Safety Car and I was pushing Emma (Felbermayr) really hard trying to get that P4. I think with one or two laps more I definitely would have been there. I think I could have got that podium, so taking that away from the weekend is really nice and taking that into Las Vegas will be really cool.”
The series will head to the dazzling Nevada circuit for the first time next month, presenting a remarkable challenge for the campaign’s finale as none of the drivers or their teams have competed there before, either in F1 ACADEMY or in other series.
Aside from the unfamiliar track layout, the low grip and cold temperatures in Las Vegas will ensure that there is plenty for drivers to learn, but Larsen believes the uncertainty increases up her chances of a strong end to a promising season.
“It’s going to be difficult for all of us but at least we’re even,” the Dane reported. “Half the grid has been to Singapore before so it was especially difficult for me as a rookie being here. I think Vegas is going to be a better opportunity for the rookies – especially for me, I think it’s going to be a good opportunity to be on an even footing with everyone else.
“I’m hoping to achieve a podium – that would be really cool. Finishing off the season on a high would be amazing. We’ll see how it goes, but I’ll just learn as much as possible at a new track and see how much data we can gain.”