Reigning F1 Academy Champion Abbi Pulling has said she will focus purely on herself and her performances as she readies herself for her debut season in the GB3 Championship.
Pulling, who stormed to the F1A title with nine wins in 15 races, earned her seat with Rodin Motorsport as part of her successful campaign, and has also become an ambassador for the British-based New Zealand racing team.
In doing so, she has severed ties with Alpine, having been contracted to its academy for almost three years.
The UK-based series is beginning to gain traction with motorsport fans, with many of its drivers going on to compete in FIA-affiliated series, and Pulling, in an exclusive interview with Motorsport Week, recognised the enormity of the opportunity that faces her.
“I think the GB3 championship’s great,” she said. “I mean, first off, having the prize from winning F1 Academy to compete in it is a dream come true and without that, I wouldn’t be in it, so I’ve got to make sure I acknowledge that.
“It’s been breeding some Formula 2 drivers now, the likes of Luke Browning, and he’s jumped in an F1 car a few times.
“But even so, that was the old car, whereas now it’s even faster, got even more downforce, got DRS, there’s lots more gadgets to play at, which is then making it, again, a step closer to that FIA F3 spec car and better preparation for drivers that want to jump into the F3 and 2.”
Since this interview, Pulling has now begun preparations for the season, which commences at Silverstone on April 26-27.
This week’s pre-season testing at Snetterton saw Pulling classified in fourth and sixth place respectively in both sessions.
On both days, she ended the day over a second faster than fellow F1A alumni Bianca Bustamante, and only between three to five tenths off team-mate Alex Ninovic, runner-up in GB4 last year.
Despite already being a race-winner in British Formula 4, Pulling acknowledges that being in a mixed-gender championship, along with her ever-growing profile, might place some extra attention on her, but seems totally unfazed about the task ahead.
“I think winning F1 Academy and being a female going into a mixed class at a higher level, I have a lot of eyes on me and a lot of people that will have their opinions, but to be honest, I’m just going to have my blinkers on, focus on myself, focus on what I need to do and the performance on track. I think, that’s the thing that’s most important to me.
“I just want to help the team progress and understand the car better, as well as myself. I’ll hopefully progress throughout the season and, yeah, get some results, hopefully.”
Abbi Pulling: ‘I’d like to try my hand’ at Formula E in the future
On top of her barnstorming F1A win, Abbi Pulling played an instrumental part in the success of the all-women’s Formula E test that took place at Circuito Jarama in November last year.
In a first for an FIA World Championship, the test was comprised 18 drivers across the 11 FE teams on the grid, and Pulling set the fastest time – a 1:30.889s, three tenths quicker than second-placed Jamie Chadwick.
Despite having never driven an FE car before, Pulling’s time was just under 3.5s of the fastest time of the whole week, set by Mitch Evans.
Pulling’s connections with Alpine helped her secure her seat with Nissan for the test [the two teams are both based in Viry, France], and conveyed her gratitude to the Japanese marque for making the opportunity happen.
“Yeah, it was fantastic,” she said. “I can’t thank Tommaso [Volpe, Team Principal] and Dorian [Boisdron, Technical Director] enough for that opportunity to jump in the car.
“It was a really, really fun test, although it was, half a day…it was limited, it was still really vital and useful, and I learned a lot, [and] great working with the team.
“After that, I’ve kind of put a foot in the door in the Formula E paddock. It’s something that I’ve always spoke I’d like to try my hand at, and it’s just made me that much more keen to get involved and see if there’s any opportunities in the future, whether that be with Nissan or someone else.”
Formula E has announced a second women’s test for this autumn, which may give Pulling such an opportunity, but for now, her career is set to take a brand-new turn as she places her feet on yet another new rung of the motorsport ladder.
READ MORE – Formula E confirms women’s test for October 2025
