The first-ever 2026 F1 Academy British GP delivered historic moments, home success, and plenty of drama as the season reached its halfway point. While some drivers made the most of the iconic Silverstone circuit, others left wondering what might have been. Having reached the halfway point of the season, we take a look at the winners and losers of the 2026 F1 Academy Silverstone round.
Winners of the 2026 F1 Academy British GP
Alisha Palmowski – Campos Racing (supported by Red Bull Racing)
Alisha Palmowski emerged as one of the biggest winners of the 2026 F1 Academy British GP as she now enters the summer break with a 30-point lead over rival Emma Felbermayr in the Drivers’ Standings.
The Briton finished Free Practice in P2 before settling for P2 in Qualifying, missing pole by just 0.177s after a costly moment of oversteer. Starting from P7 in the Reverse Grid Race, Palmowski managed to move up only two places, finishing P5. Despite lacking confidence throughout the opening sessions, the Campos Racing driver bounced back in the Feature Race.
At lights out, Palmowski made the better launch off the line, overtaking polesitter and Wild Card Chiara Bättig. The Red Bull Racing driver controlled the race from there, resisting pressure from Bättig and a safety car restart to claim a dream victory on home soil.
The victory marks her third win of the 2026 F1 Academy season, helping her become the only driver so far to break the 100-point mark in the Standings, with 108 points.
Wild Card Chiara Bättig – Hitech (supported by Wella Professionals)
Wild Card entrant Chiara Bättig made history at the 2026 F1 Academy British GP, becoming the first Wild Card to top a session, claim pole, and take a podium finish.
The 16-year-old driver immediately showed strong pace, using her British F4 knowledge to top the timesheets in Free Practice. She continued her momentum in Qualifying, setting a 2:01.775 pole lap in the final minutes of the session to become the youngest-ever F1 Academy polesitter and the first Wild Card driver to take pole.
Her lack of F1 Academy experience was first evident at the Reverse Grid Race start, as she struggled to get off the line, dropping from P8 to P10. However, after quickly regaining confidence, she made her way back into the points with bold overtakes, ultimately finishing P8. The following day, Bättig had another poor start, losing P1 at lights out as Palmowski made a better one.
Despite the loss, the Swiss driver remained close behind, keeping the pressure high while building an 8.6-second gap over Emma Felbermayr in P3. Crossing the line in P2, Bättig secured the highest-ever F1 Academy Wild Card result and claimed Hitech’s first piece of silverware.
Emma Felbermayr – Rodin Motorsport (supported by Audi)
Emma Felbermayr earned a place among the 2026 F1 Academy British GP winners after recovering brilliantly from a disappointing Qualifying session.
The Rodin Motorsport driver began her weekend well, claiming P4 in Free Practice. However, Qualifying saw a fall in performance, as she only managed P8, being 0.648s slower than Bättig. Starting from Reverse Grid Race pole, Felbermayr had a good launch off the line, immediately building a gap to her rivals. She controlled the race from lights out to the chequered flag, claiming her second victory of 2026 and retaining P2 in the Drivers’ Standings.
She continued her comeback during Sunday’s Feature Race, gaining four places on the opening lap. Moments after a safety-car restart on Lap 5, Felbermayr engaged in a close wheel-to-wheel battle with Ella Lloyd, making her way past with a bold move to take P3. She remained in the position for the remainder of the race, crossing the line 8.5s behind Bättig and Palmowski.
Although she lacked the extra performance to close in on the top two, Felbermayr’s strong results allowed her to continue her consistent point-scoring run.
Losers of the 2026 F1 Academy British GP
Lisa Billard – ART Grand Prix (supported by Gatorade)
Lisa Billard had a disappointing 2026 F1 Academy British GP weekend, securing only three points despite showing impressive speed in Qualifying.
Driving at Silverstone for the first time in her career, Billard secured her best-ever Qualifying result of P3, finishing just 0.405s off Bättig’s pole. The result beat her previous best Qualifying result of P5, which came at the 2025 F1 Academy Singapore round when she debuted as a Wild Card.
However, the French driver was ultimately unable to translate her strong one-lap pace into a memorable race result. Billard started and finished P6 in the Reverse Grid Race, defending her position well but unable to move further up the field. Starting from P3 in the Feature Race, Billard looked well placed to challenge for a maiden F1 Academy podium. Unfortunately, her ART Grand Prix car stalled at lights out, dropping her to the back of the field and out of podium contention.
Billard ultimately finished the Feature Race in P14, turning what had looked like a breakthrough weekend into a frustrating missed opportunity.
Ella Lloyd – Rodin Motorsport (supported by McLaren)
Despite scoring points in both races, Ella Lloyd’s 2026 F1 Academy British GP ultimately fell short of what her previous Silverstone experience suggested was possible.
Among the current F1 Academy grid, Lloyd has the most experience at Silverstone, having competed in the British F4 Championship since 2024. The Welsh driver also set the fastest overall time in this year’s Silverstone In-Season Test, posting a 2:01.568 on the timesheets.
Lloyd was unable to match the pace she had shown in In-Season Testing during the weekend’s opening sessions, finishing P11 in Free Practice before settling for P6 in Qualifying. The Rodin Motorsport driver later lined up and finished P3 in the Reverse Grid Race, taking her first podium of the season.
Later, Lloyd managed to make up three positions on the opening lap of the Feature Race, taking P3. However, she couldn’t hold on for long, as Felbermayr and Nina Gademan got by after a tight safety-car restart, demoting her to P5.
Payton Westcott – PREMA Racing (supported by Mercedes)
Despite showing strong pace, Payton Westcott’s 2026 F1 Academy British GP weekend was damaged by costly mistakes, leaving her without points.
Westcott’s troubles began on the opening lap of the Reverse Grid Race as she ran wide at Copse. Although she quickly made her way back up to P10, her day turned worse when Race Control noted the American driver for moving before the signal. Handed a five-second time penalty, Westcott dropped down to P14.
Another opening-lap mistake came in the Feature Race as Westcott ran wide again, falling from P10 to P13. Motivated to return to the top ten, the Mercedes-backed driver sailed past her rivals to ultimately finish P11. Without the opening-lap mistakes, Westcott looked capable of challenging for significant points.
