The 2025 season marks Emma Felbermayr‘s debut in single-seater series and her rookie campaign in F1 Academy. Her rookie campaign can be summarised as a learning curve. While the first half of her season might have been a mixture of disappointment and frustration, the Sauber-backed driver soon found herself on a path of redemption and victory towards the latter half of the season. It was clear that once the Austrian driver had found her momentum, she would show her true potential as a driver.
The Sauber-backed driver ended her rookie season in F1 Academy 10th in the Drivers’ Standings with 37 points to her name. Felbermayr also saw the F1 podium once this season in Montreal where she obtained her maiden F1 Academy win.
A rough debut
Felbermayr made her single-seater debut earlier this year in Shanghai for the F1 Academy season opener. The Austrian driver had an impressive start to her debut weekend with a P7 finish in Qualifying. High expectations were placed on Felbermayr ahead of Race 1 and she was even contention of her maiden point finish upon debut. However, contact from Alba Larsen and Tina Hausmann dropped her out of the points. She ended her debut race outside of points in P11.
Felbermayr took on Race 2 as her chance for redemption. She had her head down and completed the safety-car filled race with little to no mistakes. Felbermayr earned her first points in F1 Academy upon her debut weekend with a P5 finish in Race 2.
Mistakes and missed opportunities
The 2025 F1 Academy Saudi Arabian GP weekend was one to forget for Felbermayr.
Race 1 was an unfortunate missed opportunity for Felbermayr who could have won her maiden race win. Starting on reverse-grid pole, the Austrian driver had a clear lead from lights out. However, she soon begin to slip back and finished the race just shy of points in P9.
Race 2 was even more disappointing yet again as she left the weekend empty handed. Starting P8, she was almost guaranteed to finish in points. However, contact on Lap 2 saw her spinning off track. Rafaela Ferreria was later handed a 10-second time penalty for the contact. Felbermayr finished the race P15 after recovering from the incident.
Misfortune struck Felbermayr once again at the 2025 F1 Academy Miami Race 1. The Austrian driver once again found herself on reverse grid-pole and was looking to make a redemption from her previous pointless weekend. The Sauber driver seemed to have a high chance of a podium finish. She managed to hold off the other drivers for the lead and appeared dominant for majority of the race. However, disaster struck when a mechanical issue caused her to retire from the race.
A weekend to remember: Montreal
The 2025 F1 Academy Canadian GP marked Felbermayr’s best weekend of the season.
Since Race 2 of the Miami GP weekend was cancelled due to weather conditions, the starting grid of Race 1 at the Canadian GP weekend was set by Miami’s Qualifying session. Felbermayr started Race 1 in P8 and after a valiant effort and impressive drive, she almost earned her maiden podium in F1 Academy with a P3 finish. However, her car was found to be underweight post race and she was disqualified.
The Austrian driver entered Race 2 with even more determination and her eyes set on a redemption drive. Towards the end of the race, an opportunity presented itself with a safety car bunching up the field. A well executed final lap overtake gave Felbermayer her maiden F1 Academy victory and her first official podium appearance.
Felbermayr was able to execute a strong recovery drive ending in points for Race 3. After a collision with Nina Gademan, the Austrian driver had spun and dropped to P16. Later on she was given a 10-second penalty following a second encounter with Gademan on track. After a strong recovery, she ended the race in points with a P10 finish.
Montreal was the first time we saw a glimpse of the true potential of Felbermayr’s potential and was definitely the highlight of her season. Felbermayr’s win at the Canadian GP weekend also makes her the 16th driver to win in F1 Academy since the series’ debut in 2023.
Building on the momentum
Winning her maiden victory in Montreal was definitely a turning point for Felbermayr. Following a positive weekend in Canada, the next time the Austrian driver was on track was in Singapore.
Felbermayr finished in the points for both races of the 2025 F1 Academy Singapore GP weekend. After qualifying P6 on Friday, she was set to start P3 due to the reverse grid for Race 1. Despite having a clear shot of a podium finish, an unfortunately timed safety car had her slipping back on the field. The Austrian driver ended the race P6 after being promoted due to teammate Ella Lloyd’s 5-second penalty.
Race 2 was more exciting for Felbermayr as she had her eyes set on a podium finish. Upon lights out, she found herself in an intense three-way fight with Chole Chambers and Lloyd. Lloyd eventually came out on top however Felbermayr stayed close for the rest of the race. The Sauber-backed driver finished just shy of the podium in P4.
Unfortunate season finale
Felbermayr’s point scoring momentum did not continue on into the 2025 F1 Academy season finale in Las Vegas. Her weekend started off strong after qualifying P7 for the 2025 F1 Academy Las Vegas weekend. However, despite starting on the front row for Race 1 due the reverse grid. Disaster struck on the formation lap as she was left stationary on the front row of the grid. She was then dragged back into the pit lane with a reported clutch issue. Following her restart, she ended the race in P9 just shy of points once again.
Race 2 saw Felbermayr facing an almost identical problem on the formation lap despite Rodin Motorsport’s confidence that her clutch issue was resolved. The Austrian driver instead had to prepare for a pit-lane start following the incident. She ended her final race of the 2025 F1 Academy season in P12.
Emma Felbermayr’s rookie season was one of highs and lows. Despite it not having the ending she would have wanted, one thing is clear, Felbermayr has the potential to perform. Montreal was a true glimpse of her raw ability and she will be looking to show more of this on track in the 2026 season. Felbermayr has to continue building on the momentum for the next season and take the off season to improve on her speed and race craft.
