2026 | GB3 | Spa-Francorchamps | Qualifying | Pulling takes maiden pole as Bedrin breaks Qualifying record at Spa

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Rodin Motorsport’s Abbi Pulling and VRD Racing’s Nikita Bedrin shared pole positions as 2026 GB3 Qualifying at Spa-Francorchamps delivered two landmark results on Friday afternoon.

Pulling converted her strong pace from testing and Practice into a breakthrough pole in the opening Qualifying session, setting a 2:12.566 to secure the Race 1 top spot by just 0.020s. In doing so, she claimed her first GB3 pole position and became the first female driver in the series to take a Qualifying pole.

Bedrin then hit back in Qualifying 2, producing a 2:11.911 to break the GB3 Qualifying lap record at the Belgian GP venue. The championship leader’s lap was over four tenths clear of the rest of the field, putting him on pole for Race 2.

2026 GB3: Spa-Francorchamps: Qualifying 1: Pulling makes history with maiden GB3 pole

Pulling entered Qualifying having already shown front-running speed across the Spa weekend. She had finished third in both Thursday testing and Friday Practice, while Bedrin had set the quickest GB3 lap ever recorded at the circuit earlier in the day.

However, when the Race 1 pole fight reached its decisive stage, it was Pulling who delivered. The Rodin Motorsport driver moved to the top inside the final five minutes, displacing teammate Maxim Rehm before a late red flag brought the session to an early end.

With temperatures continuing to rise and further improvements not forthcoming, Pulling’s 2:12.566 remained unbeaten. It secured her first single-seater pole position since her record-breaking 2024 F1 Academy campaign.

Rehm completed a Rodin Motorsport front-row lockout, finishing only 0.020s behind Pulling. Bedrin was just 0.017s further back in third, while Martin Molnar completed a remarkable top four covered by only 0.039s.

Behind the lead quartet, Hitech’s Deagen Fairclough took fifth after topping the earlier stages of the session. He finished a tenth clear of teammate Jin Nakamura, who secured sixth.

Patricio Gonzalez placed seventh for VRD Racing, 0.045s ahead of Elite Motorsport’s Kirill Kutskov. The Kazakh driver secured his best GB3 Qualifying result so far in eighth, while Flynn Jackes and Thursday pace-setter Dante Vinci completed the top 10.

The top 10 for the Race 1 grid were covered by 0.727s, while the top 16 were separated by just 1.004s around the longest circuit on the calendar. Race 1 is scheduled to begin at 11:00 CEST on Saturday.

Qualifying 1 – Full Results (Provisional)

#3 Abbi Pulling, Rodin Motorsport: 2:12.566
#1 Maxim Rehm, Rodin Motorsport: +0.020
#20 Nikita Bedrin, VRD Racing: +0.037
#2 Martin Molnar, Rodin Motorsport: +0.039
#6 Deagen Fairclough, Hitech: +0.348
#4 Jin Nakamura, Hitech: +0.491
#21 Patricio Gonzalez, VRD Racing: +0.604
#17 Kirill Kutskov, Elite Motorsport: +0.649
#18 Flynn Jackes, Elite Motorsport: +0.721
#10 Dante Vinci, Hillspeed: +0.727
#7 Lucas Fluxa, Xcel Motorsport: +0.772
#8 Rowan Campbell-Pilling, Xcel Motorsport: +0.917
#11 Peter Bouzinelos, Hillspeed: +0.943
#19 Kyuho Lee, Elite Motorsport: +0.960
#9 Ricardo Baptista, Xcel Motorsport: +0.986
#26 Lewis Gilbert, Arden Motorsport: +1.004
#24 Jack Taylor, Fortec Motorsports: +1.021
#31 Jason Pribyl, Nitrous Competitions ADM Racing: +1.197
#12 Aurelia Nobels, Hillspeed: +1.457
#22 Rodrigo Gonzalez, VRD Racing: +1.461
#5 Yuhao Fu, Hitech: +1.543
#27 Leon Wilson, Arden Motorsport: +1.555

2026 GB3: Spa-Francorchamps: Qualifying 2: Bedrin responds with record-breaking pole

After missing out on Race 1 pole by less than four hundredths of a second, Bedrin responded emphatically in the second Qualifying session.

With a lighter fuel load and another set of new tyres, the VRD Racing driver produced a 2:11.911 midway through the 15-minute session. His lap was almost two seconds quicker than the previous best GB3 Qualifying time at Spa-Francorchamps.

Bedrin set the benchmark with more than five minutes remaining and then returned to the pit lane, sitting out the rest of the session. Whether through confidence that the lap was enough or an effort to preserve tyres, the decision proved justified.

Although several drivers improved late on, Bedrin’s advantage remained a commanding 0.472s. Rehm again took second for Rodin Motorsport, ensuring he will start from the front row for both of Saturday’s opening races.

Pulling was third in Qualifying 2, ending the session 0.489s away from Bedrin. She remained at the sharp end despite later noting that she did not have a crucial tow on her best lap.

Fairclough improved to fourth in the second session, finishing just over a tenth behind Pulling and a similar margin ahead of Molnar, as the two effectively swapped positions from Qualifying 1. Nakamura was sixth once again for Hitech.

Xcel Motorsport’s Lucas Fluxa made strong progress in Qualifying 2, climbing from 11th in the opening session to seventh for the Race 2 grid. Vinci also improved to eighth, securing his best starting position of the 2026 season so far.

Rowan Campbell-Pilling completed a stronger second session for Xcel by taking ninth, just over a second from pole. Patricio Gonzalez rounded out the top 10 for Race 2, which is due to begin at 15:50 CEST on Saturday.