Despite enduring a challenging 2026 F1 Academy Zandvoort round, Megan Bruce found reason for optimism after recovering from a lack of pace on Saturday to finish P6 in the Feature Race.
The Campos Racing driver entered the Zandvoort round on the back foot, having missed two days of in-season testing at the circuit due to injury. Her limited preperation showed in Free Practice, where she struggled for pace and finished P15 before improving to P8 in Qualifying. A post-qualifying disqualification for Wild Card Zoe Florescu later promoted Bruce to P7, giving her a front-row start for Saturday’s race.
Bruce’s chance to fight for her maiden F1 Academy win in the Reverse Grid Race quickly faded as she slipped down the order, ultimately finishing P7. However, despite the disappointing result, the TAG Heuer-backed driver found improved pace in the Feature Race, recovering to P6 after overtaking Rachel Robertson on Lap 1.
Bruce: “We struggled a bit to find the speed”
Speaking after the 2026 F1 Academy Zandvoort round, Bruce opened up about the challenges she faced at Zandvoort.
“The Feature Race was definitely better than the Reverse Grid Race,” she began. “In the Reverse Grid Race, I just struggled a bit to find the pace quickly. Obviously, I hadn’t done any long running here compared to everyone else in testing.”
Bruce’s lack of track time meant she was forced to learn the demands of the Zandvoort circuit during the race itself. The mixed weather made it even more difficult for the Briton to find her rhythm, with Free Practice taking place in light rain before Qualifying featured wet-to-dry conditions.
“That’s also tricky to have your first dry running in the first race. We struggled a bit to find the speed. We got there in the end, but obviously you need to be there from the start and consistent.”
She continued: “The Feature Race was better. We were fast from the start, and I think just from the knowledge we have only taken over the weekend, obviously not from testing, that’s all we could really do. We moved up a position at the start on Turn 1, so that was good and then just held it from there.”
Controlling the details
Further reflecting on her limited preparation, Bruce explained how she focused on getting the details of her driving right to maximize her pace and consistency.
“Just to keep working, keep hitting all the apexes, making sure the throttle is right and everything. We learnt a lot in the Reverse Grid Race because that was the first long practice that we had.”
“I was just making sure that I was doing everything right, like the brake pressure and everything. As long as I had all the exits, they weren’t going to have a chance to attack.”
Looking to bounce back
Bruce entered the European stint of the 2026 F1 Academy calendar with promise after securing two podiums during the Montreal round. However, her momentum has since stalled, with the Campos Racing driver enduring a difficult British GP, managing only P9 in both races before taking P7 and P6 at Zandvoort.
Her recent results have significantly affected her position in the championship, dropping her from P4 to P6 and causing her to lose her status of highest-placed rookie to Payton Westcott.
Asked about her expectations for the final two rounds in Austin and Las Vegas, Bruce concluded:
“I think it will definitely be better, hopefully” she said. “We have been fast at Montreal when it was a new track for half the grid, so hopefully again we can adapt quickly in Austin because it’s only one Free Practice and it’s a tricky track.”
“It’s a bit more winding, maybe a tiny bit like Silverstone. We had strong pace at Silverstone testing and it’s that kind of fast, flowy track. I think we can be strong there and just keep aiming and knocking on the podium.”
