Campos Racing left the 2026 F1 Academy Chinese GP with a “bittersweet taste” after claiming 40 points but missing out on the Race 2 victory.
Team Manager Gabriela Parra praised the Campos drivers for their strong start as Alisha Palmowski claimed pole position, Rafaela Ferreira secured P5, and rookie Megan Bruce took P12.
In Race 1 at the Shanghai International Circuit, Palmowski and Ferreira claimed a total of 9 points after finishing in P5 and P4, respectively. Notably, in Sunday’s Race 2, Campos Racing was the only team that had all its drivers score points, strengthening their position in the opening Teams’ and Drivers’ Standings.
“I’m proud of my team” says Parra on Shanghai’s results
Reflecting on the 2026 F1 Academy Chinese GP, Parra highlighted the positives while acknowledging that further improvements are still needed.
“I think overall it was an incredible step forward that we did as a team. Let’s say that balance-wise and racecraft-wise, we improved quite a lot in comparison with last year.”
“We definitely have a bittersweet taste in the mouth because we should have deserved the win, but anyway I think it’s positive for the whole team to have all three cars in the top 10 today and all three drivers getting points from the weekend.”
The points that Palmowski, Ferreira, and Bruce secured allow Campos Racing to take P2 in the Teams’ Standings, sitting just 4 points behind Rodin Motorsport.
She continued: “It’s just the first race of the year so we are not going to put our arms down. We can still fight for it, for sure. It’s not how you start the year, it’s about how you end it, so we still have a lot of things to improve.”
“We have a lot of positives in terms of pace and the drivers so I’m super happy with how the team performed overall and how the girls did out there. I’m proud of my team and we keep fighting.”
Palmowski and Ferreira take on their second F1 Academy season
Campos Racing’s two second-year F1 Academy drivers entered 2026 with high expectations, with Palmowski among the championship favorites.
Unfortunately, for Palmowski, despite getting pole position, her season did not begin as she had hoped. Race 1 saw her claim P5, while in Race 2, she suffered from a poor getaway at lights out, allowing Alba Larsen and Emma Felbermayr through. After being promoted to P2 due to Larsen running wide, Palmowksi attempted a later challenge on Felbermayr with a drag race to the line, though she ultimately missed out by 0.242 seconds.
Meanwhile, Ferreira’s weekend proved tougher, losing a Race 1 podium in the closing laps before contact with Natalia Granada in Race 2 dropped her down the order. The Brazilian driver ultimately finished the races in P4 and P6.
When asked how Palmowski and Ferreira have changed heading into their second F1 Academy season, Parra shared:“It’s a step forward for both in terms of driving. Let’s say that the amount of things that Alisha had to improve was less in comparison with Rafa.”
“The step that Rafa took was huge so I’m really happy with her. I’m really happy with the performance from both of them. This is a circuit that normally is not the easiest one, and not the one that is their preference either. I guess that now we’re going to the places that they do like to go, they’re going to perform even better.”
Bruce recovers from poor qualifying
Megan Bruce’s 2026 F1 Chinese GP saw promise for the rookie, who made her debut at the 2025 Singapore GP after replacing injured Aiva Anagnostiadis.
After qualifying P14 in Shanghai, the British driver gained positions in both races, finishing Race 1 in P12 and Race 2 in P9. With her impressive P9 result, she gained her maiden F1 Academy points and P10 in the Drivers’ Standings.
Analyzing her performance, Parra noted the encouraging signs that came after Bruce’s qualifying obstacles:“I think we had quite bad luck with Megan in terms of balance for Qualifying, but definitely the proof is today – she made up five places on the grid and even got points.”
“That’s the best way to compensate for a bad Qualifying so I’m really confident with her performance. I think she has really amazing potential to develop.”
