Doriane Pin bounced back in emphatic fashion to claim the 2025 F1 Academy title, after seeing the championship slip from her grasp in 2024. The French driver’s talent, resilience and consistency shone throughout the season, traits that have been evident since her early days in karting.
Pin’s potential was recognised early by the Mercedes Formula 1 Team, who closely followed her development before welcoming her into their Junior Programme. Recently, the 22-year-old took another major step forward, being announced as a Development Driver for Mercedes, expanding her role within the team. Despite her success, Pin remains firmly focused on climbing the single-seater ladder with Formula 1 as her ultimate ambition.
“I’ve grown so much. It will definitely help me in my entire career. F1 Academy and everything around it is big and I will never give up on achieving my ultimate goal – that’s Formula 1,” Pin stated.
A winning mindset
Reflecting on the mentality required to sustain a title challenge across the season, Pin highlighted the importance of staying present and focused.
“Just being in the present. Winning and fighting for a title for the whole year hasn’t been easy because when you’re leading, you’re the one to beat. You’re the one that has to be there all the time.
“We have been very good all year, especially the last weekend in Vegas – we’ve been spot on from FP1 to the last lap of the race. We prepare well, we have the right mindset and it’s definitely the right way to approach things when you’re focusing on yourself and being in the moment.”
F1 Academy title fight til the last round
Despite a strong start to the season, the championship battle was anything but straightforward. Pin’s duel with Maya Weug remained intense throughout the year, with both drivers constantly pushing for every available point. The title was ultimately decided at the final round on the streets of Las Vegas.
The weekend proved dramatic from the outset, as Weug was forced to retire from Race 1 after a collision with Tina Hausmann on the formation lap. Heavy rain added further pressure, turning the race into a true test of composure and racecraft. Speaking after the race, Pin said:
“I felt it a bit yesterday because the rain was not expected and you want to do well,” she acknowledged. “We actually did very well and because we were very ready and focused, we took it lap by lap. We were smart in terms of racecraft and I did a really aggressive move as well. We were spot on.”
“Today, I was very calm in the car. I know that 20 points is a really good advantage. I wanted to win the race. We had the pace to but you have to be smart as well when approaching this race. It’s about how intelligent you are sometimes and your approach. I’m very happy about this weekend especially, because we have been very ahead of our contenders in terms of approach. It’s clearly making a difference because we are champions.”
“Race 1, that was the race of a good mentality. It was a very stressful one but the weekend has been beautiful and one of the best moments in my career so far.”
By finishing fifth, she secured the championship by 15 points and finally sealed the title.
Pin: “Keep working hard and never give up.”
With four victories and four additional podium finishes, Pin claimed the F1 Academy title. Her determination and hard work definitely paid off as she constantly pushed herself to the limit. The 22-year-old set a high bar for herself, wanting to be on the top step every race weekend.
“When you’re not winning, it’s challenging because you doubt yourself. You always put yourself first to know what you could do better, what you could improve, what you could do next time.
She pointed to Zandvoort as a key example of resilience, where she finished sixth in Race 1 before fighting back to claim third in Race 2.
“Zandvoort was a good example. It was not easy at all but we were still there performing on Sunday. Keep working hard and never give up. The work you’re doing always pays off.”
Next step up the ladder
With her two-season F1 Academy journey now complete, Pin is already looking ahead to the next chapter of her career.
“I’ve definitely grown a lot as a person because you’re in such an incredible world. Every day you learn something so it’s super fascinating when you’re passionate about motorsport and the high level of sport. I’ve learned so much in terms of driving, but also outside the track and on myself as well. I’m really proud of everything I learned because I know it’s a privilege and I know it’s going to be very helpful for the rest of my career.
“Now we need to have a serious discussion. We are champions and that was the deal, so now we will discuss with Mercedes what we will do next. The idea is to have a long and successful career. Hopefully we will achieve good things with everyone who is involved at the moment with me.”
It will be interesting to see where she goes next as her talent remains remarkable.
