Payton Westcott described her maiden F1 Academy victory as a major confidence boost after controlling the Dutch GP Reverse Grid Race from start to finish at Zandvoort.
The PREMA Racing driver originally qualified ninth before Zoe Florescu’s disqualification promoted her to eighth and, consequently, reverse-grid pole. Westcott capitalised fully on the opportunity, controlling the start and two Safety Car restarts before resisting brief late pressure from Alba Larsen to take her first victory in the series by almost two seconds.
The breakthrough followed a difficult Silverstone weekend and added to Westcott’s previous podium finishes in Shanghai and Montreal. It also moved the 17-year-old up to fourth in the Drivers’ Standings heading into Sunday’s Feature Race.
Westcott controls Zandvoort Reverse Grid F1 Academy race despite Safety Car interruptions
Westcott made a clean start and immediately covered Megan Bruce into Turn 1 before beginning to establish an advantage. Although the first Safety Car erased the gap she had created, the American responded strongly at the restart and again separated herself from the drivers behind.
“I feel great. It was a good race from my end,” she began. “I managed to pull a gap in the first lap and then we had the Safety Car after that, so I was a bit disappointed because I thought I had a nice gap.
“After the Safety Car restart, which I think I managed quite well, I had another nice gap and then watched Nina and Alba battle a little bit behind me. Then I managed to get another gap.
“I saw Alba got around Nina and then it was just me focusing on my race in front, trying to make a gap. Alba got pretty close at one point, but I kept going and kept focusing on myself.”
The battle between Nina Gademan and Larsen initially gave Westcott extra breathing room, although Larsen eventually emerged into second and briefly began closing. Westcott nevertheless remained composed and concentrated on maintaining her own rhythm rather than responding directly to the pressure behind.
Maiden victory brings relief after difficult results
The win carried additional significance after Westcott endured a difficult British GP weekend. She finished 14th in Silverstone’s Reverse Grid Race and 11th in the Feature Race, leaving without the results she wanted before the championship headed to the Netherlands.
However, Westcott had already demonstrated podium-level pace earlier in the season with third-place finishes in Shanghai and Montreal. Zandvoort finally allowed her to turn that potential into a victory.
“It’s incredible,” she said. “I feel so relieved to have won a race in F1 ACADEMY. It takes a big weight off my shoulders. I really did it to prove to myself that I could do it and I’m so happy.”
Beyond the championship points, the result gave Westcott personal confirmation that she could convert a leading position into a race victory. Her dominant performance also came despite having to repeatedly manage restarts, rather than simply building an uninterrupted advantage from pole.
Victory provides confidence for Westcott ahead of 2026 Zandvoort F1 Academy Feature Race
Westcott now turns her attention towards Sunday’s Feature Race, where the normal Qualifying order returns and she will start eighth. Although that leaves considerably more work to do than in Saturday’s contest, she believes the victory changes how she approaches the challenge.
“Obviously, P8 isn’t exactly where I would want to start, but I think that we can keep moving up,” she explained. “This is definitely a big confidence builder going into tomorrow, so I think we can make some improvement,” she said.
Starting further back will require Westcott to demonstrate a different side of her racecraft after controlling Saturday’s race from the front. However, the possibility of changing weather could create additional opportunities for progression.
Potential rain adds another opportunity
Rain remains a possibility for the Feature Race, potentially changing the competitive order and placing greater emphasis on adaptability. Westcott welcomes that prospect and believes wet conditions could suit her.
“I think a wet race will be interesting. It will definitely shake up the field. I personally like driving in the wet, so I’m excited to see how it goes.”
Whatever conditions arrive, Westcott enters the Feature Race with considerably more momentum than she carried into the weekend. Her first F1 Academy victory has moved her to fourth in the championship and, more importantly for the American, removed the pressure of chasing that initial win.
After proving she could control a race from the front, Zandvoort now gives Westcott an opportunity to build on that breakthrough from eighth on the grid.
