PREVIEW: F1 Academy takes to Miami for Round 3

F1 Academy is back this weekend (May 2-4) for Round 3 in Miami, USA. Abbi Pulling took the win in Races 1 and 2 in 2024. We will have a new winner or two this year, but who will it be?

Round 1 of the season took place in Shanghai in March, with Alisha Palmowski winning her maiden race in Race 1 and Doriane Pin winning Race 2 for her first victory of the season. 

Round 2 took place in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, with Ella Lloyd taking her first win in F1 Academy and Maya Weug taking her first win of the season.

F1 Academy has 18 drivers each race weekend this season, with a Wild Card driver competing each weekend. Round 1 in Shanghai saw the 2025 drivers take to the track for the first time across a race weekend.

Lia Block in Jeddah

Saudi Arabia recap

Round 2 of the season took place on April 18-20 at the Jeddah Corniche Circuit in Saudi Arabia. Farah AlYousef became the second Wild Card driver competing in the race weekend.

Unlike the previous seasons, Shanghai was the first race weekend with the new format of 18 cars racing instead of 15. Shanghai and Jeddah also saw the return of the reverse grid for Race 1, with the top eight drivers from qualifying reversed on the grid, with P9 to P18 starting from the position they qualified in.

Maya Weug, Ella Lloyd, Chloe Chambers and Alba Larsen were stand-out performers from Jeddah, with Ella Lloyd taking the win in Race 1 and Maya Weug inheriting the win in Race 2 after Chloe Chambers received a five-second time penalty.

Read our complete round-up of the F1 Academy Round 2 in Saudi Arabia.

Weug win in Jeddah Race 2

F1 Academy Miami race weekend format

The 2025 season introduced a change to the weekend format, which is now split into three days: Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. Up to two practice sessions, each lasting up to 40 minutes, take place on Friday. A 30-minute qualifying session will take place on either Friday or Saturday, depending on the number of practice sessions allocated.

Saturday will host Race 1, and following this season's reform of the Sporting Regulations, it will be a reverse grid race.

The reverse grid race means that the top eight drivers from qualifying will be reversed on the grid, while the drivers that finish between P9 and P18 will start from the position they qualify in. In this race, only the first eight drivers will earn points and the driver who records the fastest lap and finishes in the top eight will score an extra point.

Race 1 points allocation:

• P1 - 10 points

• P2 - 8 points

• P3 - 6 points

• P4 - 5 points

• P5 - 4 points

• P6 - 3 points

• P7 - 2 points

• P8 - 1 point

Race 2 has no changes from previous seasons, with drivers starting from the position that they qualified in. The first 10 drivers to cross the chequered flag will earn points on a sliding scale from 25 points to the winner and down to one point to the driver finishing in P10.

The driver who earns Pole Position for Race 2 will earn two extra points. The driver who sets the fastest lap will earn an additional point if they finish the race within the top 10.

Race 2 points allocation:

• P1 - 25 points

• P2 - 18 points

• P3 - 15 points

• P4 - 12 points

• P5 - 10 points

• P6 - 8 points

• P7 - 6 points

• P8 - 4 points

• P9 - 2 points

• P10 - 1 point

F1 Academy in Jeddah

What’s the schedule for the Miami race weekend?

Round 3 begins on Friday, 2 May, with FP1 at 15:05 and FP2 at 20:20. This year’s qualifying session will take place at 15:25 on Saturday, 3 May.

Race 1 will take place on Saturday, 3 May, at 19:55, and Race 2 on Sunday, 4 May, at 18:05.

All times are in British Summer Time (BST).

F1 Academy Miami 2024

Who is the wild card entry?

Ava Dobson will make her F1 Academy debut in round 3 of the season, as the Wild Card entry for the Miami race weekend. Ava driver car number 90 and is supported by F1 Academy’s new financial services partner, Morgan Stanley, operated by Hitech TGR.

The 16-year-old American driver is currently competing in the 2025 GB4 Championship with Arden Motorsport and has previously competed in the Formula 4 United States Championship.

Ava Dobson Miami Wild Card

Everything you need to know about the Miami International Autodrome

F1 Academy first raced at the Miami International Autodrome in 2024 as part of the Formula 1 Grand Prix race weekend.

Race 1 and Race 2 will both cover a distance of 70.356 km over 13 laps. The circuit length is 5.412km, with 19 corners. In 2024, Pulling set the fastest lap time of 1:58.507.

The Miami International Autodrome is located just outside the city of Miami in Florida.

Miami International Autodrome

2025 Season Standings After Round 2

1. Maya Weug 59 points

2. Doriane Pin 52 points

3. Chloe Chambers 47 points

4. Alisha Palmowski 36 points

5. Alba Larsen 28 points

6. Ella Lloyd 23 points

7. Tina Hausmann 11 points

8. Emma Felbermayr 10 points

9. Rafaela Ferreira 8 points

10.  Nina Gademan 8 points

11. Lia Block 2 points

12.  Joanne Ciconte 2 points

13.  Avia Anagnostiados 1 point

14.  Chloe Chong

15.  Aurelia Nobels

16. Courtney Crone

17.  Shi Wei (WCD)

18.  Nicole Havrda

19.  Farah Alyousef (WCD)

The F1 Academy qualifying sessions, Race 1 and Race 2 throughout the season can be streamed on F1 Academy’s YouTube, X Channels, F1 TV and Sky Sports F1.

All images are credited to F1 Academy Limited.